Humility is to make a right estimate of one's self"
--- Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892), Pastor
I’ve heard that every once in a while, it’s therapeutic to share
something embarrassing about yourself… it’s supposed to help you
maintain a healthy perspective, keep you from getting too arrogant,
prevent you from taking yourself too seriously, and other touchy-feely
things like that. But personally, to get that kind of therapy, I don’t
need to share stories that show I’m playing checkers on life’s Parcheesi
board. Folks don’t need past illustrations of my lack of decorum or
common sense when every day I’m out there painting new masterpieces.
And let’s face it, even if I
never shared my less-than-shining moments, I have a wife, two sons,
and a very close friend who encounter me day-to-day and are more than
willing to take up the slack, sometimes sharing the same stories over
and over again, adding embellishments each time, until what started out
as a slightly amusing anecdote about one of my minor mishaps becomes the
stuff of legend. So occasionally, I
do need to share one of these
stories myself to bring it down a notch and set the record straight.
The following story is a good example. Sue, Ben and Sam love to share
this with family, friends, people in the check-out line, and the folks
who show up at the local town-hall meetings. So strictly in the
interests of accuracy, let me tell you the
real story. It won’t stop my
family from gleefully sharing my capability for astounding acts of
cluelessness (which is hardly news), but perhaps you’ll gain a greater
understanding of the thought processes that prompt my behavior. Just
ignore all those warnings about staring into the abyss.
This is also a cautionary tale told in the
public interest. If even one family, after hearing this story, can
avoid repeating the same mistakes I made... well, frankly, it won't make
much difference to me, unless I happen to be traveling with them. And,
ironically, once they hear this story, it's highly unlikely that anyone
would make that particular travel arrangement.
This happened during one of our family camping trips. Sadly, we don’t do
this much anymore… it’s hard to get schedules to coincide now that my
sons are grown, and after years of vacations spent where the
accommodations consisted of a tent, cot, and a bathroom located just
over the hill, Sue has decided that Hilton pitches a better camp site.
But back in the day, our family would pack up a Ford Aerostar minivan
and head for the so-so outdoors (we lowered our outdoors requirement
from "great" after the second or third disappointment). We didn’t
take planes to resort areas; we didn’t stay in hotels with pools and
arcades; we camped. There are good reasons for camping. It's
refreshing to get outdoors and enjoy the natural beauty this great
nation has to offer. It's a wonderful opportunity to become a
closer-knit family by huddling around a campfire. And, mainly,
it's a lot cheaper to live in a tent and eat baloney for a week than to
fork over your home equity to Disneyworld.
All material copyright 2009 Chuck Thornton