When Will I Be Famous?

 "You're the best!" he said flippantly as he ran out the door, grabbing his lunch and keys and blissfully unaware of the unrest he had caused by his request. She had given in to him yet again but what more could she do, she believed it was for his best. The phone rang and she slowly picked it up, checked the caller ID and put on her fake, smiling tone. "You have won a new car!" begun the cheerful caller who then broke down into laughter and asked if she was having a good day and had she heard from their brother lately. The sisters chatted away, crying, laughing, groaning and sharing about the happenings of their ordinary lives. Suddenly one begged her sister to turn on the TV straight away because an old school friend was on the news. They watched it and at the end, Jilly asked, "Who would have thunk it? Who woulda thought she would go on to be famous?"

Politicians, footballers, athletes, newsreaders, actors and performers grace our TV screens as often as we have them on. The other day I was out walking and wondered, "Were they born to be famous? When they were in school, did their teachers and/or parents know they would be destined to be so important?"

The leaders of countries all over the world are facing 'unprecedented times' of a global pandemic. They are making (and changing) rules and restrictions as the virus takes on other variant forms and explodes in their communities. They are all looking older and perhaps more haggard than what they would have been, had it been a smoother 2 years. Where do they get their advice from? What principles and values do they draw strength and wisdom from in order to make decisions and get through this time. Before they became an important politician leading their country, when they were only 10 years old, what preparation did they receive, to equip them for what was to come?

We've read stories of how many now-famous people were told when they were younger that they would never amount to much, that they weren't that good and that they need to reconsider their choice of career or lifestyle.

As Andy and I walked around the block last night, I asked him about the people we had known who had become famous. What was it about them that landed them on their feet? One colleague/friend he had played sport with, went on to be on an Olympics team and another despite being very competitive and good at sport, had just led an 'ordinary life'. The former colleague/friend, Andy had known to be humble and kind and not pushing people out to be ambitious. He didn't gloat about being the best and he treated others with respect.

I feel like I have always wanted to be good at so many things but have become "Jack of all trades, master of none". I love writing, singing, reading, teaching, swimming, playing squash and netball, riding horses and not in that order. I wish I could do all of those things so much better but I don't have the time, money or the ambition. I have been considered as 'good' at things yet sometimes overlooked for promotions because I didn't push myself forward. I know I could do better than the other person so why didn't I stand up for myself?

The song going through my head is, "When will I, will I be famous?" and the next line is, "I can't answer that". Does everyone strive for excellence? I can't help but wonder about those people who mercilessly push others aside in order to further their ambitions. It hurts those of us who are trodden underneath but they still achieve their moment in fame and fortune. By writing this, I am making myself vulnerable and as I write, I am also trying to remind myself of the greater good. I'm wearing a shirt that says, "Enjoy the little things in life" and I get it but.... 

When all is said and done, the only certainty is we will die. There was a poem that included the lines, "Only one life, 'twill soon be past, only what's done for Christ will last."

My mum passed away when she was only a few years older than what I am now. There is rarely a day that goes by when I don't think of her and I know that she influenced and encouraged many people in her life. It's been more than 20 years  since she passed away and yet, she still has an impact on lives today. She was not famous or rich as the world measures, but she made a difference and made her life count.

I need to be the best me I can be, love the people God has blessed me with - friends and family- and continue to strive for excellence. I need to take on challenges that grow me and remember that "faith, hope and love remain - but the greatest of these is love." Whether I grow up to be famous or not, it's what is really important that counts.

1 Corinthians 13:1-8, 13

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.