Hammering A Nail Is An Art

As a person with more manual than intellectual experience, I can tell you that placing a nail is more complicated than it appears. There is much to consider and this body of knowledge is usually acquired by trial and error. And it is acquired over a lifetime. It is not generally information that is passed on, one carpenter to another, with verbal instruction and demonstration. Has anyone ever seen a 'nailing' workshop offered by Menards or Home Depot? I don't think so. In my opinion, all candidates for gathering a base in this art, seem to be on their own. I suppose the rationale for this is that so many nails exist in the universe, and if you bend one, drop one off a ladder, have one fly into the sky with a bad hit, you just reach into your carpenter apron, and get another one. Sinking a nail appears to be the foundational point of this old adage: 'Try, Try, Again.' However, for those of us in the know, acquiring this skill the hard way has its consequences. Rust, splitting a perfect piece of wood, time spent in trying to nail a green-treated piece of lumber, visibility of a nail head in the perfect cabinetry, and smashed finger tips. I have even broken the handle off it's hammer head. I won't even go into what can happen with an air powered hammer. But I will say that being a paramedic has its advantages when doing construction, and remodeling.
So, from this somewhat philosophical base of meandering, enter the classroom with me. Three very different professors. That meaning different from each other. No indication of the manual skill vib... anywhere. Good possibility that none of the three can open a tight lid on a small jar. Do not mention flat tire, plumbing leak, or fire. Yet, surprisingly, all seem to know about hammering a nail.
A goodly number of weeks passed before I noticed the hammering of the nail. After I noticed it, I listened for it. Yep, sure enough, every class contained the hammering of their favorite nail. Sometimes it was in the middle of the class, sometimes it started the class out, but most assuredly, if the class was nearly over, and the professor was out of time, it was the last tapping or pounding sound before the bell rang. Once I started listening and watching for the 'hammering of the favorite nail,' I started relaxing in class. And in school. I was no longer victim to not knowing how to do it and lost in a construction project that was way over my head of general experience...they were telling me how to do it...over and over again...demonstrating, instructing, showing, by holding up history, literature, science, then placing their favorite nail on top of it, and with a mighty swing, binding it together. It was the Menards/Lowes/Home Depot workshop of attending to the intangible spiritual life.

Professor Dunn's Favorite Nail: 'We can not know God in God's entirety. Our minds can not imagine nor hold the immensity of who God is. It is only through understanding the process of evolution that we can glimpse the possibility of what we are dealing with here, in terms of the Creative, Loving and Enormous Spirit that governs Life. You must let go of your small mind, grasping and holding on to what you have been taught about God. You must let go of judging your life, and the events of your life within a construct that is man-made. You must grow up, and let go of your childish thoughts."

Professor DeFrancisco's Favorite Nail: "You can not have a relationship with God if you do not make time in your life to have a relationship with God. And I am not talking about going to church on Sunday here. It is only through strenuous seeking: prayer, solitude, meditation, reflection, and dialogue that a relationship with God is possible. DO NOT tell me you are too busy for this. You are not too busy. DO NOT come into this class and tell me your job, your family, your hobbies, your interests are filling up your schedule. If you want your life to be spiritually based, you must pray and you must do this in thoughtfully planned solitude, governed by a schedule that is carefully protected from all interference. This is the way to God, and it is the only way."

Reverend David's Favorite Nail: "The soul can not be denied. Whatever needs attending will keep coming up, over and over again, until it is addressed. The soul can not be denied. The direction, the subjects, the quest, the longing, the conflict, whatever...it will keep coming from the soul until it is attended to. The soul can not be denied. The soul can not be stopped. A person can try, with work, alcohol, distraction, denial. But the soul can not be denied. It will present, over and over again, until it is attended to it. Attend to your soul.
This will be the core of your work as a chaplain. People will come to you to talk. They are attending to a matter of the soul, their soul. Shut up and sit there. Say nothing. It is not your soul. It is their soul. They are attending to their soul. You will say nothing. You will listen. That is your role as a chaplain. Keep your mouth shut and you will be a good chaplain. And attend to your own soul so you can sit there quiet, and not talk. Have I made myself clear?"

The hammering of a nail...professors...consider this nail hammered.