The Keys

A hammer, a tape measure, a saw, a screwdriver, ….. a crescent wrench, pilers, a ratchet, a drill……Tools. The types and sizes of tools seem almost as numerous as the stars scattered in the sky. My husbands tool box looks like it could it tackle anything from a baby buggy to a Boeing 737. It’s mind boggling what he could possibly do with ALL those tools. Build a table, change my oil, change a flat, fix the chair leg, pull a dent out of a truck, replace a broken pipe, change a faucet, hang Christmas lights, build a nativity, repair the guttering, or fix the shower door. The list goes on and on for what he could do with all those tools. 

In today’s American culture there’s a sense we must have the biggest and baddest of everything, from our 48 oz size mega cups, to our oversized chairs, to our mega volume eye lashes, and our super size fries. We all seem to want the bigger and larger and mega of everything.  Men love to compare and brag at the size and kind of tools they have compared to other men. To be the envy of your friends is one more reason to puff your chest out in pride. I believe tool envy is the most common illness among men. If the big pharmaceuticals could make a pill to cure ‘tool envy’, I believe women in America would deplete the companies supply and hide the pills in the men’s mashed potatoes. Tool envy would then be as common as winning the lottery, if left up to a woman.

Even in the Truckin’ industry the biggest and baddest tools are a man’s dream. The most commonly used tool for a trucker is the adjustable wrench. A company recently took on the challenge to make what is known as the ‘world’s largest wrench’. It’s an adjustable wrench 30 inches in length, and weighs in at 12 pounds. To some it’s called a ‘beast’. They say with a wrench like this in a truckers toolbox you feel there’s no nut or bolt too big, and no obstacle in your way, that can stop you from completing the job at hand. What a monster of a tool. Every truckers dream is to have bigger and better tools than the trucker sitting next to you at the truck stop. 

With all the tool selections and options it’s mind boggling. To get anything done it seems you need the right size or the right kind. It’s frustrating when all you need to do is change batteries in the remote control, and you have the wrong size or the wrong kind of screw driver. You have to go back to the tool box and rummage around to located the one needed for the job. Such a fiasco, in my opinion.

It seems however there’s one thing missing when considering all these tools. It’s a key. Yes a key. While in their tool boxes are instruments to build, construct, repair, fix or change something, I believe to have the ability to open something is more valuable than all mechanical good you will ever accomplish using all the tools in the world, including even the 30 inch adjustable beast. 

You see the ‘task’ the tools do is only the beginning of the equation. For tools are nothing more than keys. A hammer and tape measure, used to perfectly hang a family portrait on the wall, is a key to opening stronger relationships. The saw, used to build a one of a kind coffee table, is a key that opens the opportunity to create a timeless family heirloom. A screwdriver, used to assemble children’s toys on Christmas morning, is a key to creating family memories that last.    A crescent wrench, used to change out a dead battery on a car, is a key to open our new adventures to exciting destinations. Pliers, used for years until they are worn smooth, is a key to open the understanding of someone’s get ‘r done mentality. The ratchet, used to assemble shelves to store treasures collected for years, is a key to opening the acceptance of someone with all their quirkiness. A drill, used to create a hole in a door which a knob is inserted, is the key to opening up to new horizon’s each time someone passes through the door.

The massive amount of tools used as keys in a lifetime provide adventures, moments, opportunities into someone’s heart, a chance at fixing a broken relationship, building family memories, showing love, establishing new friendships, entering rooms and new horizon’s never gone before.

I do love all the task those tools can accomplish, and I am proud when my husband comes through to save the day on task I have for him to do. His big box of keys, which builds a stronger us, is perfect in my eyes.

Hurt Man Down

April 15, 2016. Not a date of historical significance other than tax day. Probably an insignificant date to most people. 

Walking through Times Square in New York City with my mom, my sister, and my daughter we were taking in some of New York City’s attractions. The music was blaring from all around us. The LED lighting, from the larger than life screens surrounding us, made it easy to forget it was dark beyond the lights. We were walking along the sidewalk following the flow of traffic when the foot traffic veered to the left. So we followed and stepped to the left. There on the ground, curled up in a fetal position, was a homeless man. The street was packed with people. The blaring noise coming from numerous speakers made is difficult to carry on a conversation. People hustling on the street, up one side and down the other, barely gave even a glimpse to this Hurt Man Down. From the looks of his clothes it was apparent the concrete was probably his bed on most nights. 
The towns I’ve lived haven’t been affected by homelessness as I witnessed April 15, 2016. What caused this man to be lying on the cold hard concrete amidst all the lights and noise and people? Where does his hurt come from? When did his hurt begin? I dare say no one has expectations of becoming a homeless person. As this man lay there down on the ground my eyes were opened. It was a startling awakening for me. The magnitude of homelessness is disturbing in our country of excessive abundance. 

We walked on, just as everyone else in Times Square, happy to be there. Somehow it seems easy to put on blinders, as everyone else does. We make ourselves feel better pretending it doesn’t exist. Speaking to a woman a couple days later, she shared ‘many of the homeless are that way because of mental issues'. Certainly mental issues contribute to the homeless population, as well as many other things. 

Again, I dare say no one has expectations of becoming a homeless person when they come into this world. Somewhere along the way something had to have happened to this Hurt Man Down. Did we as a population keep our blinders on because it was easier. Since everyone else was doing it, did we look the other way? Did we wrap ourselves in our own world not caring about the needs of others? 

I’ve been involved with an organization that rehabilitates people affected by human trafficking. In a class I once taught, a young girl told me she’d eaten out of trash can. Hurting people are sometimes the ones sitting next to us. Sometimes they are our cousins, our nephews, our brothers, maybe our parents, or maybe even ourself. I’ve experienced hurt so deep that being curled up in the fetal position on the bathroom floor was where I found comfort. The man on the cold, dirty sidewalk in Times Square obviously had hurts I knew nothing about. He seemed numb from years of hurt. There were people that supported me through my hurt. I wonder if this Hurt Man Down had anyone, or if he had to face his hurt alone? 

Solving Homelessness is certainly a daunting task. The number of homeless people in New York City was too many to count. There was no way I could just turn my head, when faced with the homelessness. I had to do something, and I did. I’ll not say what I did. It wasn’t enough to move anyone out of homelessness. I only made a small difference to a small few, in the vast sea of Hurting Men Down. New York Cities Homeless population is but a tip of the ice berg of Hurting Men Down. Look around us. Look deep into the eyes of people you come into contact with. Hurts come wrapped in a variety of packages. Some hurts can be seen physically. Some hurts require professional intervention. Some can only be seen when someone feels safe enough to share their heart. Some hurts of the heart will reveal themselves through outward behavior. 

The gigantic task surrounding us, of Hurting Men Down, comes back to us, you and I. The very small number of people reading this can make a difference in the lives of Hurting Men Down. I’d like to give you the first step in making a difference. It’s the only step I’ll give. After the first step, it will be you who determines on your own what step number 2 will be. The first step is crucial. I’ll give it to you. I’ll spell it out for you. 

C - A - R - E 

Care. Care for the Hurt Man Down.

Matthew 25:35-40
'For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me' "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty, and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' "The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for the least of these brothers and sisters of min, you did for me.'