Smart Guys and Kid Stuff

Husband has been trying to get his ducks in a row to finish his degree. Which means that he’s been doing battle working with the folks at our old Alma Mater for a few days.

One of the professors he has contacted is the head of the history department there, Dr. Huston. Now, I can’t think of Richard Huston without trying to use the word ’scintillating’ in a sentence immediately. Even aside from his love of vocabulary though there’s just sometime special about the guy. From the fun way he curls his words when he talks to his love of Latin America.

So as I’ve been reminiscing about time in Dr. Huston’s classes, I got to thinking about the devotions he would do at the beginning of every class. There are two that I remember specifically, and that I have recalled frequently since graduating. Dr. Huston had us watch a clip of, The Lion King one day, and another day he read aloud from The Velveteen Rabbit. The thrust of the first devotion was to “Remember who we are,” and the thrust of the second was to ponder what it means to “become real.”

But what has gotten me these last few days, what has convicted me that even though I thoroughly enjoyed Dr. Huston while I was studying under him, I think I wasn’t awake to how incredible of a man he really was, is this: Here is this incredibly intelligent, wise man. He’s got a Ph.D. He’s a professor. He’s a Fulbright Scholar even. So this truly brilliant guy is walking through life and he sees God not just in places where words like ‘ontological’ are thrown around, which, I guess, is where I expect the smart people to have their ‘God revelations.’ Rather, in these two instances, at least this really, really smart, wise guy saw God in a children’s movie and a children’s book.

How cool is that? Dr. Huston’s eyes are open! He sees the burning bush where the rest of us sit around and pick blackberries. And he’s humble enough to be taught by the things of children.

So today, I think, I want to be like Dr. Huston when I grow up.