How Does He Do It?

I finished up a blurb for the Board of Elders that we were sending to the voter’s recommending that Pastor Matt Harrison be nominated for Synod President. I included a short biography, listing some of Matt’s recent books, including Women Pastors, At Home in the House of My Fathers, and the soon to be released A Little Book on Joy, (which is illustrated by my friend Pastor Kurt Onken). After I’d emailed it, I realized I’d forgotten another of Matt’s most recent books, Christ Have Mercy. Oops. I’m sure they’ll get the idea. (That doesn’t complete the entire list either!)

How does one person have time to do all of that? Translating, writing, being a dad, hobbies such as woodworking and banjo playing, plus managing to stay married. Oh, and then there’s the small matter of his day job, traveling the world as Executive Director of LCMS World Relief and Human Care. There’s no way one person could do all of that. And then it hit me.

He’s got a clone!

I know! That’s what I thought too, but it’s the only way he could get it all done. I’m pretty sure I remember a couple of years back when I noticed that Pastor Harrison was scheduled to appear at the same time in two different states. I figured it was a typo, but now I see what’s going on. Think of the possibilities. I guess I could write a little more often too if I had a clone. I could be out on a run while my clone washed the car. O.K. I’m drifting. An appropriate reminder here: Thou Shalt Not Covet Thy Neighbor’s Clone. I suppose we’re not all cut out to have clones anyway. It is a big responsibility. You definitely have to have a certain skill set to train your clone and manage the additional scheduling. On the remote chance that it turns out that he really doesn’t have a clone, then I’m really impressed. We need to find this guy a job with a few more duties, one like Synod President for instance.

[Background information: The statue, with the original heads attached, is located in Boys Town in Omaha, Nebraska. It depicts a boy carrying his brother. The caption on the accompanying pedestal reads “He ain’t heavy, Father… he’s my brother.” As for the Matt Harrison likenesses affixed atop the statue, I had a couple of spare heads lying around the house. The background photo is one I took at Pt. Reyes, to the north of San Francisco, which looks a bit like Pastor Harrison’s native Iowa.]