My Big Project
05/09/14 04:36
Some people have one or more big projects in their life. Paul Tillich was 77 years old when he completed the third volume of Systematic Theology, a work that was in progress for at least thirty years. The three-volume work is a masterpiece of thinking and organization. It was criticized by other theologians as one would expect, but stands as a monumental work for a Christian theologian.
Frank Lloyd Wright barely lived to see the completion of the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, but it was only one of nearly 400 buildings that he designed. About 300 of them are still around more than a half a century after his death.
Bill Gates is two years younger than I, but he was ranked among the wealthiest people in the world by the time he was 40 and topped the wealthiest overall from 1995 to 2009. He was the the wealthiest American in 2011. My finances were somewhat more shaky that year.
Steve Jobs also was a couple of years younger than I. By the time he was 30, he was founding his second major computer company. NeXT Computers was initially funded with over $60 million in investments. He returned to Apple Computer and returned that company to profitability before he was 45 years old.
President Barakl Obama was 48 when he was inaugurated as President of the United States, not the youngest president ever, but one whose path to the oval office was pretty much a straight, upward line.
Some people’s projects seem more like adventures. Eric Sevareid paddled 2,250 miles from Minneapolis to Hudson Bay in a canoe when he was a teenager.
William F. Buckley, Jr. published the first of nearly 50 books when he was a college student. He made an Atlantic crossing under sail at one point in his life just for the adventure.
And these are just a few people. The stories of women who accomplished great things could fill dozens of blogs. How many lives did Mother Theresa touch? How much political courage did Indira Gandhi or Gold Meier exhibit? How many generations will Emily Dickinson inspire?
Of course it isn’t fair to compare any of these great people with other persons. Each is unique and each had a unique course in their life. And it certainly isn’t reasonable to hold up a person of international fame as a standard by which to measure anything about my own life.
But I have been wondering lately what my big project is. Perhaps it is because I have been reading my cousin’s book about the building of his sailboat. He and his wife constructed a large schooner from local materials while living practically off of the land in rural Belize. They invested all of their financial resources and years and years of their lives in that boat which is to this day one of the prettiest sailboats to grace the coast of that Central American country. Clearly if you asked him, he would be able to name the big project of his life.
My father might name the businesses he built as the major projects of his life, but I’m pretty sure that he also would have named the children he raised.
I’ve been pretty lucky in that department. I am incredibly pleased and proud with the adults our children have become and I delight in the relationship i have when them. that certainly is enough for one lifetime. But I’m not sure that it qualifies as my life’s work, per se.
Let’s see, I’ve preached over 1400 sermons. I’m closing in on having preached my way through the three-year cycle of the Revised Common Lectionary a dozen times. I’ve officiated at over 150 weddings and delivered the message at nearly 300 funerals. I’ve made over 2,500 blog entries averaging over 1,000 words per entry. That’s enough words to bore almost any reader. I’ve designed a dozen web sites, taken a few good pictures and perhaps one or two that are better than good. I’ve built three canoes, a couple of kayaks and a row boat. I’ve restored a couple more canoes.
I think I was more productive when I was younger. I like to say that I reached the peak of my intellectual powers at the age of 25, and it may not be far from the truth. Just a few days shy of my 25th birthday I had earned my D.Min. degree, the youngest person to be awarded that degree by my Seminary, a title that I think I still hold. I’ve been given a few honors and awards throughout the course of my life, but most of the ones that lie ahead are the kind that are reserved for old folks as we near retirement.
Still, at the age of 61, I have some sense that my life’s big project sill lies ahead. And I haven’t got a clue what that project might be. I’m pretty sure that I’m not going to build an ocean-going sailboat. I’m pretty sure that I’m not going to paddle my kayak where no one has paddled before. I’m pretty sure that I won’t be founding corporations or making millions. I’m pretty sure that I won’t be designing buildings or running for political office. And I’ve never been a systematic thinker, so don’ expect a systematic theology from my pen or computer of whatever device I use to write. And I wouldn’t hold my breath about seeing my name on the New York Times best seller list. I’ve only completed one book so far and I’m still quite a ways away from completing the manuscripts that are currently inhabiting my hard drive.
The search will soon begin for the next General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ. You won’t see my name on any of the lists of possible candidates for that position. And they’ve already found someone far more capable than I for the position of pope.
