"Cracked!" though not insulted.

My daughter sent me this card (and a book) for Fathers Day that is coming up in NZ in a couple of weeks time. I appreciated the message.

The book looks interesting. One of my favourite authors is Karen Armstrong and it is called "The lost art of Scripture - rescuing the Sacred Texts." It discusses the sacred texts of various religions and how we understand and use them. But it was the card that intrigued me. On the front it reads, "Blessed are the cracked for they let in the light." Part of my daughter's message inside the card read, "I saw this card and present ... and thought of you! :) 'Cracked' in terms of the world's expectations but working to let in the light! Thank you!" 

When you call somebody "cracked" in NZ it is often an insult - it implies that they are not 'right in the head', 'different' or 'strange'. I'm certainly 'different' but it seems my daughter "gets" me. 

I hope Prue does!
I was asked if I could mentor a trainee chaplain. I warned my CEO that I was not orthodox in my theology and that my approach to my work as a chaplain was also a bit different. So I have taken this lady (named Prue) with me as I have visited the firefighters. Where ever we have gone the fire fighters have teased me. There has been much laughter and joking about me as a chaplain. I came away wondering what this budding chaplain thinks of my relationship with these guys and what prompts the wisecracks. Of course there has been some serious discussion, but the guys love to seize upon the opportunity to try to embarrass me in front of this new visitor. I hope Prue understands that I love the firefighters and I think they love me. The joking is an expression of that love. A person had come down from "Head Office" and was doing presentations to the fire fighters about mental health and psychological wellbeing today. She came into the afternoon tea room and her comment to me was "I have heard a lot about you this afternoon!" All I had time to say was, "Oh dear."  When I visited a suburban fire station I heard that during the lecture, people had commented on my presence in a positive way. - I hope I do "let in some light" for my fire fighters.