Previous Challenge Entry (Level 1 – Beginner)
Topic: It's a Colorful World (12/03/09)
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TITLE: A Church of Many Colors | Previous Challenge Entry
By Alwine Canning
12/05/09 -
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“There they are!” A couple in red polo shirts is crossing the parking lot to join friends wearing identical shirts.
In another corner of the lot, people in navy shirts are talking in animated tones as they catch up on each others lives.
As we enter the double doors of the lobby, zebra stripes are everywhere. Our friends are wearing their signature black and white T-shirts, hats, scarves and jackets.
“Hi Carl! Hi Dawn!” The reply is, “Wow, look at that Orange! So your chapter decided to change your colors! That orange will sure capture people’s attention!”
Small groups converging on this gathering are wearing other colors too. The color variety represents the many different areas of California we come from. But the smiles on our faces, the friendly banter and the greeting hugs are a reflection of a common bond within.
What is this bond? It is a commitment to “Fun, Safety and Knowledge” as fellow Honda Gold Wing Road Riders Association members. We all love the freedom of the open road on Honda Gold Wing Touring Motorcycles.
Our own chapter meets on the fourth Sunday of every month. Many members attend their Christian Church on the other three Sundays, but choose to attend our chapter gatherings on that fourth one.
So much of what happens at our meetings is like a church. We greet each other with hugs and genuinely care about each others lives. We “break bread” together, otherwise called breakfast. We don’t sing but we stand before our meetings and celebrate our freedom with a pledge. It is a pledge of allegiance to an ideal represented by our country’s red, white and blue banner.
Instead of Christian Education we have Chapter Education. We don’t just talk about our cross-country motorcycle journeys, but have educational talks to remind us of the principles of safe riding. It’s not enough to know that we can get from point-A to point-B. We are concerned that we utilize safe practices so everyone gets there whole, and stays whole.
When someone has a fall, we call, visit and support the hurting member. We provide meals to get them through the difficulty and give them the opportunity to talk about their experience as much as is helpful. It’s important to figure out exactly what went wrong. Was there anything they could have done differently to have remained safe? When we get back together at the next chapter gathering, the whole group talks about what that rider experienced and what they learned from it. So we can all learn from it. This is an issue that some churches handle better than others; talking openly about our “falls”.
Riding safely is serious business, but we don’t take ourselves too seriously. At our meetings you’ll see a wide range of skin tones that reflect our multi-cultural backgrounds. Those differences add to the rich tapestry of what unfolds at every meeting. A light-hearted approach we take to the fallibility of our differences is celebrated with what we call the “Wing-Nut” award. The nomination process is accompanied by lots of laughter and a healthy effort to out-do each other.
“He left his co-rider standing at the curb! He didn’t realize that she hadn’t gotten on yet!”
“She had her sunglasses sitting on her leg as they pulled away and they, of course, fell off and broke…so they stopped the whole group to get another pair of eye-protection out of the trunk.”
Any “Wing-Nut” nomination requires a $1 donation as it is reported to the group; a donation that supports favorite charities. The “Wing-Nut”, attached to a chain, has to be worn by its recipient at all times that month. If caught without it, the wearer has to pay $1 for every lapse, payable to the charity, of course. Other fundraising events happen throughout the year to allow the group to be financially self-sufficient.
We have a church of many colors here in the state of California. It is not always God that gets the glory in this church, but, without question, love rules. As it is in Christ’s church, this church celebrates the freedom that comes with knowing that you have an open road ahead of you. It is a road with a planned destination, but with many twists and turns to be safely maneuvered along the way.
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