Intimacy vs Knowledge
Through the past 20 years Heather & I have come to know each other well; to the point of finishing each other's sentences, knowing each others thoughts, aware of habits (good & bad) and being privy to each others inmost motivations and desires.Our knowing each other is the outcome of our doing life together; raising two kiddos, moving to different states, weathering financial crisis, seeking & serving Jesus side by side...going through victories and the defeats, anger & joy, passion & indifference.
I wonder what my knowing Heather would be like if I related to her by:
- Reading her love letters
- Talking with other people 'about' her
- Going to get-togethers designed to celebrate her through reading her love letters and singing her praises
- Listening to others describe/tell about her.
- Doing studies on her love letters
- Serving her through the charities/programs she likes
- Setting aside time every day to do the above in honor of her
but I never, or very rarely,
- Sat with her without any of the above and had quiet conversation with her
- Went on get-a-ways where just me & her went...no one else
- Walked & talked through the mundane daily struggles of life together
- Was present with her during the lowest of lows or her highest of highs
- Fought with her, got angry at her...made up and went on.
- Expressed my thankfullness to her for her 'being' her
- Cried and laughed with her
- Played, went on vacation, explored the world together
Could there be an intimate long-standing relationship without the later based solely on the former?
posted by Rick @ 5:03 AM
2 Comments:
Great stuff right there. Perfect analogy. I dig. And, btw, i'm quite glad that your relationship with mom doesn't look like the God-from-a-distance way of knowing.
"Could there be an intimate long-standing relationship without the later based soley on the former?"
why not? i have a hard time believing that bible-believing christians are the only people in the world capable of loving human relationships which are not based in The Word.
i would agree that those relationships are based in something much more solid and lasting than the here-and-now, however.
did you ask this question for discussion or as a rhetorical question? i am not quite sure.
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