“Be completely gentle and patient, bearing with one another
in love." ~ Ephesians 4:2
Anika looked out in disbelief as her
89-year-neighbor man pulled a rusty old bicycle from his garage and pumped up
the tires. With its ripped seat, bald
tires, and oddly twisted handlebars, there’s no way he's gonna get on that thing,
she thought. But just a few minutes
later, the old man rode his bike down the street . . . with her 3-year old by
his side!
What a blessing she thought, remembering the unlikely pair's
first encounter last spring. For nearly
a decade she and her husband lived next to Erling, a WWII veteran, exchanging
only occasional pleasantries. Their two-year-old
son Emmett changed all of that.
The toddler, who had an uncommon craving for tomatoes,
noticed Erling tending to a few of the plants in his garden and decided to pay
him a visit. “Whatchadoin Mister?” the
curious boy inquired.
“See these yellow flowers?” Erling said. “They’re going to be tomatoes.” What followed was a blooming friendship. From then on, every time Emmett saw Erling,
he impulsively raced to the garden hoping to score some of his favorite
fruit. And what living person could refuse
when he asked sweetly: “Erling, got any 'matoes?”
The two bonded quickly; Erling teaching the preschooler how
to fix a bike, throw a baseball and other simple pleasures of life. They went fishing, the senior citizen gaining
stamina with the little tyke by his side.
They even raced matching green John Deere tractors: Erling’s for real,
Emmett’s a toy replica. And it works
both ways – for it was Emmett who inspired the old man to hop on his bicycle
again.
Emmett’s parents worried that their budding friendship would
never survive the frigid cold of Farmington, Minnesota. Anika had stood at the kitchen sink last
winter when she heard the growling sound a snowblower fretfully close to their
back porch. She opened the door and
chuckled to herself. Erling was plowing
a path from his back door to theirs. He
wanted to make sure that the two friends could keep visiting each other.
Funny, ours is a world where younger generations often
dismisses seniors as being out of touch whilst older people critique the young
as frivolous and superficial. Church
families are comprised of both – each trying to encourage or suppress change to
suit their own interests. An older crowd
may find some changes hard whilst the younger generation will probably find the
pace of change too slow.
But a healthy church must not appeal to one generation
alone.
While many may not understand their friendship, Emmett and
Erling made it work. They discovered a
perfect balance. Each had something to share:
Erling became a friend and mentor; Emmett inspired activity and an
inquisitive spirit. God loves them both.
Lord Jesus, we are many generations, each
with an abundance of special gifts and experiences. Help us to learn from each other, through
patience, humility, and the great wisdom of God. Amen
