The Ordinary People
When a string of progressing caterpillars
moves through the trees, one leads and the others follow,
their eyes half-closed and their heads snugly fitted against
the tail of the preceding caterpillar. A French naturalist
named Jean-Henri Fabre conducted many experiments with groups
of these caterpillars. In one experiment, he enticed a string
of them to the rim of a large flowerpot where their bodies
connected and formed a complete circle. Then they started
moving around in procession — one which had neither
beginning nor end. It was expected that soon they would catch
on to the joke, get tired of their useless parade and go
off in some other direction. But they did not. The living,
creeping circle kept moving around the rim of the pot — round
and round, for seven days and seven nights. They probably
would have continued longer had it not been for exhaustion
and ultimate starvation. Food had been placed close at hand
and was plainly visible to the creatures, but it was outside
the range of the circle and they would not get off the beaten
path. Were they following instinct, habit, custom, tradition,
precedent, past experience, or standard practice? Whatever
we choose to call it, it is safe to say they were following
blindly. There was plenty of activity but no accomplishment.
They meant well, but they got no place.
Have you ever found yourself saying: "Whatever I do
these days, I feel like I am stuck on a cloverleaf coming
off a busy freeway? There seems to be no way out. I just
keep going up and down, 'round and 'round without getting
anyplace. Where is that Exit ramp?"
This is a common lament that most often accurately describes
the life situation of many. Much of life today is like being
on a never-ending, one-way clover-leaf or in a mindless
procession on the rim of a huge flowerpot. We want to get
our lives moving toward some vague "somewhere" but
we feel like we're going the wrong way on a one-way street.
Up and down; 'round and 'round; horns blowing; curves threatening;
signs warning; stuck on a cloverleaf; not getting anyplace.
Plenty of activity but no accomplishment.
Not without justification,
many lessons have been delivered on this theme — lessons
about how we've gotten ourselves in a rut; about how we've
become blind followers in our dull and lifeless routine:
about how we keep going around in circles, plenty of activity
but no accomplishment; about how we mean well, perhaps,
but nothing changes. But is this all really nonsensical?
Is routine mainstream activity as pointless as the activity
of a procession of caterpillars on the rim of a flowerpot?
I think not. Let's
explore this thought.
Lying somewhere in between the impossibly ideal world of
the philosopher and the often cynical but real world of the
politician, is the world where most people live. The world
of the ordinary people. In this world life is most often
routine and unexceptional (examples: my personal routine,
children, jobs, etc.) Most people feel there is a restricting
sameness in their lives, that their world is "unattractive," a
word used to describe normality.
"Abnormality," however, makes headlines. The
exceptional gets the attention. For example, mental abnormalities
have been divided and subdivided into a long list of categories
(for instance there are at least nine types of schizophrenia).
However, there are remarkably few terms which describe
ordinary persons. The words "healthy" and "normal" come
to mind. But it is difficult to get beyond these two terms.
In his professional observations, Psychologist Eugene Kennedy
sees something more. He calls it "A message about
the wonder of the ordinary." He says, "When persons
suffer mental illness, they lose something of their individuality.
They exhibit common predictable kinds of behavior that
we call 'symptoms.'
Because of the similarity of their symptoms, people can
be classified as having the same kind of illness. That
is not the way with ordinary persons, however. Healthy
people cannot be put into categories for a startlingly
simple reason. They are all different from
one another. I interpret this
to mean they are all unique."
Well said, but unfortunately, not so well remembered, behind
the swarthy complexion of Abraham Lincoln, behind the wistful
smile of Judy Garland, behind the piercing eyes of Pablo
Picasso, was an extraordinary, unique self. And it is also
true that behind the wrinkled cheeks and dimming eyes of
the senior citizen, behind the sweating brow of the weary
ditch digger, behind the blank look of the bored assembly-line
worker, behind the anxious look of the restless housewife,
there is also an extraordinary, unique self. Yes! To classify
the so-called "ordinary" people
we would need as many categories as there are people.
A woman telephoned a friend to ask how she was feeling. "Terrible," the
friend replied. "My head aches, my back is killing me,
my legs won't hold me up, the house is a mess, and the children
are driving me up the wall." With deep compassion in
her voice, the caller replied, "Go and lie down. I 'I'll
come right over. I'll cook your lunch, straighten up your
house, and mind the children while you are resting. By the
way, how is Sam?" "Sam?" the complaining woman
asked. "Yes, your husband, Sam" said the caller. "My
husband isn't named Sam." Good heavens, gasped the first
woman, "I must have dialed the wrong number." There
was a long pause. "Then you're not coming over?"
Whenever that "caught-on -a-clover-leaf" feeling
comes over you, remember, God is calling to clean up the
messiness in your life and to heal your broken spirit. God
is there whether you are rich or poor, famous or infamous,
and will be there for you even if your husband's name isn't
Sam.
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me," Jesus said. "I
have been sent to bring glad tidings". To the
poor, to the blind, to the prisoners, to the ordinary people
like you and me. Do you feel like you're stuck on a cloverleaf
coming off a busy freeway? Or do you feel like one of the
procession of caterpillars moving 'round and 'round but not
getting anyplace? Remember, Jesus tells us of a gracious
God of infinite love for ordinary people. It is true God
loves us ordinary people so much and will never abandon us.
EXTRAORDINARY!
God Bless,
Rev. Paulette
