Well, she decided that an electric clippers would be even better to cut my graying hair.
Before we started the ordeal, I muttered to her that I hoped that God wasn't using this as an opportunity to teach me humility. She asked me if she made a mistake if I would still love her and I said that I would. That kind of sounds like a setup, doesn't it?
We carefully chose the clipping attachment that gave me the chance for the longest hair after the cut. This attachment just wasn't doing the job very well for my wife so she went to the next shorter attachment. It, too, wasn't clipping the hair to my wife's approval and so she went even shorter.
Not much was said over the next 10 minutes until my wife said that I needed to be prepared for what I was about to look at in the mirror! What happened between the clippers weren't cutting enough off to being buzz cut without any input? So God was using this event as an opportunity to teach me humility!
My immediate reaction was what am I going to say to my co-workers and friends? Perhaps a preemptive strike on Facebook or Twitter might be appropriate. My mind was kind of racing at the moment. Does it really look as short as I think it does? Yes, it does!
Since this happened last week I surprise myself every time that I look in the mirror. Oh yeah, that's right. I don't have any hair left! I have started to get used to it by now though and it doesn't appear to be the earth-shattering event that I first perceived it to be.
For instance, there are a lot of advantages to having ultra short hair:
It dries instantly when I get out of the shower.
I have no need for a hair brush thus saving money.
I can drive on the freeway with the windows down and my hair never gets messed up.
Women run their fingers through my 1/4" hair (okay, so it's my wife and daughters making fun).
I can be mistaken for my better looking older brother quite easily now.
In hindsight the big deal that I thought this was going to be turned out to be an opportunity to evaluate all the positives that came out of an event that I thought was going to humiliate me. It was exactly the opposite of what I thought would happen.
How about you? What has happened in your life that you thought was humiliating only to learn later that it was a useful learning opportunity for you? When we take stock of what happens to us and what is the ultimate outcome of that event, many times we forget the useful lessons that pop up before our eyes if we are only willing to see and use them.
What I learned is that it is easy to go right to the negative side of things before ever considering the positive, helpful outcome of an event we perceive to be humbling. We need to stop and take time to evaluate the event for its true value in our lives.
Michael McKinney reviews a book entitled, "Opportunity Screams", that can be quite helpful in building relationships and businesses. The author states, “It’s all connected. Transparent, honest, caring relationships bring meaning, happiness and growth to your business and to your life.” This will help you evaluate relationships and events for their true value in your life.
Marybeth Hicks writes a thoughtful article on the need to stay committed in our marriages. She claims that we are short on commitment and long on excuses. In a study released by the Pew Research Center, it shows that Americans are not concerned for the most part about the disintegrating family. In fact, many people state that the variety of families (single parent, cohabiting partners, step families) in America are good for America.
Hicks claims that the decline of traditional families is taking an economic, social and spiritual toll on our nation. She feels that marriage is hard but definitely worth the effort.
Finally, renowned British historian, Paul Johnson, has a new book out. "Humorists" is given a positive review in the New York Times. The Times say that it will give us a good laugh. I think it is time to visit Amazon!
I think that it's important to evaluate every event in our lives for the value it can bring to our lives in a positive way. Perhaps it helps us to not take ourselves so seriously in matters that don't really weigh in as important -- especially the length of hair! Oh, that's right, it grows back!
Until next time,
Jerry de Gier
