I got my A/C today! I don't know how the NLC folk did it, but they did! Now I don't have to suffocate. I worked at Kaleo again today, and felt like it was time to let NLC see the steam punk goggles. It went over well, and with the addition of my spider-man shirt they decided to have an impromptu super hero day at the coffee house. This is a good thing.
Onto serious stuff.
I was at the office, and my mind started wondering, and I started thinking about Phantoming. For those you who don't know, Phantoming is when a group of us climb buildings, make up crazy names, and howl.
It sounds silly, I know but bear with me.
It sounds silly and immature, and like a stupid thing to spend time doing, but once you do it, some interesting things start coming up. It causes you to start looking at things differently. I started wondering why that is today.
I promise this is going somewhere
The first time the group takes you out phantoming, you're unsure of yourself. What if I fall? What if I get stuck? What If I can't make it up? However everyone in the group takes steps to make sure that doesn't happen. As you do it more, you become a lot more confident; a lot more independent; a lot more courageous. As a result the group dosen't have to help you as much
Gee Wade, is this a blog about trespassing, and confidence?
NO just keep reading!
Eventually, you get to a point where you are a decent climber. At this point you are given the "honor" (like I said, It's really silly) of leading a howl. You start howling, and the group joins you. You are no longer a follower, but a leader. No longer someone needing to be watched and kept track of, but an independent and able climber, ready to pass your skill on to the next individual.
Break time.
Dear Mom, Dad, Grandma, Papa, etc. I am aware that this is silly and dangerous. I am aware that climbing buildings wont lead to anything prosperous in the future. Dear Concerned parent worried about me corrupting the youth and filling their head with ridiculous building climbing, moon howling, face painting ideas, relax. I'm not saying that everyone should drop what they're doing and go climb a building (I do recommend it though ;)). Its a silly game we used to play, all I'm trying to do is illuminate a truth found in it.
Back to that truth
The reason phantoming was so enjoyable; the reason I looked forward to going again so much is because it ignited a transformation. It moved you from an unskilled person, to an able climber. It moved you from someone who had never seen a rooftop, to someone who commanded the respect of others. It defined you in the group, moved you from one thing to another.
I'm reminded of the Rites of Passage of other cultures. Breeching, Scarification, Dokimasia all represent(ed) an important transition from boy to man, just as phantoming illustrated a transition from new to skilled. Rites of Passage clearly defined a person. Before X event a person was a boy. After X event he was regarded as a man. He had earned his new title, and anyone who respected the title, respected him. Without it, he was undefined, both to himself and to society. He would float aimlessly, never really knowing where in life he was, the line between youth and adult clumsily tripped over instead of gracefully and honorably crossed. He would stumble into adulthood, scared and unprepared.
Perhaps a lack of ritual, a lack of definition, is why so many people stumble into adulthood, crash, and burn. We have no rite of passage into adult hood. High School you say? O joy, we can graph a parabola, but we don't know how to pay a utility bill. Highschool is a joke, College is a scam, and we come out the other end 30 year old boys (thank you fight club). We are kids, and suddenly we are adults with responsibilities we don't know how to handle. Would a rite of passage fix that? Not really, there will always be things to be learned, but with one there would be a title to uphold, and an identity to live up to.
A comfort is given to a Christian, however. Accepting Christ represents a milestone, a transition, an identity. Sinner being the old Identity, Salvation being the Rite, and Child of God being the new title, and the new identity to be lived up to. In Christ we find our title and our purpose.
Told you it would amount to something!
Or could be nothing. I might read this tomorrow and think "wow...that was freaking stupid" take this post down, and replace it with a picture of a dancing coffee bean (I cant get enough of that guy!!)
Sorry that was so long, and possibly stupid (I am writing late at night) but hey, It's a how I think.
I had chicken and dumplings for dinner, and had a little moment of longing for Grannys. I miss home, but this is where I should be. I called her in honor of my bagged dinner, and got to have a nice log conversation with her and my grandpa. I love them a lot, and can't wait to see them when I, or they, visit!
I trolled Facebook, and found out a lot more people are reading then I thought. I'll try to be a bit more descriptvie about inside info that I just assume people know!
Love you guys and thanks for reading!
I like this. That's all.
ReplyDelete