Disorientation
Once I went to a school orientation that was disorienting.
An older gentleman stood at a wooden podium at the front of a large auditorium and spoke rapidly into a crackling microphone. He seemed to have started in the middle of his presentation instead of at the beginning. He talked about yellow Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Then about green Tuesdays and Thursdays. “However,” he added smiling, “it’s important to remember that sometimes Fridays are green too.”
None of this meant anything to me so I inspected the folded program I’d received earlier. I opened it and then flipped it over, searching for some explanation of yellow and green days. I found nothing. Glancing around the room I saw that no one else looked confused. Clearly I’d missed something important. It happens a lot.
About halfway through the presentation, I gave up trying to follow what the speaker was saying and spent the rest of my time drawing a picture of the man at the podium on the back of the program.
When the man finally dismissed us, I walked out of the auditorium feeling like I’d been spun in circles. I wandered through the loud, crowded hallway and nearly ran right into the man who’d given the presentation. With a quick, kindly manner he introduced himself and asked if he could be of any assistance. I confessed I felt confused about yellow and green days.
He smiled and nodded thoughtfully. Then he snatched the program out of my hand and began scribbling information on the front of it. I started to sweat as I considered my drawing on the other side. It was a nice drawing of him and he might have even liked it except that I’d written the words, “BLAH, BLAH, BLAH,” in bold letters as if they were coming out of his mouth. I regretted having taken such care to make it look like him.
After he finished writing some helpful notes for me, he spoke excitedly about the year ahead, gesturing expressively with his hands—one of which still clutched the program. I heard little of what he said as I watched the words, “BLAH, BLAH, BLAH” flash back and forth in front of me.
At last, feeling desparate, I snatched the program back out of his hand, folded it quickly, and thanked him repeatedly for taking the time to explain yellow and green days.
Life is often disorienting. I find that I have to reorient myself to the truth of who God is over and over again. His identity is the key to every other thing sliding into its proper place. I lose my ability to see myself and other people clearly when my vision slips away from Him. Everything gets out of place and proportion. Everything becomes as nonsensical as yellow Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, or green Tuesdays and Thursdays (and sometimes also Fridays.)
When I’m feeling disoriented, I go back to that foundation of God’s identity. His character. It’s like one of those maps that says, “You are here,” and it has an X marking the spot. Except, with this map, I’m looking for who He is. Once I remember Him, I know where I am and who I am because He is my orientation.
Blessings to you,
~Amy