SOLITUDE or COMMUNITY

September 29, 2008

It’s been five days since my last confession, I mean blog. I guess the “c” word came to mind because I’ve been debating whether or not to confess that we went to the OU vs TCU football game on Saturday night. But the most extraordinary thing happened, that it simply must be told. The game wasn’t much for TCU, the Christians were slain by the gladiators this time, but the experience of community was beyond words.

Do you remember how before I started Sabbatical that I talked about how connected we are in this world? Well, there were 85,500 folks at the coliseum on Saturday. We parked and made our contribution to the mission trips for the youth of FCC, Norman and began the walk toward the stadium three hours before game time. As we walked I struck up a conversation with another fellow wearing a purple shirt. He was a funeral director from Pampa, Tx. I spotted an empty space on a bench, but by the time we had finished talking, the space was filled. Still looking for a place to rest in the shade we started toward a planter box to sit on the edge, when another space on a bench opened up. We chose the bench.

In conversation with the other couple on the bench we learned that they were from Fairview and season ticket holders for some time. They asked about our TCU attire and we explained that we were born in OKC but graduated from TCU. He said, “I can understand that. Where did you grow up?”

“Oklahoma City,” we told the story of our high school romance. “What school?” he asked. “Capitol Hill” we replied. “Where did you live?” asked he. Linda said, “Just off of SW 29th and Portland.” He leaned forward and said, “What street?” Long story short, he and Linda grew up on different ends of the same block, went to the same elementary school, junior high, and we were all graduates of Capitol Hill High School. I wish I could describe the look on his face as we made connections, but until this day on a bench in a crowd of 85,000 plus our paths had never crossed. He graduated in 1971, I in 1972, and Linda in 1973. We visited for over an hour and a half about memories of high school and how painful it was to survive in the era of racial “desegregation” that actually resulted in more fights than harmony. WOW, it was worth the trip to Norman just for this powerful encounter with a stranger that shared our common community of time and place some 35 plus years ago.

Sunday we worshipped at First Christian Church, Midwest City and had a delightful lunch with Les and Joyce Brown. Les has been pastor there for 22 years. 7 years ago the church relocated and built a new sanctuary and this was our first chance to visit there. During lunch we made further connections of common friends and experiences, although a decade apart, in Perryton, Texas. How small is our world? How great is our Creator!

I’ve returned to my solitude in Arkansas. This week it truly is solitude. My only neighbor at the campground told me on Thursday that she would be gone this week, visiting family in Iowa. Solitude has its place, but I’m beginning to see the power of community. Oh, and a song has started to develop. Melody and words are beginning to come together:

“Like a pebble cast on a pond,
The ripples go on and on and on.
But time won’t wait for me.”

Grace and peace with a song in my heart,
SongWriter