No, I don’t know what my big project will be. But I’m fairly certain that there is at least one more really big project in my future.
Now if I could only figure out what that project is . . .
Frank Lloyd Wright barely lived to see the completion of the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, but it was only one of nearly 400 buildings that he designed. About 300 of them are still around more than a half a century after his death.
Bill Gates is two years younger than I, but he was ranked among the wealthiest people in the world by the time he was 40 and topped the wealthiest overall from 1995 to 2009. He was the the wealthiest American in 2011. My finances were somewhat more shaky that year.
Steve Jobs also was a couple of years younger than I. By the time he was 30, he was founding his second major computer company. NeXT Computers was initially funded with over $60 million in investments. He returned to Apple Computer and returned that company to profitability before he was 45 years old.
President Barakl Obama was 48 when he was inaugurated as President of the United States, not the youngest president ever, but one whose path to the oval office was pretty much a straight, upward line.
Some people’s projects seem more like adventures. Eric Sevareid paddled 2,250 miles from Minneapolis to Hudson Bay in a canoe when he was a teenager.
William F. Buckley, Jr. published the first of nearly 50 books when he was a college student. He made an Atlantic crossing under sail at one point in his life just for the adventure.
And these are just a few people. The stories of women who accomplished great things could fill dozens of blogs. How many lives did Mother Theresa touch? How much political courage did Indira Gandhi or Gold Meier exhibit? How many generations will Emily Dickinson inspire?
Of course it isn’t fair to compare any of these great people with other persons. Each is unique and each had a unique course in their life. And it certainly isn’t reasonable to hold up a person of international fame as a standard by which to measure anything about my own life.
But I have been wondering lately what my big project is. Perhaps it is because I have been reading my cousin’s book about the building of his sailboat. He and his wife constructed a large schooner from local materials while living practically off of the land in rural Belize. They invested all of their financial resources and years and years of their lives in that boat which is to this day one of the prettiest sailboats to grace the coast of that Central American country. Clearly if you asked him, he would be able to name the big project of his life.
My father might name the businesses he built as the major projects of his life, but I’m pretty sure that he also would have named the children he raised.
I’ve been pretty lucky in that department. I am incredibly pleased and proud with the adults our children have become and I delight in the relationship i have when them. that certainly is enough for one lifetime. But I’m not sure that it qualifies as my life’s work, per se.
Let’s see, I’ve preached over 1400 sermons. I’m closing in on having preached my way through the three-year cycle of the Revised Common Lectionary a dozen times. I’ve officiated at over 150 weddings and delivered the message at nearly 300 funerals. I’ve made over 2,500 blog entries averaging over 1,000 words per entry. That’s enough words to bore almost any reader. I’ve designed a dozen web sites, taken a few good pictures and perhaps one or two that are better than good. I’ve built three canoes, a couple of kayaks and a row boat. I’ve restored a couple more canoes.
I think I was more productive when I was younger. I like to say that I reached the peak of my intellectual powers at the age of 25, and it may not be far from the truth. Just a few days shy of my 25th birthday I had earned my D.Min. degree, the youngest person to be awarded that degree by my Seminary, a title that I think I still hold. I’ve been given a few honors and awards throughout the course of my life, but most of the ones that lie ahead are the kind that are reserved for old folks as we near retirement.
Still, at the age of 61, I have some sense that my life’s big project sill lies ahead. And I haven’t got a clue what that project might be. I’m pretty sure that I’m not going to build an ocean-going sailboat. I’m pretty sure that I’m not going to paddle my kayak where no one has paddled before. I’m pretty sure that I won’t be founding corporations or making millions. I’m pretty sure that I won’t be designing buildings or running for political office. And I’ve never been a systematic thinker, so don’ expect a systematic theology from my pen or computer of whatever device I use to write. And I wouldn’t hold my breath about seeing my name on the New York Times best seller list. I’ve only completed one book so far and I’m still quite a ways away from completing the manuscripts that are currently inhabiting my hard drive.
The search will soon begin for the next General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ. You won’t see my name on any of the lists of possible candidates for that position. And they’ve already found someone far more capable than I for the position of pope.
No, I don’t know what my big project will be. But I’m fairly certain that there is at least one more really big project in my future.
Now if I could only figure out what that project is . . .