here’s life

So, I’m dredging through Treehugger, a trendy website about Green news, and I see this TED video and it mentions Polyface Farms in the caption. The presenter in the video spends a while talking about Salatin’s biosystem, and how he uses a group of species to work together to make a huge amount of food off of 100 acres. The presentation is about how plants do things to make us grow them, to make bees pollinate them, etc. We all do things to promote one species over another in an effort to promote our own species, and so the selection pressures favor certain behaviors. Rather than thinking that it’s people-versus-nature, we should notice–and build on–the fact that people and plants work together. That is how Joel works with the grass, cattle and other critters on Polyface Farm.

It makes me want to go back to raising animals. Maybe I’m forgetting all those mornings where I went out and walked in the chilly, wet, grass, dragging feed around. Maybe what I really want is have a “hobby farm”, and fund it with my real job. Or maybe I should follow in my family’s footsteps and get a small amount of land, raise as much as I can on it, then quit the industry and go farming full time. But, then I think of the bigger picture—am I getting stuck on a tiny aspect: growing things, and really I should be thinking about how I can help others, serve God, and make life better in general? Growing food would cause a symbiotic relationship with my customers who would get better value food than elsewhere (business sense says they would). And if I could figure out how to help others do the same thing, that would be a benefit to others. And if, while so helping others—-whether here, or somewhere that it rains more, or in Africa where there is just packed dirt—if I also help them discover God’s love for them, then my purpose in life would be complete.

But, before going and doing something drastic, like quitting my job and buying a farm and some cows..,,in India,,,maybe I should do what I can in my current situation—because just moving to Timbuktu won’t magically turn me into a great dirt-farming missionary. So, what is the next step? Do I get my own house in town so I have at least a little area to capture solar energy? Do I start doing more active evangelism? (more than just hoping they ask why I don’t strangle annoying people). Do I go haggle with the City to let me build a cheap house so that I can help everyone who needs one have an affordable place to live? Or do I just keep doing what I have to do, wash my dishes and laundry, clean up my house, and wait for Monday to go back to work? I could change the foodscape in my town, help dozens of people afford their own house, help a town in Senegal have clean water, and help transmit the Gospel by radio into closed countries.
But, I don’t really have time. Right now. What with work and all. And, I’ve got some webcomics to check back on before I go watch a movie.

Cecil, my car, seems to be nearing the end of his life. For nearly 3 years I have driven this car, and it hasn’t ever stranded me. Sure, I’ve gotten some nails in the tires, and I’ve had coolant leaks, but my normal way of repairing Cecil has been to remove the offending item. The latest hose to spring a leak was easily fixed by cutting off the end of the hose, and reattaching it. Sometime Cecil won’t start—just a click, but no crank—so, I jiggle the battery terminals, and it’s back to normal. For the $500 I paid for this car, and the lack of maintenance I’ve put in, I’d call this semi-miraculous. Sure, the Japanese engineers that built this thing had a hand in making it indestructible, but God has had a hand in keeping it running. And I think He will continue until it is time for me to get a different car. But, I got a warning recently that makes me think I should start planning for imminent failure.
I flew east for Christmas, but due to some mis-management by both me and the airlines, I ended up flying home, but with my car parked in a nearby state. This worked out ok—I had a bike, and friends, and before a week had passed, I had caught a ride with a returning grad student, and got my car back. Well, almost back.
When I pulled away from the Toll Booth 3 miles from home, there was a scraping, thumping, dragging noise and feel. Cecil hardly wanted to move. I let him rest a couple minutes, pumped up my tire, and tried to get the Center Dif Lock light to go off. No soap. So, I decided to just limp home—what was I going to do? Call a tow truck? The car did go, so I just drove slow, with my flashers on. I tried driving fast, but that just made the thumping faster. Going over bumps seemed to shake it back to normal, but only for an instant. I was halfway home when there was a loud THUMP! and I instantly checked the mirror for dropped parts. Nothing fell off, but everything was as smooth as normal. Once again, I saw my car get me home. However, this showed me that maybe it is time to get a different car. And there does seem to be another whine at high speeds.
Like my car, I often feel that I am invincible, at least sort of. In college it became obvious that I could go out and play football, throw myself at the ground over and over, (I only missed once—that was an odd feeling) and come back no worse for the wear. The odd thing was, I’d come back, be walking down the hall with my hands in my pockets, bump into some decorative trim, and gouge my hand. I would often do things that should have maimed normal people, and didn’t get more than superficial scratches. This I also would class as semi-miraculous. I have certain “natural abilities” that make me good at keeping from getting hurt, but where did I get those abilities? You guessed it! I was given them, just like I am given everything else. So, I am postulating that I cannot be harmed until God decides it’s time.
I have an instantanious replacement awaiting me when my body finally breaks, but my car does not, yet. I am heeding the warning signs, and do not intend to venture to take it on anymore long trips. It has served me well, but the time has come for it to be replaced.
Now I have a problem. I am planning to get a different car. Will it be as reliable? Maybe, maybe not. I have often sarcasticly poked fun at people when they have trouble with their cars. “Your new car not working right? Too bad you don’t have a nice reliable car like me!” “Oh, too bad about your car! I could lend you mine, it only has a quarter of a million miles on it…” Now I could be one of those people whose cars are always breaking and requiring hundreds of dollars to repair, people I have looked down upon because I have been given something that they do not have. It’s always a bad idea to be arrogant about something that is not your doing—and what do I have that I haven’t received? And what do I have that can not be taken away?