Learning
Ministerial Meandering
Learning
I had a lovely friend in Johannesburg many years ago, who had been a primary school teacher, bravely taking the smallest at entry level. Her name was Filo Lock, and I couldn’t go anywhere in Jo’burg with her without bumping into one of her old students, who would always greet her with great respect - ‘Hello, Miss Lock, how are you?’ - even though they were now 40+ years old, and dragging their own small offspring with them round the shopping mall. Even in her lifetime, the school opened a new wing named after her.
She was something of a legend, and a wonderful friend to me when I was trying to open a bank account, find somewhere to live, buy a car and so on, at the same time as doing my job as a trauma surgeon at the Jo’bug General Hospital and Baragwanath (which covered Soweto).
One of her more endearing moments was when she was stopped at a red robot (traffic light), and a scabenga (bad dude) came up to her with a gun and told her he wanted her car. This car was something that had been designed and built shortly after Noah’s ark had come to rest on Mount Ararat. It had no synchromesh in the gear box, no electric windows, no power steering, and only just had an electric starter; I think she may still have had a crank handle in the boot (trunk).
As the car (of course) had no air-conditioning, it was a given that we always drove with the windows down, making it easy for the bad dude to stick his gun into Filo’s face. I guess he hadn’t been one of her students in his younger days, or he wouldn’t have dared to do such a stupid thing. She looked at him and said, “Are you serious? You want this car?” The scabenga stopped and paused, tipped his head on one side as if listening to the engine missing and labouring, and then shook his head, said, “No, lady,” and went off to find someone with a newer model who was less likely to phase him out.
I imagine that dude learned something that day about making more informed choices.
And I have something to learn today about my tendency to make assumptions. I have to go to a clerical meeting being called by the Regional Dean. Over the last 5 years that I have been to such meetings, I have to confess to finding nothing valuable in them - indeed, I have found them a waste of time. However, we now have a brand new Dean, and so I must go in an attitude of open-mindedness, prepared to learn. Being something of an old curmudgeon, this change of attitude requires effort and discipline. I am quite good at both of these, but I am also a stubborn s-o-b at times, so I have to tell myself that this is going to be a learning day.
Learning daily is something that we who are ‘just past middle age’ need to do to make certain that the two neurones in our heads are ‘still holding hands’ - as Filo would say - and thus still passing messages to each other. As long as we keep these neurones firing, we will stave off the ravages of dementia, which need not be inevitable.
One way of learning daily is to teach yourself a musical instrument or learn a new language, but just as good a way is to challenge yourself to more deeply understand your faith. Some people really don’t know why they come to church; are you one of them? Some people don’t really understand what goes on in a church service and why we do what we do; are you one of them?
If you need to learn more about your faith and can’t find someone to help you - then ask me.
Philip+