An intimate burrito

So here I am at work, and I realize it isn’t just work. In fact, the ‘work’ part is simply an excuse for my bi-weekly social allowance. Do you think the government knows I get paid primarily to hang out with people and chat? And if they did, what would that be filed under? It isn’t so much that we’re co-workers, but that we are friends. And slowly those strange lines of self imposed reciprocity are crumbling. You know the ones…that nervous speech after an impromptu burrito, “Okay, I owe you $7, but I don’t have it right now, so I’ll get it to you, is that alright?” Then there is one of my personal favorites, “I didn’t want to ask you because you already helped me before.” If we can’t share with one another - those that we can see - how can we share in what we can’t see? I often wonder if we even have a slot for a gift outside of some well defined birthday celebration. But it sure is fun to slowly watch people give of themselves to one another, and see them, ever so slowly become friends, rather than interactive ledgers that constantly need to be balanced. And don’t hear (read) me saying we need to trust one another before we trust in God. But I know for myself, that I needed to be in quite a bit of pain to come to a place that seeking Him was first placed smack dab in front of my eyes – and then quite joyfully appealing.

This whole frame of fuzzy logic has been bouncing around my head as I’ve been working these last couple of years. Today I’ve had the pleasure of hearing from several people I work with about their children, and the stresses of parenting. They share with me those personal feelings and thoughts about disciplining their child. How they feel sick when then come to that place of spanking. Stress in relationships at home, and then there is missing their child because they are gone for a few weeks - and the weird phone calls about wanting to come home. These are only a few of today’s interactions, but it becomes quite obvious that this type of intimate sharing is well beyond the formal roles of our work-a-day world. And to me this is worth quite more than food.

Truth be told, I can’t remember actually asking myself the specific question, “What would Jesus Do?” That doesn’t happen for me, but I think I walk through the neighborhood where Jesus might hang out if He were cruzin’ through town. But I always have to laugh just a little bit when there’s a freak out about owing money over food. Not to say that a commodity (in this case a burrito) isn’t real; but is it any more real than mental, emotional or spiritual health. And why is one shared, and the other looked at as a debt owed? Why do we freak out about an unaccounted food item? When Jesus comes back, and I’m one of those that hope it ain’t today, I’d like to have a chat. Burrito for your thoughts…