“There’s no throwaway people in this world” – Arlo Guthrie, folk singer
Maybe it’s because of the Arlo show I’m going to see this weekend, or maybe it’s the election, or maybe the Sorting Hat that is the Spirit brought this quote to my attention, but it just feels right. Right now, maybe nobody else does, but I needed to hear this. Just reading it doesn’t do it the justice of hearing a cranky old hippie rant it on stage, but even the vanilla, printed version is pretty potent medicine to me.
I relish the genealogy of this proclamation. Arlo uses it to describe the passion his father – Woody Guthrie – had for working folks struggling to make life happen. Woody was a leader of sorts – the kind of leader that people follow because they see all the work getting done without them. He was the old man in church who quietly starts doing the dishes after fellowship until the rest of the gathering is pitching in. Not because of guilt, but because people know when they are witnessing something right – something true - being done.
I’ve always deeply admired leaders that don’t consume or spew an excess of wind as they compel followers through the power of example. In that way, some of my favorite leaders probably don’t think of themselves as leaders in any traditional way. That’s one of the gifts of growing up (as a new-to-church adult) in a small rural church. Sometimes, it’s just time to work.
As much as I admire the leadership of dirty nails, I also recognize the importance of thoughtful intention as its effective companion. I don’t believe that the two approaches can’t both be embodied by the same people, but those people are rare and precious. When the thoughtful intention is missing, work still gets done; what are missing are questions. “Is this faithful?” “Are we reaching out, or looking in?” “Is this to God’s glory or merely self-preservation?” It’s not an either-or. It’s truly a both-and. There are no throw away people.