Local Government Employee
Lillian & I have a friend named Daniel who casually sends us profound texts every so often. I wanted to share one that has been rattling around in my head this last month:
“There will be lots of things along the roadside you are journeying down. If it pops up, pick it up and carry it. It may not seem to fit or make sense but receive it anyhow… Often we are just a leg of the relay race… A stretch of conduit by which is delivered another piece of puzzle.”
He sent this right after we started Oatmeal House in 2024, and boy was he right. So many things popped up for us to pick up. So much of our work, just a leg of the relay race. We were and are a stretch of conduit. We’re still finding puzzle pieces in a picture we haven’t fully seen.
One especially confounding puzzle piece recently has been my new job. That’s right, I got a new job and I’m working for the local government, doing something especially political: managing the municipal skate park in Ocean City, MD. You’d think this was an easy yes, but it actually took a lot of consideration.
The position required me to NOT plan two month long DIY tours, which is a bad habit of mine. I’ve never been very good at staying in one place and this job’s unwritten vow of stability was scary. At the time of interviewing, I was scheming our next west coast tour, and was afraid to give that up, thus I was hesitant to say yes.
But I said yes and am now the manager of Ocean Bowl Skate Park. Here’s why: When I told Lillian how it would prevent us from doing the west coast tour, she had a different response than I. She thought it would be a nice change. For her, it felt like a doorway into all kinds of stability that she desired, rather than a death sentence to our dreams.
Lillian was right and I thought that maybe it would be a good chance to practice a concept I recently read about in a Kathleen Norris book. She writes about monks who are experiencing acedia, a spiritual demon that makes them resentful of their work, their vow of stability, and the place they live. In such a situation, the monk is told to simply sit in their cell. For their cell will teach them everything. They don’t even need to pray a bunch. They can just be bored in their cell and that is enough.
With this new residential life, I’m learning to be bored. To not always be planning a trip out of this reality we are in. Getting a flip phone recently really helped. Having more campfires has been nice. Working on our garden with Lillian and going on daily bike rides with Basil has been grounding too. I’ve got a pretty cushy cell if I must say so myself! This reality is not so boring after all.
All this time later, Daniel’s words that inspired us to travel around the county are now teaching us to settle into our new home. They’re teaching me to work for the local government. They’re teaching me to honor this new season of life that Lillian, Basil, and I find ourselves in. Thanks Daniel.
“There will be lots of things along the roadside you are journeying down. If it pops up, pick it up and carry it. It may not seem to fit or make sense but receive it anyhow… Often we are just a leg of the relay race… A stretch of conduit by which is delivered another piece of puzzle.”
