20.21.22

i think sometimes we tend to think He just bounced from one miracle to another and everyday was a Bible story but His ministry lasted for three years and the Gospels don’t actually cover that much so

imagine all those ordinary days?? 

He probably had favorite foods and morning routines and sore dirty feet from walking while sweat ran in His eyes in the hot Judean sun and He got blisters and hiccups and colds and maybe He snored 

all the times He laughed till He cried and i bet He had inside jokes with His disciples. imagine having an inside joke with the person who gives you breath to laugh in the first place 

and He had human skills He knew how to build a house and cook and wash his clothes and read 

passing food at the dinner table and bumping hands with Jesus 

talking about silly inconsequential things like the weather 

maybe some nights John was sleepy and he leaned against Jesus and could hear His heartbeat 

maybe some nights a disciple had insomnia and he climbed out of his bedroll to find Jesus sitting against a rock, looking up at heaven, and they sat and watched the stars together 

(the God of the universe looking up through short-sighted eyes at His creation, and the disciple wants so badly to ask what it was like to shape each star, but he looks at those calloused human hands and something in him trembles) 

do you ever think that the ordinary days so far outnumbered the miraculous ones that the disciples, sometimes, almost forgot

and then He goes and turns water into wine and feeds five thousand people from a kid’s lunch and brings dead Lazarus walking alive out of the tomb and they just kind of lose their breath

not because they didn’t expect deity to accomplish the impossible but because this God has been living with them

Also, imagine his ordinary days with his family. Imagine Joseph telling him stories and he listening, paying attention. Imagine when Joseph and Mary put child Jesus in bed and could hear his breathing sounds. Or imagine the inside jokes he had with his mother about his father, or with his father about his mother. Imagine the God of the world not only looking at the stars but also watching the majesty of a sunset. Imagine child Jesus running around the house, singing beautiful and cute cultural songs that Mary might’ve taught him. Imagine his joy when he ate his favorite food or taking a bath after a hot day. 

i think sometimes we tend to think He just bounced from one miracle to another and everyday was a Bible story but His ministry lasted for three years and the Gospels don’t actually cover that much so

imagine all those ordinary days?? 

He probably had favorite foods and morning routines and sore dirty feet from walking while sweat ran in His eyes in the hot Judean sun and He got blisters and hiccups and colds and maybe He snored 

all the times He laughed till He cried and i bet He had inside jokes with His disciples. imagine having an inside joke with the person who gives you breath to laugh in the first place 

and He had human skills He knew how to build a house and cook and wash his clothes and read 

passing food at the dinner table and bumping hands with Jesus 

talking about silly inconsequential things like the weather 

maybe some nights John was sleepy and he leaned against Jesus and could hear His heartbeat 

maybe some nights a disciple had insomnia and he climbed out of his bedroll to find Jesus sitting against a rock, looking up at heaven, and they sat and watched the stars together 

(the God of the universe looking up through short-sighted eyes at His creation, and the disciple wants so badly to ask what it was like to shape each star, but he looks at those calloused human hands and something in him trembles) 

do you ever think that the ordinary days so far outnumbered the miraculous ones that the disciples, sometimes, almost forgot

and then He goes and turns water into wine and feeds five thousand people from a kid’s lunch and brings dead Lazarus walking alive out of the tomb and they just kind of lose their breath

not because they didn’t expect deity to accomplish the impossible but because this God has been living with them

Also, imagine his ordinary days with his family. Imagine Joseph telling him stories and he listening, paying attention. Imagine when Joseph and Mary put child Jesus in bed and could hear his breathing sounds. Or imagine the inside jokes he had with his mother about his father, or with his father about his mother. Imagine the God of the world not only looking at the stars but also watching the majesty of a sunset. Imagine child Jesus running around the house, singing beautiful and cute cultural songs that Mary might’ve taught him. Imagine his joy when he ate his favorite food or taking a bath after a hot day. 

This morning I met a man named Henry Miller.  I had just paid for gas and a coffee and was preparing to get into my car to run a work errand before studying for my last final,  when an older man hollered at me from his vehicle. 

Henry had just traveled from Oregon, a mystical state that still has attendees who put gas into your car for you.  Henry didn’t know how to work the computerized screens at the gas station and wasn’t really sure how to pay for his gas either. I put gas into Henry’s vehicle while showing him step-by-step how to follow the screen’s instructions. 

Shortly, I found out Henry used to live in my home town, three blocks away from where my parents live now. He had a job with the railway which brought him up to Oregon with his wife  who died three years ago. Now, he is in Iowa in hopes that he may still know some people here. He got lonely in Oregon on his own. We then parted ways, wishing each other well. 

It wasn’t a significant interaction until I arrived at campus an hour later and began to think about how my time at UNI is wrapping up. 

Three and a half years ago, I would have never gotten to know Henry Miller. I would have assisted him and then went on my way, intimidated by the huge age gap between us. When I was 18, I didn’t know how to interact with people older than me. I didn’t see the significance in making friends with strangers. I didn’t know how to ask people small questions that open up big doors. 

College forced me to interact with people. I needed to confront those who intimidated me, I learned how to visit with professors and how to find wiser, older people for advice. I understood the importance of making your own doctor’s appointments and paying close attention when in their offices. I floundered and got flustered when I had confrontations with peers that my mom couldn’t take care of for me. 

UNI has taught me a lot of things. I know more about Shakespeare than I ever wanted to, I know how to set up a stage for musicians like Hoodie Allen, I know how many beers is too many beers, I know that if you’re gonna have a magician perform for Homecoming to make sure he doesn’t set the stage on fire, I’ve read and understood The Sound and The Fury - the most difficult book I’ve ever laid eyes on. 

But most importantly, I know how to be interrupted, to talk to people ,and really listen to them.

I still think the education system is sucky and it is ridiculous that I can BS tests and essays and still get Bs. and really going to college for an education is a waste of money but yeah go for the life lessons