Wild At Heart

I finished Wild at Heart last night by John Eldredge. One of the most excellent and challenging books I've ever read.

It has made me think about some of my commonly held conceptions and realize how wrong they have been.

Here is an example: The military. I remember a discussion with my mom and dad when I was in high school and signing up for Selective Service. I remember saying that I would go to Canada if there was a draft. My dad, a Korean war vet, was mad but didn't blow his top. My mom was understanding. I had no idea what I was talking about.

Dad dropped it. I wish he could have set me down and had some continuing conversations about why service is so important. He thought it was obvious. It wasn't.

I remember thinking that the military was a last resort for people who couldn't go to college or get a job. But lately I've seen young men join specifically so they could serve their country. How excellent!

One of my favorite show growing up was MASH. Was there one military guy (not a doctor) who made any sense at all? They were all idiots. Crazy. I'm not arguing whether it was a just war or not. I'm saying there had to be a few sane voices there. Not on MASH. Frank Burns was always ridiculed for trying to be a proud American.

I'm not saying I'm now the complete opposite. The book, Wild at Heart, isn't really about all that. It is about being a man.

Another area I've noticed that I don't see clearly is the area of confronting people. I was really taught to avoid confrontation. You either don't put yourself in that situation, or you use sarcasm to get your point across without actually stating the conflict, or you use humor to skirt away from the conflict and go around it.

But conflict needs to occur. It is ok. It is going to happen. You could say that isn't only about being a man. No. I'm rambling a bit. But it was a good book.

The discussion at EasumBandy on Manly Men by Mark Driscoll is really interesting. He is really making some people mad. Not me. I'm just trying to learn.