It is not new news to anyone who reads this that the world is in a panic. Whether it be a virus threatening to kill us all, or a plummeting stock market ready to ruin our 401k, we are all aware of the tension surrounding the days in which we live. I do not speak as a medicine man or a finance guru, just as a friend who wishes to see things a bit differently. As I write this, there flakes falling from the sky, blanketing the earth in a half-foot of frozen glaze. I sit at my desk with the window open and a fan humming there on the sill. Why, you may ask? Well, humor me for a moment and I shall explain.
Manalive
In his book “Manalive,” G.K Chesterton introduces us to a unique character named Innocent Smith. This jovial fellow strikes those he meets as a rather odd individual, maybe even insane. Admittedly he does some strange things, he enters his house by the chimney or the window, simply because he can. He travels ’round the world so he can appreciate his home more. He points a revolver in men’s faces, not because he wants to take their life, but that they would find joy in it again. He’s an untamed man who breaks conventions but keeps commandments. Chesterton says “His principle can be quite simply stated: he refuses to die while he is still alive.” We could use a little more of this in our world today.
We live in a wild world that’s been turned on its head by a raging virus. There are as many different takes on the pandemic as there are news outlets. How do we respond? Lives have been lost, a cause for weeping. The disease is spreading, a cause for distance. The toilet paper is all gone, a cause for laughter. The population is in quarantine, a cause for discussion. The snow is falling, a cause for opening a window. The way I reckon it, there are three main responses, overreaction, underreaction, and distraction. The first errs on the side of caution and implements momentous practices to slow the progress of the contagion. The second falls off the other side of the unicycle and does nothing. One causes hysteria; the other, apathy. The third shirks off both of the other two in favor of more pleasant thoughts. This is not striking a balance, but all too easily combines the worst of the two. I am proposing a fourth option, one which I think takes the good of all three and makes a delightful little tricycle we can ride.
The Tricycle Response
The three wheels of a tricycle all have their functions. Two for balance and stability, and one for propulsion and direction. Without the complete trifecta, this remarkably efficient means of transportation suddenly does not seem so attractive. Let’s look at the first wheel, the rear left one. This is the wheel on the trike that may have been bolted on a little tight and doesn’t rotate as easily, the one that requires a little WD-40, we might call it underreaction. That’s rather bland and not very Chestertonian, let’s call it fearnot. This is the response that keeps us from running around like our hair is on fire screaming “the world is going to end!” Stubborn underreaction is not a proper response, which is why it needs a little grease to get it moving again. View the crisis with all due skepticism. There are strange circumstances that warrant a closer look. But if our skepticism drives us to a lack of action, that is where we go amiss. On numerous occasions, Jesus was viewed as under-reacting to a given situation, yet he slept in boats during storms, showed up four days late to his friend’s funeral, even willingly gave himself up to be arrested when he could have called a legion to his aid. Point is, Jesus never under reacted, he knew, as we should know by now, the Father is always in control. This is why God’s people are repeatedly given the command “fearnot.” We do not fear because God is in control. There’s no reason to fear. In fact, it’s irrational to fear. We do not believe this widespread sickness has the final word, our God has given us his word and his promises are true, so I echo the command of scripture, fearnot. Do not put a space in that word. Do not let fear stand by itself, the command is fearnot, and we shall take the whole command as one statement, not to be separated. Fearnot is the grease that keeps the stubborn, stiff wheel rolling.
The second wheel, the one that looks a little wobbly, but is definitely still securely attached, an overreaction. Let’s call this one hygiene. The overreaction of people buying up pallets of toilet paper and hand sanitizer makes for great memes, but not for great peace. Let it be clear, stocking up for a long quarantine is a good idea, having a truckload of two-ply is not. How do we correct the wobble? It’s simple: tighten the bolt. Wash your hands, don’t touch your face, disinfect your doorknobs and light-switches; you know, all the things the fancy medicine people are already telling you. But as you do this, give thanks for the hot water and soap. Rejoice for your two eyes that see your amazing spouse and adorable children. Marvel at the miracle of modern engineering, carpentry, and architecture that bring forth the four walls, door latches, and LEDs in your home.
Finally, distraction. This is the front wheel attached to the handlebars that are a bit cock-eyed. When the handlebars are forward, the wheel is turned, and vice versa. It has occurred on nearly every children’s tricycle I’ve ever encountered. The correction I will make on this one is to change from calling it ‘distraction’ to calling it ‘innocence.’ If we are not careful, the temptation to look at memes, watch YouTube, and read blog posts (yes, even this one) to distract us from the bad things going on in the world. The reason Innocent Smith is such an exemplary character is not because he ignores the problems or the difficulty. It is precisely because he looks at the bleakness and refuses to succumb to it. When our Savior told us to be innocent as doves, I do not think he meant for us to ignore the disheveled condition of our world. Fly above it, look at it in proper perspective, and don’t be tainted by it. It is important to remember, we are not trapped on this planet with this virus, this virus is an unwelcome house guest in the world our wonderful Father has given to us.
Open a Window
In view of all this, what can we do? The answer is so plainly before us, if it were a snake, we should have been bitten already. We can do anything. Take this quarantine to take a look at your surroundings and appreciate them a little differently. Go open a window and turn on the fan. Go sit in the snow and read a book. Go work on your taxes in an empty bathtub. Go gather your family to watch a favorite movie, but watch it in Portuguese. Go brush your teeth with your left hand. Go FaceTime a friend, but flip your camera upside down. Turn your quarantine on its head. Do anything you like, but do it with this in mind, while you are alive, refuse to be dead, break conventions and keep commandments. Give thanks to God for tricycles and popsicles and spectacles. And last, but not least, laugh. Really laugh. Not just a chuckle, but from your gut, for our God has saved sinners and given us life in his Son. This is cause for true rejoicing.
Smith was really, so far as human psychology can be, innocent. He had the sensualities of innocence: he loved the stickiness of gum, and he cut white wood greedily as if he were cutting a cake. To this man wine was not a doubtful thing to be defended or denounced; it was a quaintly coloured syrup, such as a child sees in a shop window. He talked dominantly and rushed the social situation; but he was not asserting himself, like a superman in a modern play. He was simply forgetting himself, like a little boy at a party. He had somehow made the giant stride from babyhood to manhood, and missed that crisis in youth when most of us grow old.
G.K. Chesterton – Manalive
