I've been filling in the past week or so at Steiner Ranch Elementary School as a Crossing Guard. My friend Matt got me into the world of Crossing Guard last year, and its an easy way to make a little extra cash, meet parents, and just serve the community. Pretty cool, but...the past four days of Crossing Guard have been pretty crazy. See it seems that the bird population of Steiner Ranch is pretty high this year, and they always seem to come out when we (Wendy and I) tell somebody they can't turn left or somebody cuts somebody else off in traffic. And then when they come out people just start screaming obscenities at each other. Its crazy! Some are thrown subtly after a quick whistle, some are thrown up high with a string of unwholesome words in tow, and the some are just the good old fashion angry faced triple bird given before, during and after someone is made to turn right.
Really though, why is everybody so angry? And what's so friggin wrong that you would give somebody the middle finger in the middle of an elementary school crossing? Hello! Children! Everywhere! I know that there are a multitude of things going on in all our lives right now. I know that the financial crisis could cause an increase in bird sightings, and money problems cause stress on a marriage and so on so forth. Seriously, we have to figure out a way to deal with the seeds of anger. Those things that are eating on us. Those machines that seem to always break or that thing our co-worker does that ticks us off or getting cut off in traffic. Jesus was right on when he talked about anger. Angry actions come from angry feelings which come from any number of places and we've got to take the inward journey to find those seeds of anger before they take root. And then....we must ruthlessly rip those seeds from the ground and get rid of them before they grow up and crowd out any joy we once had in our lives. See I think the bird is a sign of something far more scary. I think the bird is our way of trying to take control of a situation that inside of us is already out of control. We react with anger because inside we're already filled up and brimming over with it. I want to take that inward journey and I pray for those who've been flipping us off recently that somehow they would find a way to do the same. I hope they will find peace and rest and wholeness, cause the birds of anger are killers.