Celebrities

Today is garbage day. It creates some heavy excitement in this house. Zach, like most two-year-old boys, LOVES trucks. He can hear the garbage truck coming from around the block. He runs through the house screaming and jumping: "Truck coming, Mama!! Truck coming! C'mon. C'mon, Mama. Let's go see garbage truck!!"

In my lifetime I have only known one person who aspired to be a garbage man. It was my stepbrother, Kevin. He was seven at the time and thought it would be super-cool to ride around on a big truck all day. We all made fun of him and teased him about his smelly, trash dreams. The rest of us (the remaining seven siblings) had bigger, better dreams. We were going to be important! We would not be serving the neighborhood from the back of a big green truck. People would look up to us, not smell us.

Now, many years later, I see the garbage men as celebrities. They know our house and generously wave at the little faces eager to watch them work. It's so funny! They're always smiling. The kids greet them everyday with hefty "HI!"s and "Have a good day!!" They've even got paparazzi on occassion. I don't know ... maybe it wouldn't be so bad to be a garbage man. At first appearances, it may seem like a bum rap, but from another perspective, it's what kids look forward to all week long. These service guys are treated like rock stars.

Do you know any rock stars in disguise? Any service projects or ministries you view with a condescending eye? I wonder who holds those same servants in esteem?