Tip of My Iceberg

Nobody loves seeing a good thing come to an end.

We anticipate endings of things we don’t like. Tolerate endings of things that were hard but good.

Leaving behind people that have impacted our lives powerfully and well is bittersweet.

The group I work with changes annually. Not easy. It’s going deep fast with with people who are in transition, encouraging them in their growth and heart perspective and releasing them back into the wild.

That’s what it feels like.

Ending well makes all the difference.

So we end with a chance for those involved to share how the year has been for them. Sharing the good and the bad, the hope experienced and the unmet expectations embraced. Followed by a banquet and prom.

A Tacky Prom.

We’ve got folks spanning five decades in age, so partying can be serious business.

Unless you make it silly.

Silly brings out the best in people. An opportunity to play. Relax. Laugh. Not take life or themselves so seriously.

Even if it’s just for an evening.

People came in all kinds of tacky. Dresses held together with duck tape. Old-time cocktail dresses with more flounce and pouf than you could shake a stick at. Accessorized by sneakers. Crazy fun suits. Wigs.

Everyone walked around with a grin. Silly does that to people.

After dinner–because ending well always has to include food–we danced. To hits from the 70’s to now. Old and young alike kicking it. Bustin’ a move–many of us not realizing we had moves to bust.

Some people really know how to dance. We had a few internationals and others coming from overseas who taught us Bollywood style, salsa, Turkish dancing. Everyone had a style of their own. A fusion of flavors on the dance floor.

Others got out there and gamely embraced their inner melody and rhythm. Or lack thereof.

Everyone’s kids came in and joined us. Many of them knew moves to songs I’d never heard of. Little rockers, totally without embarrassment. Moving to the music and enjoying the opportunity to dance with the adults.

We danced for over three hours. I surprised myself by staying the course. Learning new moves and making some up as I went along.

I didn’t care about looking silly. Dressing silly made the moves easier. More silly is less threatening.

It was an opportunity to end well. To finish the year of transition in a way that was somewhat soul satisfying–for most. Hurt and misunderstanding are so tightly interwoven into our stories that no one really walks away from a personal difficulties completely unscathed.

Life is challenging.

But finishing well, even if all the t’s aren’t crossed or the i’s dotted, is a value Jesus has given us. When He gave His life for us on the cross, He hadn’t healed every sick person, hadn’t made this world what everyone had expected Him to.

Yet He declared, “It is finished” on the cross.

Finished perfectly.

When we follow through and finish what we’ve been tasked with as well as we can, we honor those we work with and for. Integrity.

And we honor God.

Nothing silly about that.