team members

hello loyal readers,

i don't know why, but when my blog becomes self-aware it bothers me. but i'm going to keep that irking opening line (and these first two sentences) because if you do happen to be reading this, you are most likely mallory, a loyal friend, or a stalker because i never write in here anymore. so congratulations on cultivating the virtue that qualifies you as a "treasure" in my life, according to ecclesiastes.

so i tend to be a bit of a sponge when it comes to traditions and quirks. i rarely make up my own traditions, but i tend to pick up others' as i move through life. one of the more recent quirky little traditions i've started incorporating is the "team member" game. this game is most easily played in a large city where its denizens are so diverse in spectrum that the bizarre occurrences become commonplace. i didn't have to look too far...san francisco definitely qualifies. the game is a bit juvenile, more than a bit judgmental, and entirely reminds me of choosing kickball teams in elementary school. pretty much, anytime you run across an interesting character that you wouldn't necessarily want on your team for anything in life (with the exception of the circus), you inappropriately interrupt the current conversation to interject "your team!" and make some subtle motion towards the intended team member. example time: ancient asian man in little italy today with a "neard" down past his sternum. incredible. honestly...no facial hair, no chin hair...the "neard" probably started a full inch off his chin, nearly above the adam's apple. i was in awe. definitely deferred him to the other team.

here's the thing with this game though...i would guarantee you that 99.9% of team members in this world have an element where they are completely comfortable and accepted. i can also guarantee you that 100% of these people are loved by Jesus. it actually kind of comforts me to know that no matter how strange people get in this world, they are probably loved, liked, or accepted by someone else somewhere and they are most certainly loved by Christ. i should love them too. i should want them on my team because that's exactly what Jesus would do. He ate with the poor, the strange, and the outcasts. He came to save the sinners. my problem is that i'm just terrified of the person with the crazy eyes who's licking his lips at me and peeing on himself. too far? yea. incorrect? wouldn't be me if it wasn't. but seriously, i'm just afraid of people who aren't in my realm of daily experience or who don't quite view the world through my lens. how am i supposed to love these people? i suppose Christ, His love, and His methods far exceed my own fears, my own inabilities, and my own imperfections. i'll find the answer in Him. it'll just take time, as all good things seem to do from time to time (except some great things which blow your mind and expectations with the intensity of their haste and certainty...wink wink cough cough hint hint).

so to tie all these tangents together, i will likely continue to play the team member game into my old age because there is a part of my naive sheltered heart which never left the san ramon valley christian academy third grade kickball PE class. on the other hand, i hope that God helps me overcome my fear of the unknown so that i can be a better man.

that's all. oh, by the way, does anyone have a friend in the diamond business? and don't say the shane company...because their commercials suck and they don't count. hello loyal readers,

i don't know why, but when my blog becomes self-aware it bothers me. but i'm going to keep that irking opening line (and these first two sentences) because if you do happen to be reading this, you are most likely mallory, a loyal friend, or a stalker because i never write in here anymore. so congratulations on cultivating the virtue that qualifies you as a "treasure" in my life, according to ecclesiastes.

so i tend to be a bit of a sponge when it comes to traditions and quirks. i rarely make up my own traditions, but i tend to pick up others' as i move through life. one of the more recent quirky little traditions i've started incorporating is the "team member" game. this game is most easily played in a large city where its denizens are so diverse in spectrum that the bizarre occurrences become commonplace. i didn't have to look too far...san francisco definitely qualifies. the game is a bit juvenile, more than a bit judgmental, and entirely reminds me of choosing kickball teams in elementary school. pretty much, anytime you run across an interesting character that you wouldn't necessarily want on your team for anything in life (with the exception of the circus), you inappropriately interrupt the current conversation to interject "your team!" and make some subtle motion towards the intended team member. example time: ancient asian man in little italy today with a "neard" down past his sternum. incredible. honestly...no facial hair, no chin hair...the "neard" probably started a full inch off his chin, nearly above the adam's apple. i was in awe. definitely deferred him to the other team.

here's the thing with this game though...i would guarantee you that 99.9% of team members in this world have an element where they are completely comfortable and accepted. i can also guarantee you that 100% of these people are loved by Jesus. it actually kind of comforts me to know that no matter how strange people get in this world, they are probably loved, liked, or accepted by someone else somewhere and they are most certainly loved by Christ. i should love them too. i should want them on my team because that's exactly what Jesus would do. He ate with the poor, the strange, and the outcasts. He came to save the sinners. my problem is that i'm just terrified of the person with the crazy eyes who's licking his lips at me and peeing on himself. too far? yea. incorrect? wouldn't be me if it wasn't. but seriously, i'm just afraid of people who aren't in my realm of daily experience or who don't quite view the world through my lens. how am i supposed to love these people? i suppose Christ, His love, and His methods far exceed my own fears, my own inabilities, and my own imperfections. i'll find the answer in Him. it'll just take time, as all good things seem to do from time to time (except some great things which blow your mind and expectations with the intensity of their haste and certainty...wink wink cough cough hint hint).

so to tie all these tangents together, i will likely continue to play the team member game into my old age because there is a part of my naive sheltered heart which never left the san ramon valley christian academy third grade kickball PE class. on the other hand, i hope that God helps me overcome my fear of the unknown so that i can be a better man.

that's all. oh, by the way, does anyone have a friend in the diamond business? and don't say the shane company...because their commercials suck and they don't count.