I believe I have found my calling. It is a calling that, though requiring strict discipline and steady wisdom, will lead to unfathomable rewards. What is this calling, you might ask? It is none other than swing dancing. That's right. I am going to start an organization to benefit the rhythmically challenged. I shall certainly be the foremost member, but what rhetorical energy I have shall be devoted to encouraging the crestfallen and downcast, those lost in the shadows of the graceful and elegant, those like me; for when I attempted this arguably simple dance, recalling what moves I could from past swing experiences, I began to believe that perhaps something was wrong with me. Didn't I have the same ability to understand directions that others had? Then why did my hand go one direction when it was supposed to go the other? Why did I lead the girls with whom I was dancing into fitful missteps? Happily, my unsuspecting partners were forgiving. Not me. It will take years for the scars to heal, and no one will know my pain more deeply. This is why I now commit with courage to creating an organization to assist those like me. This is my destiny. This is my calling. I ask that you join me. Thanks for reading.
*Note: In the following post, I am heavily influenced by a pastor named Bob Shirock. Specifically, Shirock writes about Solomon's response to the pleasures he experienced in life in Ecclesiastes, and observes that we can enjoy pleasures in life if we accept them as God's gifts, and if we express our gratitude in their enjoyment. He cites Ecclesiastes 2:24-26 and 1 Timothy 4:1-5. I’ve noticed something about pleasure: the highs can be followed by lows. This sounds obvious, but what I mean is that times of joy and fun in life's pleasures are wonderful, and can lift your spirits for a time, but they can be followed by a disappointment that comes from the realization that they are short-lived and will not satisfy us in the long-term. I’m calling this a pleasure hangover. We gain happiness for a time, but see that this happiness is temporary. We therefore feel a subsequent low that leaves us still longing. It reminds me of a theme in the life of C.S. Lewis: sehnsucht , or a wist...
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