The Car Clinic
This seems to be another post in the series "What Have I Fixed Lately?" I replaced the rear engine mount on an '88 civic hatchback last weekend. I might be replacing the fuel pump on an '81 Honda Goldwing motorcycle this coming weekend.
The church I attend has a singles ministry called "Serving Singles" which I've been making a concerted effort to be more involved with. I've been helping one of the guys there with the Car Clinic. It's a great idea, I think. We put out a sign-up sheet and about once a month we spend a Saturday working to change brakes, oil, universal joints, engine mounts, water pumps, alternators, starters, pretty much anything I feel confident we can finish in a day. Auto repair being so expensive, it's a neat way to bless some of the single sisters.
And please, whatever you might think about gender stereotypes, a blessing's a blessing, right? Hmmm...the clinic was set up before I started getting involved, but it does seem to me there's a tacit understanding that only the sisters should sign up. Something to think about: supposing we had a long list of folks--guys and women--would we be more inclined to grant priority to the women? I guess there's a feeling that the guys are better able to fend for themselves when it comes to auto repairs. In general, there's probably some truth to that. Then again, at a time when fewer and fewer guys seem to be handy with a wrench, maybe not. Then there's the financial issue. We have a lot of single moms and a number of widows. As between these folks and the single guys I'm inclined to think that, generally, the latter group can better weather the expense of an unexpected mechanic's bill. I would be open to the following: encourage everyone with a genuine need to sign up and just trust that those who sign up will do so because they could really use our help. If that happens, then those folks will be blessed, irrespective of gender. I might suggest we take this approach. I'm rather new so I need to be sure to be tactful about proposing changes.
In all candor, though, there's something in me that takes a good deal of satisfaction in playing the role of the Knight in Shining Armor, and I make no apologies for it.
The church I attend has a singles ministry called "Serving Singles" which I've been making a concerted effort to be more involved with. I've been helping one of the guys there with the Car Clinic. It's a great idea, I think. We put out a sign-up sheet and about once a month we spend a Saturday working to change brakes, oil, universal joints, engine mounts, water pumps, alternators, starters, pretty much anything I feel confident we can finish in a day. Auto repair being so expensive, it's a neat way to bless some of the single sisters.
And please, whatever you might think about gender stereotypes, a blessing's a blessing, right? Hmmm...the clinic was set up before I started getting involved, but it does seem to me there's a tacit understanding that only the sisters should sign up. Something to think about: supposing we had a long list of folks--guys and women--would we be more inclined to grant priority to the women? I guess there's a feeling that the guys are better able to fend for themselves when it comes to auto repairs. In general, there's probably some truth to that. Then again, at a time when fewer and fewer guys seem to be handy with a wrench, maybe not. Then there's the financial issue. We have a lot of single moms and a number of widows. As between these folks and the single guys I'm inclined to think that, generally, the latter group can better weather the expense of an unexpected mechanic's bill. I would be open to the following: encourage everyone with a genuine need to sign up and just trust that those who sign up will do so because they could really use our help. If that happens, then those folks will be blessed, irrespective of gender. I might suggest we take this approach. I'm rather new so I need to be sure to be tactful about proposing changes.
In all candor, though, there's something in me that takes a good deal of satisfaction in playing the role of the Knight in Shining Armor, and I make no apologies for it.
posted by anchovy @ 12:11 AM
2 Comments:
At 9:00 PM,
mal said…
"Service" to others should always be rewarding. In this case, it sounds like it could be fun too
At 8:31 PM,
anchovy said…
Mucho fun!
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