ELEVATED EDDIE

 

“It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship… There are no ordinary people.” C.S. Lewis

 

The soles of Eddie’s shoes never wore out. He could wear any pair of shoes for months with little or no wear on the soles. It didn’t matter if they were sneakers, flip-flops or hard-soled leather dress shoes, the soles remained unscuffed. Of course, he’d break an occasional shoestring, and the shoes grew dirty over time, but the soles kept their out-of-the-box condition.

 

The reason is that Eddie’s feet never quite touched the ground. He went through life with just a hint of air between the ground and his feet. For Eddie gravity didn’t have the same effect as is does on most others.

 

Eddie didn’t understand how unique this characteristic was until he entered middle school. 

 

Middle school is a wicked place where differences aren’t tolerated. Soon the self-appointed gurus of popularity at Eddie’s school dictated loudly that he was a misfit. Cruelly, and without cause they taunted and tormented him with the kind of public humiliations that only early adolescents can devise. This torture was simply because of the way in which he carried himself. Walking to his locker between classes, they called out in the unison of lemmings, “Elevated Eddie! Elevated Eddie!”

 

Ostracized and eliminated from the circles of power, Eddie was shocked that many of his longtime friends were literally turning their backs away from him pretending they’d didn’t know him. His heart broke under the pressure as the confusion grew as he sought to understand what he’d done wrong to deserve this hostile treatment. 

 

The one place that Eddie felt safe was within the confines of his family home. At home, nothing had changed. His parents who were busy in their careers, found time for him and his younger siblings around the nightly dinner table. 

 

“Eddie,” his mother asked, “help me set the dinner table, okay?”

 

As they prepared the table, she’d detected a disturbance within her first-born child, “Are you okay, son?” she asked.

 

Eddie quickly filled her in on the events of the day.

 

She nodded in understanding. Smiling, she said, “I have an idea! Do you trust me?”

 

He said, “Yeah, I guess,” in that wary tone of voice that only resides in the life of a thirteen-year-old boy.

 

“Good,” she replied, “Would you get the water glasses, please?”

 

The family had gathered, Eddie’s little sister Olive insisted on praying for the meal, and the business of dinner begun. Tonight’s dinner was like nearly any other in Eddie’s household. Stories about the events of the day had been told, laughter rang out on several occasions and a couple of times harsh words were exchanged amongst the siblings. There was nothing unique about this meal, events such as this were occurring in millions of other homes simultaneously.

 

As the meal was concluding, Eddie’s mother spoke up and briefly explained to the family what had happened to her eldest at school that day. Wrapping up her remarks, she queried her family, “So, what do you think?”

 

Olive quickly volunteered her learned six-year-old opinion, “Well, I think the people at that school are just stupid. You should just turn your back on them and ignore them. I hate stupid people!”

 

Eddie smiled at his baby sister’s reply. “Thanks, sis! I’ll think about that.”

 

“Well, they are! Stupid!” she insisted.

 

Eddie’s dad spoke up, “Maybe they are, Olive, but how does that help your brother?”

 

She frowned.

 

Bryon, the usually sulking middle child spoke up, “Whatever you do, Eddie, don’t screw things up for me! I’ll be there in two years. So, be cool. Don’t blow it for me.”

 

“Son, let me ask you a question,” his mother said. “Do you know why your feet don’t touch the ground? Because it is true, they don’t. But it is important that you understand why. Do you?”

 

“She’s right, Eddie,” his dad reiterated. “Knowing the reason will provide you with the answer as to how best to deal with the situation as school. Eddie, very few people experience the lift that you experience. And for your entire life, there will be those who will give you a hard time about it. Their reasons for doing so will be varied, some will be jealous, others just want you to fit into their mold, still others will be threatened because you are different. Regardless of that, you’ve got to learn how to handle the criticism and maintain your sense of dignity and worth. And, I guess now is the time for you to face this head on. So, like you mom asked, do you know why your feet don’t touch the ground?”

 

Later that night, he’d prayed for an answer to his parent’s question. Suddenly, he sat up in bed triumphant. He’d gotten his answer and with the answer came a game plan for tomorrow.

 

Excitedly, Eddie dressed and prepared for his return to the place of great shame. Today, he noticed, the distance between the ground and shoes seemed at little greater. As he arrived on campus, the taunting began. “Elevated Eddie! Elevated Eddie!” the little tyrant’s pubescent voices echoed through across the school.

 

Eddie stopped and turned to the voices of his accusers and simply smiled. 

 

Their taunts grew louder and more as more students joined in the frey. Eddie’s smile grew and his eyes glowed in joy. 

 

When Mr. Scales, the vice principle, stepped into the hallway, the taunts ceased immediately. That isn’t entirely true, for there is always in any given American middle school that one kid who is so enraptured in the taunting but is also utterly clueless to the presence of power. Of course, he continued his taunts until he felt the cold hands of Vice Principle Scales grab his shoulder, and which point he fell silent and left a noticeable dribble in his pants from the fear he experienced.

 

Eddie continued to smile. He savored the victory over the tinny voices of public opinion for the first time in his young life.

 

Explaining what had occurred, Eddie went on while chewing his pizza that night at the family dinner table., “They were calling me ‘Elevated Eddie’ thinking that was a slam or something. But what they didn’t know is that ‘Elevated Eddie’ is a complement! I am Elevated Eddie! And it is great! I love being Elevated Eddie!”

 

“Why is that, son?” his dad asked.

 

“I’m elevated because I know something they don’t,” he replied. “I know who I am. I am a child of God, and how could I be anything but elevated? Seriously!”

 

Byron piped in, “I’m okay with that, so long as you didn’t screw things up for me when I get there, Elevated Eddie.”

 

“If I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto myself.” Jesus (John 12:32)

 

“Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who shall in the high calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus…” Hebrews 3:1