In The Meantime
As far as cartoon dads go, Francine's dad from Arthur is one of the best. In the words of Arthur himself, he's "pretty cool just the way he is" - he's funny, caring, a great coach, and just an all-around great guy. He once joked to Francine that his middle name is Rotten Stinkweed Spit (for context, Francine was mad at her friend Muffy and gave her that name). However, in an early episode of Arthur (you know, before they were approaching Season 22), Francine fears that her friends will think less of her when they find out her dad is a garbageman. When they do visit the dump and Mr. Frensky shows them around, the kids learn that being a garbageman can actually be pretty fun - you get to drive a bulldozer, crushing junk into small pieces, and finding all sorts of cool items. As the saying famously goes, one man's trash truly is another man's treasure.
At the end of said Arthur episode, Mr. Frensky mentions that people may one day make cities out of compacted trash (to Muffy's disgust, of course). He then goes on to say "but in the meantime" and show the kids an awesome-looking playground that he's made out of stuff he's found at the dump. In recent years, companies such as Adidas have started selling shoes made out of ocean trash, so it appears that Mr. Frensky may have been on to something, but that's another story for another blog post. In the meantime...let's tackle those three words.
In the meantime. There's just something about that phrase, those three words. For Mr. Frensky, that meant acknowledging that garbage cities are a ways off from actually happening, but that a nice playground can be made from trash in the meantime. To say "in the meantime" means to fantasize about what could be, but to acknowledge the reality we live in today and how we can live until we reach that time. There's a lot to unpack from that - even when we take out the garbage.
Everyone has dreams, goals, and aspirations of what they want to do and what they want to be. Some of them may seem impossible or unlikely, others may seem distant. For example, I have a goal of setting foot in all 50 states and though I'm close, getting to places like Alaska or Hawai'i anytime soon seem out of reach - figuratively and literally! Thankfully, Southwest Airlines will start offering flights to Hawai'i later this year, but I digress. Other dreams like going to the Rose Bowl or the Final Four seem like years away from happening. Then again, all it takes is one magical season by Wisconsin football or a magical run by Baylor basketball in March, and I'm sure I could find a way to make one of those happen. Unlike fetch, those things are going to happen. But in the meantime, I can save up to make those types of trips possible or watch the Rose Bowl and Final Four from the friendly confines of my living room.
Traveling to places like Alaska or Hawai'i or going to events like the Rose Bowl or Final Four are one thing - those are things that can be accomplished through planning, researching, saving money, and having vacation time. Other hopes and aspirations may not be as simple as saving a few thousand dollars and asking for a few days off at work. For instance, I have faith that one day, I will be a husband to a lovely wife and a father to lovely children. Those are titles that I look forward to one day having, but are years away from happening. But in the meantime, I can enjoy being single and where I am with the people that God has placed in my life. A few weeks ago, I watched a sermon that talked about what God established with Adam before Eve was ever in the picture - Place, Purpose, Identity, Provision, and Parameters. After God created Adam, He said that it was NOT good for him to be alone (Genesis 2:18). But in the meantime, it was important that God established place, purpose identity, provision, and parameters for Adam.
All of this is to say, if we're at an "in the meantime" phase in our lives, we can enjoy where we are and what we're doing with our lives. Living in the meantime is as great as we choose to make it. That could mean going to the best taco place in Houston with friends (Tacos La Bala for the win!), walking around the best park in Houston with a friend (Memorial Park for the win!), or going up to Seattle-Tacoma to visit your sister for a weekend (Side note: Tacoma is like a quieter, calmer Seattle and is a hidden gem - you never know what you'll find there!). Ecclesiastes 3:1 mentions that "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens". Perhaps Solomon should have written that there is a meantime for everything. Kidding aside, we all go through different seasons in our lives, some of which are seasons of transitions or of waiting. But just because we're in the season of a change or a transition doesn't mean we can't enjoy it. Conversely, we should have the (mean)time of our life. Okay, I admit it: that pun at the end was really cheesy.
