Too Far Becomes Too Close
The second Sunday of the dispersion (sounds more Biblical than "Social Distancing") I realized there would be benefits to having a little stand I could put on the table to hold my iPad while preaching. I found one on Amazon for about $10 that I thought would do just fine. I saw the little "Prime" logo, and thought, "Cool, I'll have this in a few days".When my wife was placing another order a few days later, she asked about the delivery coming on April 22nd. Wait... It was mid-March at this point. Sure enough, my ten-dollar stand was delayed over a month.Too far.I jumped back on Amazon and looked for a similar stand at a similar price. I double-checked the two-day delivery. Ok. All in order. At least it was a cheap mistake, and when the second one gets here I'll use it in my home office.Two days later there is a box on my porch. With anticipation, I open the box and see inside...two smaller boxes. I open the first and find my iPad stand. But what is in this other box? As I lift the box it feels very familiar, almost as if I had done this before. I split the tape, pull open the box and find...the other one. Same box.Too close.
It is remarkable how fast something can be too far away to be truly meaningful one moment, like a stand that won't arrive for a month and a half, to being too close in a very short window.Can you remember when COVID-19 was an illness spreading across parts of China? It was sad, but not impactful. Then the first case came to Washington state, concerning but not alarming. What a short time from those moments to now being in week three of mandated social distancing.Now it is a matter of what isn't impacted. Too far to really matter became too close for comfort too fast. I remember some random comment I saw on social media insisting the whole thing was a media creation to cause panic. "Do you actually know anyone who has it? No, you don't." He was right at the time. He's still right. I don't know anyone who has it.But two people who live in the complex my wife manages do. Members of a church where friends attend do. I am hearing from nurses and medical professionals that I know who are working without proper protection because they are getting the chance to make the acquaintance of plenty of people who do. It's too close now. And before all is said and done, it will likely be closer.But that isn't the only case of too far and too close. I am hearing and experiencing a new reality of intimacy from a distance. We have largely lived lives of comfortable isolation in part because we knew we could always see someone. We could go make a friend. We could meet our neighbors. With the "could" stripped away, we find ourselves hungry for connection like never before.
Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their efforts. For if either falls, his companion can lift him up. Also, if two lie down together, they can keep warm; but how can one person keep warm? And if someone overpowers one person, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not easily broken.Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 CSBThen the Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper corresponding to him."Genesis 2:18 CSB
Even better, as a friend pointed out last night, as a culture we now have a powerful shared experience. There is no demographic left out of this moment. As a people, we are sharing this "month and more" long break from church services, malls, and sitting in restaurants and as a people we will share the relief when it is behind us.Too far away, becoming...not too close, but certainly closer.