The Difference Between My Husband and Me

photo from:
http://www.quantum-conservation.org/EEP/CARRIBEAN%20MANATEE.html

March 12, 2005

Well, there are obvious differences, of course. He is a man, I am a woman, he is tall, I am not, he is a little over weight, I am very over weight, he is pink and I am yellow. There are a lot of obvious differences between us. But one of the main differences is the way we think. Most people would think immediately that I am referring to the differences between the way men and women think, but that is not exactly what I’m thinking of at this time.

An example:

Several years ago while Mel and I were still trying to raise our full support so we could come over here to Ukraine we were staying with friends just outside of Palm Springs, California. Now Palm Springs and that whole area is another subject for a journal entry! But I won’t go into that here. Mel and I had a free day and we decided to go down to San Diego and see Sea World and maybe visit the San Diego Zoo.

The trip down was hot and beautiful. I think we drove down that time on the west side of San Jacinto Mountain, over a route that our friends had taken us before, or told us about. We did go to the zoo but spent most of our time at Sea World.

I love nature. I love animals. I love with my whole being to experience new things within that context, to learn about, to see with my own eyes, to hear and smell, touch and even taste sometimes – to use all of my senses within the context of nature. Even nature held within the bounds of manmade walls. I thoroughly enjoyed Sea World – watching the orcas and humans interact, walking through the glass tunnel with sharks swimming by on three sides, looking at dozens of kinds of colorful tropical fish. I love the colors, the movement, the teeny view of what is otherwise unknown or unexperienced by man – especially land locked me! But the place at Sea World that fascinated me the most was the manatee tank.

Manatees are interesting creatures. They are fat and not very pretty. Manatees are the subject of legends – were they really the sea creatures that lonely sailors saw as mermaids? They are gentle creatures, so we are told, and easily hurt or killed by the careless actions of man as they go about their daily lives.

At Sea World the manatees live in a tank that people can view from underwater. We walked down a ramp and there on our right was a huge thick glass wall looking into their tank, water plants growing up from the dirt covered bottom, natural water plants floating on the surface – and manatees swimming and floating, diving and playing, looking back at us as we looked at them. Mel and I stood for a long time just watching, learning and enjoying. And we were fortunate to be there when they were fed. Dozens and dozens of what appeared to be heads of lettuce tossed into the water led to lots of splashing, diving, chasing and eating by manatees of all ages. And as they spent most of their time at the top of the tank, a few single lettuce leaves slowly drifted down to the bottom. And something else fell as well, somewhat faster than the lettuce. Brown, soft looking clumps that landed and stayed on the bottom. I asked Mel, “what is that stuff?” And finally we realized that it was manatee poop. As the lettuce leaves went into their mouths, the poop came out the other end. So very natural. So unexpected by us. But why? It’s what happens! But we chuckled about it and finally went on our way to the next exhibit.

Several hours later Mel and I were traveling back up Interstate 5 from San Diego north. We had stopped at the border patrol where our van was quickly looked over for illegal aliens and were headed for the turnoff east for Palm Springs. Traffic was light, we were tired and it was quiet inside the van, just the highway sounds in a monotonous hum and maybe the radio playing classical music quietly. I was busy with my own thoughts and Mel with his as he expertly drove.

Suddenly I asked him, as I often do, “what are you thinking about?” I figured he was remembering our day and thinking about the things we had seen and experienced. But his answer really didn’t surprise me.

“About the Hypostatic Union.” And he proceeded to tell me some of his thoughts. I listened for awhile, as I always do, then I laughed and asked him, “Do you have any idea what I was thinking about?” “No.”

This is a great example of the difference in the way we think. He was thinking about how it can be that God in Christ Jesus is both God and man at the same time. Christ was and is fully God who cannot change in any way, yet He became fully human, lived and died and rose again – yet remained and continues to remain fully God. There is no way man in his limited mind can grasp how that is possible. But Mel was exploring it once again in the quiet of the night as the miles passed by.

I, on the other hand, was thinking about manatee poop, how it looked, how it fell through the water, how it landed on the bottom of the tank and stayed there in little piles. I was remembering the quality of light in the tank and how the lettuce leaves seemed to glow bright yellow green as they drifted down. I was thinking of the contrast between the green and brown, I was thinking about how interesting it was that I had actually seen manatees poop.

Mel – his mind on spiritual things, exploring theological mysteries that have confounded man for thousands of years, enjoying it and relaxing in those thoughts of our God and Savior.

Me – my mind of earthly things, natural things, simple and basic things like poop.

It’s always been this way between us. Mel thinking of the things of God, spiritual issues of all sorts. Me thinking of the mysteries of the physical universe, sex, life here on earth, yet coming back to the Creator of it all in the end.

I’ve never forgotten that conversation because it really does provide an example of the difference in the way we think. And I’m thankful for those differences. In many ways it’s much better that he is the one who is captivated by the spiritual and not the natural while I’m the one who finds my mind on such basic things all the time. It can be very frustrating for me at times, though, because it is much easier for Mel to meet me in my thoughts than it is for me to meet him in his. It does not take much mental energy to think of how the star were created, why a geological formation takes that form and not another, how the birds fly, how good most men look in a cowboy hat and boots - or even to think of manatee poop. But oh, the energy it takes to consider the mysteries of God!

I’m glad we don’t think alike. How dull my world would be if Mel was not there to challenge me to think more deeply. And how glad I am that I can “bring him back down to earth” occasionally. We need each other.