A highlight for me this summer will be the release of the new Batman film, The Dark Knight, featuring the late Heath Ledger in a standout role as the villainous Joker. One of the big lines being used in promoting the film comes from the Joker himself, who says, “Why so serious?”
The same question might be asked of most of us.
I remember standing on the bus stop as a young boy, waiting for my early morning ride to school. My mom made me walk the three blocks to the corner much earlier than was necessary, probably ensuring that she wouldn’t have to disrupt her morning routine in order to drive her dilly-dallying son to school.
This meant I had a lot of time on my hands.
One thing that passed the time quite well was playing with maple tree seeds — the blade-shaped fruit that mimics the action of a helicopter as it falls to the ground. What fun it was to grab a handful, toss them in the air, and watch them spin down around me in a whirling frenzy. They played the military aircraft to my King Kong.
I was reminded of these little guys today on my morning walk. I was on a corner, ready to cross the street, when a single seed spun past my shoulder.
I smiled. I remembered.
Then I thought of God, who originated the design for this little seed; a deceptively simple and seemingly insignificant object of mirth which descends to earth from on high in a clumsy sort of poetic gracefulness.
And then I thought of us humans — particularly the grown-up faction — and how we’ve grown so adept at making mountains out of molehills. We’ve mastered the ability of making the trivial monumental. We fret about all sorts of things, from gas prices and elections to how we’re going to kill those weeds in the yard and what we should wear to next Friday’s function. We elevate inconsequential issues to a level of supreme importance.
In the big scheme of things, most of the things that we worry about never happen, and most of the rest don’t matter.
I’m sure that there are plenty of good scientific reasons God designed the maple seed the way He did. But to watch it float to the ground in a perfect display of whimsical silliness makes me wonder…maybe one of the reasons for this design was to whisper a question to anyone who happens to see one twirling downward. A simple, three-word question:
Why so serious?
Great points Jason, and oh so true. :0)
By the way, I just saw a shower of those little helicopters flying on the wind yesterday – it brought a smile to my face as I imagined all the children (and children at heart) gathering fistfuls and laughing.
Most people are so serious because they suffer from terminal adulthood, and as we know the only antidote to that is humor.
Love it! I used to play with those seeds all the time as a child and even now when I see them it brings whimsy to mind. This is a great perspective on why God would create such a playful seed.
Shirley – Hard not to smile when you see ’em!
Rockandrollguru – True that!
Bonita – Thanks! I’m glad you enjoyed my take on it!
Well, as has been mentioned in several other posts and discussions by you – an Awesome God who created the giraffe, rhinoceros and the emu and other animals has GOT to have a sense of humor – and is constantly telling us to “chill out”! Thanks for the reminder.
I remember wanting to help all of the helicopter seeds that landed on the sidewalk in front of my house. I picked them all up and burried them in the ground in the hope they would grow into big trees one day. Thank you for this reminder– I hadn’t remembered that I’d done any gardening as a child. Maybe it’s time to try it again.
I loved playing with those whirly giggy seeds! Did that bring back memories! Feathers also fascinated me, and living out in the country we get all sorts of birds, including LOTS of wild turkeys. Found a gorgeous turkey feather behind our home and it is now adorning our garden, thinking about making a turkey or a bunny scarecrow to fun. Those beautiful feathers makes me want to stick them in my hair, or write w/ old fashioned ink, or just tickle someone…
Yes, we need to look at the wonderful things God made and catch the Splendor of His Glory…
Jason, I really love this post. As I go to work and go about my day, I am surrounded by super serious and worried adults. Often I can wake up feeling great, smiling and laughing, and by the time I make it home and turn on a few minutes of TV, I believe the world is coming to an end.
We need the light-heartedness of K&J more than ever. I would love to see a series of posts on the “Why so serious” topic, to help us all remember that so many of the problems in our lives are created mainly in our minds, attitudes and perceptions of life.
P.S. I love those “helicopter thingys” too, as well as bumbling butterflys, acrobatic squirrels and the bubbling sound of water. They all make me smile whenever I hear them. :0)
Thanks, Shirley.
I’ve wondered what our place is during these tough economic times. I’ve had a feeling that we’re needed now more than ever. I’m not exactly sure what to do about that, other than keep doing what we’re doing, but I like your idea of revisiting the Why So Serious theme…
We have 2 very very big Maple trees in our backyard. The kids know when it’s time to open the pool for the year. It’s when all the heliocopters have landed : ) We opened it one year before they landed…and greatly regretted it as most of them met their demise in our filter.
We homeschool and I remember years ago when we were studying trees…the curriculum wrote that God designed the heliocopters to fly far from the “Mommy” tree so that they could take root in the sun and away from her big root system. Who really knows…but I love them too! They remind me that one of my most favorite past-times (swimming) is not far off…blessings, Jason
That’s pretty cool, Debbie.
You know, my baby girl is only six months old, and I’m already nervous about God having designed her to flay far away from home someday. I need to stop blinking; it seems like she was just born yesterday!