Life Lessons from the Barbershop….

A few weeks ago I went to the Barber to catch up on what was going on in our local community, and to uh, oh yeah, get my hair cut.

To set the scene, we're talking about a real barbershop, (no beauty salon here). It’s located in a local historic building, run by an old WWII veteran and his daughter – except that last year Pete succumbed to complications from diabetes and now it’s solely run by his daughter, Lisa.

You can still get a regular haircut for about $11, Lisa still says an earnest “thank-you,” even if you only leave a dollar tip, (though I always try to keep it at a minimum of $4), and she’s always genuinely glad to see you whenever you walk in, even if it’s right near closing time.

Well we were going through the regular routine.....

“Regular haircut?”

“Please, and block it on the back.”

“So what’s been going on in town lately?”

“Nothin much.”

And then we finally got down to business..... I asked if there were any updates on the County trying to knock off her porch and mess up the sidewalk as part of their expansion plan for our community. She said not really, but then added that the man who owned the building next door had come over and asked again about her granting him a right of way or an easement from his back parking lot - through her property in order to gain access the large parking lot she shared with the post office and the bank.

I asked if she was going to grant it, and she said no.

After a few moments of silence I asked the obvious question. “So, how come?”

“Daddy said not to,” she replied.

Again I let her cut for a while before I responded. “Oh yeah, what’d he say?”

“He told me he’d never grant the easement as long as he was alive, and told me I shouldn’t either.”

“How come he wouldn’t grant it? What was his reason?”

“I’m not sure.”

“So what’s your reason? How come you’re not gonna grant it?”

“I’ve just learned to always listen to Daddy, even if I don’t understand it, or I always end up regretting it.”

I decided to let that sink in for a while as I immediately realized there was some deep wisdom in the comment.

Now on a slightly different (but not totally) subject, many of you know that I’m a big advocate of referring to God, our heavenly Father, Yahweh, and Jehovah….. as Daddy whenever you pray.

Jesus did, (Abba Father) and I’ve personally experienced a much deeper level of intimacy in my own prayer life since I started talking to “Daddy” instead of “Father”. Well obviously, when Lisa made her comment you know what immediately went through my mind, and I was so struck by the wisdom of the comment.

“I’ve just learned to always listen to Daddy, even if I don’t understand it, or I always end up regretting it.”

Something we should all determine to do in our own lives…from now on.

Enough said.

God Bless,

LM