This past school year I mentored each Tuesday afternoon at the Pulaski Heights Middle School, a couple of blocks from the church. Due to the traffic chaos that comes when school is letting out, I found it easier to walk than drive. And besides, two blocks? Come on, even an old guy needing a knee replacement can handle that.

For several weeks there was a lot of street construction going on in our neighborhood. City crews had the streets torn up, and a huge back hoe was digging dirt from beneath Cedar Street at a furious pace. One day, on my sojourn to the school, I turned left on Lee to head down the hill to the school and found that several round PVC pipes had been laid along the sidewalk, making it difficult to traverse. We’re an old section of town, and sometimes the sidewalks and streets are difficult anyway, due to their age. It’s made even worse with these obstructions getting in the way.

My mentee, as usual, didn’t stay for the after-school program. Near the end it became something of a habit for him. I can’t imagine why. After all, why shouldn’t an old white guy hit it off with a twelve year-old African-American boy? We have so much in common! Anyway, I came back earlier than anticipated. This time, I decided to walk up Lee on the other side of the street, and as I did I spied a boy walking home from school. He was using one of the PVC pipes as a balancing beam. What I saw as an obstacle, he considered a toy, an opportunity to practice his athletic skills.

There’s a lesson in that, to be sure. An obvious one is that youth looks upon life with a different set of eyes. Yes, one day that eleven or twelve year-old may be facing knee replacement himself, and will grumble when obstacles are put in his way. But not now. Now, he sees life as a dance... to be enjoyed rather than cursed.

Could it be that Jesus had something like that in mind when he talked about accepting the kingdom of heaven as a child? Wouldn’t be surprised.