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Sunday, October 16, 2005

Teachings from the Father and Son

I recently attended a seminar where the reflective question was posed, “How do you remind yourself that God is present in your workplace and how does that awareness change the way you work?”

It was an interesting question and I must admit I wasn’t particularly happy with the answer I was coming up with. I didn’t think I reminded myself very often at all. It seemed like it was something I should rectify, but I wasn’t sure how.

When I returned to my office I scoured my desktop for some icon that could act as an unobtrusive religious symbol. My laptop, docking station and monitor took a vast amount or real estate. Stacks of papers to file, act on or route robbed even more. What little shelf space I had was committed to books and business tchochkies. Before long pressing matters tore me away from my search.

While at home my young son continued to pick up and throw rubber balls at me. This was a fun game we had been playing for several days but it suddenly became much more significant. As he ran after me, arm cocked and ready to catapult another ball toward me he gleefully said, “Here Daddy, here.” At that moment I interpreted what he was saying as, “Hear Daddy, hear.”

Instantly I flashed back a few years to a nice family gathering. The occasion was my father’s birthday, (for that matter, my daughter’s too.) He rose to give a little speech, a recollection of what someone had shared with him as a younger man. He said words to the effect,

“In life we find ourselves juggling any number of balls in different sizes. There is career, finances, health, perhaps new business ventures, schooling or needless worrying. All of these things are made of rubber. If one drops because of neglect or a miscalculation, it can bounce back. However, there is one ball that represents family and it is made of crystal. This ball requires the most vigilant attention, because if it should fall due to neglect or miscalculation it will shatter and can not be replaced.”

With moistness in my eyes I gave my son a big hug before he could pelt me with the ball.

On my desk sits a picture of my family. Alongside of it I have placed a rubber ball I tend to throw or squeeze when the day turns tense. The two items work in concert to remind me that God is present and he came to me through my father and my son.

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