Christian Living

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Larry Lilly's Letter Friday June 16, 2006

Do you recall the phrase made famous by Frank Lloyd Wright, "Form follows function?"

I had used this phrase attributed to Mr. Wright for 35 years until an architect from Traverse City, Michigan called me on it. Frank did not originate the famous and sensible credo. A sculptor, Horatio Greenough did. I don't know why.

The man who made the phrase famous was Louis Henri Sullivan and his actual words were:

"Form ever follows function."

Tragically most designers of churches have never heard of the phrase as trying to move from place to place once inside the labyrinth called a house of worship will prove. On the basis of empirical evidence most congregations hire drunken Indians to walk around a wet lot and build in the footprints left in the mud.

In response to a critic Frank Lloyd Wright did say:

"I'm all in favor of keeping danergous weapons out of the hands of fools. Let's begin with typewriters."

A few weeks ago I admited a mistake, which is almost always another mistake! One giant wrote and said that's why he never writes anything. It took me a spell to let the full import of this statement sink in and I feel certain it has yet to dawn on him. He may be a good writer. But we'll never know for sure.

If everyone who writes notes of criticism to me would put the word 'criticism' in the subject line, I then could type 'critcism' into my permission denied section of McAfee and send the note directly where it will go without the awful turmoil of soul it brings into my life should I read such babbling.

One struggling soul actually sent a statement from Steven King to me in an effort to get me to destroy my typewriter/computer. Mr. King wrote, "There’s a story that the architect of the Flatiron Building committed suicide when he realized just prior to the ribbon cutting ceremony that he had neglected to put any men’s rooms in his prototypical skyscraper." I don't know if my critic thought my writing is bathroom material or if he like, many of my congregants thought my demise by my own hand would be nice.

The truth be known our critics are often our best teachers for none of us ever get it all right. I am thankful for Luc Bridgewater who helps with what I call English and she labels absurd. And the Great Blonde with her coquettish, "What on earth do you mean here?"

Larry Lilly Copyright © 2006 Use with credit.

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