Contrary to speculation that I had fallen off the western end of the world, I have returned to college and my blog. The problem with starting a blog is that people expect one to post on it, even when one has nothing to say. Have you ever stopped to consider how much of the good old www is filled up with the words of people who had nothing to say? It's nearly as bad as U. S. Senators writing books.
My time at college has given me a new appreciation for manual labor. I got to work on Dad's new shop over the break, finishing up the plywood ceiling of the overhang, and putting up hardiplank lap siding. I also did a lot of brush burning at my grandparents' in California. There is something extremely satisfying about seeing the material result of your work, a sastisfaction that cannot be found in simply working with your mind.
As a student, I will spend this entire semester studying day and night, and all I will see from it is five or six little letters on a piece of paper. Sure, good grades are satisfying, but they cannot be used, admired, or enjoyed like a building, a fence, or a pile of firewood. Even well-paid lawyers and businessmen cannot point to anything that they have "made" other than money. There would probably be more happiness in this world if more people got out from behind their computers and did some manual labor.
This is not to say that white-collar work is less honorable than physical labor; in fact, perhaps it is more noble because it has fewer visible rewards. But there is something about actually creating with our hands that seems to strike a chord in our hearts as image-bearers of The Creator. It is that ability to see what we have made, and say "Behold, it is good."
In our modern age, many men go through life without ever learning to work with their hands. Some would say that this is a good thing, alleviating some of the weight of the Curse. God told Adam, "By the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread," but now many eat steak dinners by the straining of their minds. Yet I am not sure that this is always a good thing. Although white-collar workers enjoy more physical comfort, they do not get to feel the satisfaction that hard work brings.
The result of the human condition is that while trying to mitigate the material effects of the fall, we often deny ourselves the material blessings of creation. It is hard to argue that one type of work is better than another, for all of our labor on earth is touched by the fall. And whatsoever our hand (or mind) finds to do, we are to do it with all our might. But I enjoyed being able to get out and do some "real work" over the break.
This being said, I must get to work. I at least want the satisfaction of having six little A's on that piece of paper in May. But really, what can I do with an A?
Thursday, January 19, 2006
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5 comments:
Great post, bro.
We miss you!
I am glad to see that your sister has persuaded you to enter the world of blogging, and has directed me to yours from her own, which I habitually visit due to all the delightful personalities of those who post therein :).
Good post. Over break I enjoyed doing more manual labor myself—okay, I guess girl-type manual labor like baking cookies and preparing casseroles and washing dishes and housecleaning. I’m hoping to find time this semester for more hands-on work like planting a flower garden—it has been way too long since I’ve had my hands in dirt.
We’re not supposed to dwarf into giant minds behind computer screens, but to live as complete human beings. I think the Internet age has brought too many people into a kind of virtual minds-only reality that isn’t really real. It’s important to recognize the created goodness of both the body and soul, of both manual and mental labor, both corrupted by the Fall but both in original essence good and meant to be redeemed.
That’s why I appreciate blue color workers who read theology, philosophy, and poetry, and white collar workers like my dad who build a house, fix cars, and till gardens. They’re living holistically and developing all aspects of being, doing all types of work in worship to God. (Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.)
There’s a lot of discontinuity in the life of a college student—sometimes mental labor only during the semester and then manual labor only over break. Hopefully these two can be united after graduation, if not before. Until then we have the fitness room to exercise something other than our minds!
You’re certainly right that the little one-page grade report is not a satisfying result of a semester’s labor—especially when you don’t get the six little A’s you wanted. (Yes, okay, that has happened to me, but the sun keeps rising…) Ultimately the purpose of our work here isn’t little A’s on a page but preparation to serve God both mentally and manually. So if planting a flower garden would cost me an A in one of my classes, should I do it and call my life more balanced? I don’t know …
OK, that kind of evolved into a long comment ... :)
I hear you on the "manual labor." What is the first thing I did when I arrived home? I dove into a week-long cookie-baking marathon! (Like Lisa, I consider baking to be female "manual labor," and it is also rewarding. :)) Anyway, the results of physical work are much more readily evident than mental work, it is true. But the fruits of mental effort, especially when coupled with spiritual growth, always reveal themselves in the end. Your five or six little As are not the true benefits you gathered from your studies, after all. The real results are inside you, in newly-gained knowledge and maturity. :) And I'm sure you know that, because after all, you're not off in training to be a carpenter. You're learning to be a... well, a something good that needs intellectual skills too! heh. I should add here also that it is quite possible to see results when one is a writer. One can influence people to change their behavior, and that is a heady thing.
Me, I think life should be joy, which means life should include plenty of outdoors. It's so easy for me to lose joy when all I see are computers and books all day. God puts on a beautiful show in the sky every day, morning and evening, and very few people appreciate it. If I had my way, which doesn't seem likely until I am an old, contemplative lady in a rocking chair, I would witness both every day.
Yes, yours is a good post. I can see why you want to wait to add something to your blog until you have your closest approximation to a work of art. You must be Dignified. I'll give you a hint, though - anyone's posts improve with constant practice. ;)
I figured out what you can do with six As. You can spell 'aardvark,' and then you can spell 'abbatical.'
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