Monday, October 13, 2008

Hitching

My Dad had this interesting habit.

He would hitch his pants in an unusual manner.

He would do it any time any place.

Always with his hands free....using his forearms to try to get ahold of the tops and sides of his pants...trying to move them up just a bit. Problems with sagging I guess.

Why this unusual behavior?

At the time this behavior appeared, we lived in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.
On the campus of Bethel Bible College.
Dad was the President, so we we got to live in a big stucco house 20 yards removed from everything....ah yes, such an honor.

Winters were cold....
I still remember waking and seeing the lacey patterns of frost on the inside of my windows. (And the one morning when I put my tongue out to see how cold it was. !!)

The whole campus fought against the cold from a coal-fired furnace that heated water to steam and sent the steam shunting down long corridors of pipe....and hopefully some made it to our house, banging and clanging in loud protest as it came.

Sometimes it didn't arrive....
and sometimes it was an off night, and the workers weren't there to feed the furnace,
so my President Father would go to the furnace room and shovel coal into the furnace, even all dressed up Presidential.

And after that busy activity, his hands were covered with soot, and his pants were sagging.

You guessed it.

So he hitched his pants with his forearms, holding his hands out in front so as not to get anything more dirty than it had already become.

He did it enough times that it just became a habit, an unusal behavior, tied to lilfe experience.

You hitch too?

I hitch my soul....trying to not cry in inappropriate moments. Made harder by the experience of deep losses in my life.

I hitch my lips...trying to not dominate conversations, 'cause I just at times get too excited.

I hitch my hands...trying to stay away from most things mechanical...so as not to bely my clutziness.

I hitch my expectations...trying not to get too disappointed over people who don't like history.

Hitching....it can be an intersting revelation to the past.
Hitching....we probably all do it at times.
Hitching....it helps us cope, and usually makes life just a little bit more appropriate.

May today find you adjusting to life....making things work....and drawing strength from Jesus Christ, the Source of everything we need to truly be alive.

Selah.

Dave

1 comment:

trinity said...

What a great story and thought...

Where do I hitch myself and why? wow...what a thought for my day. Thanks Dave.

Trinity Jordan