Giraffe Advice

On Monday of this week, Jan and I were sitting in the exam room of her oncologist. It was the consultation that preceded each of her chemotherapy infusions.

Over the six years of our journey, we have grown a delightful friendship. Although visits are concerned with severe issues and usually above my head, an abundance of laughter and banter punctuates them. Dr. B is Jewish by descent and respectful toward any religion, at least toward our expressions of confidence in God. I do not believe there has been a visit with him that Jan has not affirmed her trust in him as an instrument of God’s miraculous power. He may not believe what she says, but he seems to like hearing her heart.

Jan described her dizziness, which seems to increase as chemo progresses. I do not recall what precipitated the comment, but Dr. B illustrated a giraffe’s awkward way of drinking water. The average male giraffe has its head around sixteen feet above the water. While that is a height to feed on the good stuff at the top of an acacia tree, it’s a long way for a drink.

The giraffe will spread its long spindly legs and bend its knees to drink. They appear as though they are bowing before the Lyon King.

There is at least a couple of reasons for this humble stance. One is that their neck cannot bend over far enough to reach the water. The other notable reason is that they have the same problem I do when I get up from a sitting position, hypertension.

The giraffe has a massive and muscular heart weighing eleven pounds. As a result, their blood pressure is a little more than double a healthy human. An enormous heart is needed because it takes a lot of effort to get blood up a couple of flight steps to the brain. The giraffe spreads its legs when it puts its head down to stabilize itself.

I often have the same problem when I move to a standing position from a kneeling or squatting position. Our brains insist on having their oxygen in an on-time delivery fashion. So, it’s not the least happy when the airflow is interrupted.

Sometimes life moves with such an abrupt force that we become off balance. We don’t react with the swiftness that usually accompanies our ambling through our foraging in our jungle habitat.

There are two things I have found that keep us stable in the dizzy times of life. The first is a continually deepening understanding of God, His person, and His methods. The second is connections with vibrant others who also pursue a deep knowledge of God.

Rather than leave you with a scripture passage, allow me to give you a possible life purpose to consider. I commit myself to the following:

Love God,

Love God’s people, and

Love the people God loves the way God loves them (and us).

Photo – I took this photo at the Nashville Zoo while accompanying my granddaughter on a kindergarten field trip.