Like A Fart In Church
Please indulge my “I used to be a middle school boy…and sometimes I still act like one” persona as I talk about one of the funnier parts of being human - farting.
A quick memory: I’m somewhere around 6th grade, it’s Christmas Eve, I’m sitting next to my cousin, surrounded by family, attending the midnight church service at Faith Lutheran. We’ve enjoyed a wonderful family meal already, had gifts exchanged and cookies eaten, and now we all sat on the wooden pews, sounded by the faithful members and other families, holding our candles for later, hearing the nativity story and singing the songs about angels, shepherds and the famous baby Jesus.
It came upon a midnight clear…
Then, as the song ended and the minister stood to address the sanctuary, out of nowhere (but obviously somewhere), the old gentleman in front of us farted. Not a little squeaker…a full on flaarp! Now farting on an airplane…a guy can get away with that and no one would hear it. Not true when you are planted on a hardwood church pew and the congregants are reverent and quiet. Oak is not just a strong type of wood. It has a resonating capacity that I can still hear in my memory some 50 years later. Heads turned. The older woman sitting next to him whacked him in the arm. And we, the two middle school boys behind him, were giggling uncontrollably until our moms began shushing us, without immediate effect.
I’m still that middle school boy, now trapped in an older fellas body. Who knows, perhaps one day I’ll have a little noisy accidental moment in a not-too-appropriate fashion too. It won’t happen intentionally - I know better than to lift a cheek so others can hear. I’ll bet the old guy back at Faith Lutheran didn’t plan to create such a memorable scene. Sharing is not caring in this instance!
As funny as that memory is for me, I learned something that day (yes - there actually is a point). I learned just how important it is to be conscientious. Farting stories, while maybe a stretch to use to illustrate this point, remind me of how important it is to the group, the team, to be conscientious about the things we discuss with one another. Things like gossip, complaining, comparison, etc. amongst the team actually leaves a cloudy stench that affects the whole group. It leaves a lingering, culture changing, stink. Again - sharing is not caring here either.
Farting in public…we’re old enough to know better. The standard for gossiping, complaining, back-biting-bitter speak is even higher. It’s never OK. It kills the team, breaks momentum and is simply not ok.
A buddy of mine, a guy on a team I’m on, needed to get something off his chest recently. He pulled me aside just to share some of his own struggles. He didn’t air his grievances for others - he trusted a friend to simply ask for a little help. I was proud of him! I was grateful that he actually was protecting what we all work hard to build together in this group.
Keep doing that, friends. Be a great protector of the sacred nature of the teams you’re on! And, yes, you can still think (like I do) that farting is funny:-).
Peace~
Craig
