Just looking

             I can’t figure out how the guy next door keeps his lawn so perfect. Last year he had a spell where he let his lawn go badly. I smugly worked on mine and it looked pretty good in my eyes. I suppose in my heart I was saying I beat him finally. Then he showed interest and within a week he had a PGA lawn. His immaculate grassland is manicured, lush, and very green. It’s not that I’m really jealous but I am. My last name is green but he stole my green thumb.      

            My other neighbor next door has the carpentry touch. He builds a deck and it makes mine look disheveled. He builds his garage and it is the same size as mine but looks bigger. He has a hot tub and nice looking yard. He is half my age but twice as smart. Geesh, did I come from the bottom half of the gene pool than my neighbors. I never checked on the requirements of living in this neighborhood.

            The guy across the street has a really nice dog. The guy down the other side has a great fence. The other dude drives a cool car and another has an awesome truck. Ok, I’ll admit the family two doors down needs work, but I’m sure they even do that better than me. This is living in a community 101. People are always looking at other people. I know we all have opinions. One guy has the hottest wife and another man handsome. I wonder at times if we don’t live in a human fish bowl.

            I know it probably started when I was young. Sure I wanted what the other kid had. I heard my parents talk about others. I bet I spent countless hours inadvertently listening to my mom gab with other ladies about other ladies. I do think we spend our days thinking about other humans. We have judgments and observations about how people live, look, and act. We equally hate it when they talk about us. We love to inspect their bubble but don’t inspect mine please.

            What does God have to say about community. It brings me back to the Ten Commandments. They seem so controversial and restrictive don’t they? Yet, these rules are guidelines more than commands. Each one asks us to respect God and respect others in the community. Don’t murder, covet, and steal from your neighbors. Respect your parents and honor your maker. God gave us ten simple rules. I think he did that to show us our hearts. We love to break those rules more than any other.

            Sure we all don’t steal or murder, but inside we have thought about it. In the book of Matthew, Jesus goes farther by saying we sin when we think about breaking the ten commandments. Maybe he is right. Why do I think the neighbor’s truck is cool? Why do I wish I had that guys truck? Maybe if the circumstances were right I’d have no problem breaking Gods rules. We spend our days watching others because in reality we want to be important, number one, and a host of other accolades. Don’t we promote participation medals because we hate to lose. We tell ourselves that it hurts to lose or finish last. Yes, especially in our community.

            I suppose I’m just a rotten man. I covet what others have in my neighborhood. I need to get a life. Yet, I hear others talk. We have a terrible family in the hood. All of us want them gone. My good neighbors have been surprised at their desire to kill them in a fantasy. I get it that it’s just talk, but is it. I think the best part of the show “The walking dead” is that it’s about real people being put in an impossible situation. What will they do when pressed? What would you do when pressed?

            I know that many of you could think I have a sick mind. I have better things to do than ogle my neighbors. It’s not that I sit there are inspect them 24/7 (maybe). It’s just that I notice my thoughts. I hear the off the cuff comments from neighbors, Facebook, and my wife. I believe we all do it. I also believe that we show our true selves when times get tough. Why do we read about people saying they can’t believe this or that happened? They say they never saw that coming. My favorite is “he was a quite nice neighbor.” We all are until things go wrong.

            The Bible is chalked full of examples of “when things go wrong.” King David is supposed to go to war one spring but stays home. Across the way from his palace he can see a beautiful woman bathing. First time? Oh I doubt it was the first time he saw her, coveted her, and wanted her. I doubt you have never coveted another person’s crud. I can reasonably see that killing difficult people in the walking dead has become reasonable if pressed.

            I think real people in a community admit they are real. They usually look like the outcasts or oddballs. They say everything that others are thinking. They are doing the things we dream about but never try. Try murder or adultery? Well no, but admitting we have a dark side is good for the soul. To know our limits of temptation is good. To know ourselves better might save us some trouble. Looking at others lives one way only is a bad thing. We don’t know their story of how they got there, but we do know ours and we need to be mindful of that. 

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