"In the meantime" can feel like forever. It could end up meaning waiting for something that never does come. With that in mind, it makes it all the more important that we live in the moment and enjoy every season for what it is, not lament it for what it isn't. Funny thing is, we may find ourselves looking back on those days and miss them. Considering that life is said to be a destination, not a journey (paraphrasing Ralph Waldo Emerson here), maybe it is our best interest to enjoy these seasons of transition instead of hopelessly waiting on what's to come. After all, it's in God's perfect time, not our own. There's a lot that I'm looking forward to down the road, but in the meantime, I want to enjoy life as it is.
At the end of said Arthur episode, Mr. Frensky mentions that people may one day make cities out of compacted trash (to Muffy's disgust, of course). He then goes on to say "but in the meantime" and show the kids an awesome-looking playground that he's made out of stuff he's found at the dump. In recent years, companies such as Adidas have started selling shoes made out of ocean trash, so it appears that Mr. Frensky may have been on to something, but that's another story for another blog post. In the meantime...let's tackle those three words.
In the meantime. There's just something about that phrase, those three words. For Mr. Frensky, that meant acknowledging that garbage cities are a ways off from actually happening, but that a nice playground can be made from trash in the meantime. To say "in the meantime" means to fantasize about what could be, but to acknowledge the reality we live in today and how we can live until we reach that time. There's a lot to unpack from that - even when we take out the garbage.
Everyone has dreams, goals, and aspirations of what they want to do and what they want to be. Some of them may seem impossible or unlikely, others may seem distant. For example, I have a goal of setting foot in all 50 states and though I'm close, getting to places like Alaska or Hawai'i anytime soon seem out of reach - figuratively and literally! Thankfully, Southwest Airlines will start offering flights to Hawai'i later this year, but I digress. Other dreams like going to the Rose Bowl or the Final Four seem like years away from happening. Then again, all it takes is one magical season by Wisconsin football or a magical run by Baylor basketball in March, and I'm sure I could find a way to make one of those happen. Unlike fetch, those things are going to happen. But in the meantime, I can save up to make those types of trips possible or watch the Rose Bowl and Final Four from the friendly confines of my living room.
Traveling to places like Alaska or Hawai'i or going to events like the Rose Bowl or Final Four are one thing - those are things that can be accomplished through planning, researching, saving money, and having vacation time. Other hopes and aspirations may not be as simple as saving a few thousand dollars and asking for a few days off at work. For instance, I have faith that one day, I will be a husband to a lovely wife and a father to lovely children. Those are titles that I look forward to one day having, but are years away from happening. But in the meantime, I can enjoy being single and where I am with the people that God has placed in my life. A few weeks ago, I watched a sermon that talked about what God established with Adam before Eve was ever in the picture - Place, Purpose, Identity, Provision, and Parameters. After God created Adam, He said that it was NOT good for him to be alone (Genesis 2:18). But in the meantime, it was important that God established place, purpose identity, provision, and parameters for Adam.
All of this is to say, if we're at an "in the meantime" phase in our lives, we can enjoy where we are and what we're doing with our lives. Living in the meantime is as great as we choose to make it. That could mean going to the best taco place in Houston with friends (Tacos La Bala for the win!), walking around the best park in Houston with a friend (Memorial Park for the win!), or going up to Seattle-Tacoma to visit your sister for a weekend (Side note: Tacoma is like a quieter, calmer Seattle and is a hidden gem - you never know what you'll find there!). Ecclesiastes 3:1 mentions that "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens". Perhaps Solomon should have written that there is a meantime for everything. Kidding aside, we all go through different seasons in our lives, some of which are seasons of transitions or of waiting. But just because we're in the season of a change or a transition doesn't mean we can't enjoy it. Conversely, we should have the (mean)time of our life. Okay, I admit it: that pun at the end was really cheesy.
"In the meantime" can feel like forever. It could end up meaning waiting for something that never does come. With that in mind, it makes it all the more important that we live in the moment and enjoy every season for what it is, not lament it for what it isn't. Funny thing is, we may find ourselves looking back on those days and miss them. Considering that life is said to be a destination, not a journey (paraphrasing Ralph Waldo Emerson here), maybe it is our best interest to enjoy these seasons of transition instead of hopelessly waiting on what's to come. After all, it's in God's perfect time, not our own. There's a lot that I'm looking forward to down the road, but in the meantime, I want to enjoy life as it is.
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| The statue and I are both looking forward to what's ahead. But in the meantime, we're enjoying life (and Tacoma) as is. |
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