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My father took me to the mechanic to pick up my car. I can’t remember what was wrong with it. Something non-trivial.
This mechanic was the one mechanic in town my father trusted. The type you wonder even exists anymore, and when you find them, you hold on for dear life. My father spent his summers in his own father’s garage, so he’s always been good at discerning honest brokers and shysters in this domain.
We walked through the bay door, and the guy popped his out of the trunk. He wasn’t finished yet, but he would be soon. Give him 15 more minutes.
My father said thanks and that we’d be back in 30. He took me to some hole-in-the-wall ice cream stand and bought me a banana milkshake. The real kind, made with an actual banana harvested from an actual tree. Not the kind made with syrup distilled from banana Runts that tastes like chemical sludge.
I wasn’t going to complain, but I was wondering why we didn’t just stay.
“Never look over the shoulder of a professional while he’s working. It does no good, and it’s annoying.”
And that was it. Simple. Direct. It’s a short, practical lesson I’ve never forgotten. Etched onto my mind with the flavor of a banana.
Learning can happen anywhere. That’s part of the point of Deuteronomy 6:6-7.
And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
Wisdom is transferred during the rhythms of everyday life. The type of teaching that sticks often isn’t found in the classroom nor is it heralded by trumpets nor is it demarcated by a special, solemn heart-to-heart chat.
Proverbial wisdom is caught during walks in the park, while learning to drive, while running the grocery store, while reading a bedtime story, or while picking up a car from the mechanic’s. You can’t fake these moments, but there’s nothing magical about them. They happen naturally while you are living life. Include your children, make observations, ask and answer questions, and have fun.
My father did two things very well during this whole encounter, and I doubt he did them consciously.
He stated something true and useful, and did so without any fanfare.
He did it while also sharing something good that he liked himself—banana milkshakes.
That’s it. Not too complicated, as long as you’re present.