Ryan Billington

3-10-06

AP English

Extra Credit

World Famous

By Ryan Billington

            I had the privilege of going on the UCA gymnastics tour to Yakima and Brewster this March.  Over the 5-day tour, the team racked up over 17 hours on the bus.  Our team left Thursday evening and stayed at Ma and Pa Soule’s house that night.  We performed at Yakima Adventist Christian School and then drove to Brewster for a show Saturday night, after which we drove all the way back to Yakima. 

Sunday morning found everyone tired, sore, and a little low on enthusiasm.  We were scheduled to arrive at the All Nations Center, run by the Kravig family, to give a show and clinic for the kids.  Our half time show, unicycle routine, mixed pairs, and quads all rushed by without a hitch, and suddenly Soule was out on the mat, announcing that it was time for all the kids to come forward.  Each gymnast grabbed one or two kids, and suddenly life was teeming with shouts, yells, and people everywhere.  I picked out two boys.  Then David Wheeler and I set to work teaching them the tricks of the trade.  After several stunts, we were running low on ideas, so we asked the boys what they would like to learn.  After a mumbled, “I don’t know,” the eldest looked up and said, “Umm… do you know my sister?  She goes to UCA.  Oh, you wouldn’t know her.  You’re world famous.”  I chuckled and helped the youngster into position for a Front Angel.  But his words echoed inside my head… world famous.  We finished the clinic and wrapped up the show, which had gone fairly well.  While almost all of the pyramids had gone up, it seemed our timing was farther off than previous shows and that we weren’t as together as a whole.  After the mats were rolled, the trailer packed, and the pizzas eaten, we loaded the bus for a 3-hour trip to UCA.  Still, the boy’s words would not leave me.  I didn’t even know him, yet our 10-minute interaction had left my mind spinning.  I saw him as a normal, wide-eyed kid with a shy smile and a timid voice.  In his eyes, we were a world-class gymnastic team that was taking time to play and be friends with him: to show him how to stand on top of a pyramid of giants, and to give him a high five.   

            In life, we don’t often see ourselves through the eyes of others.  The sight of our character, our way of interacting, and our everyday actions is limited to a single perspective.  We are almost blind to the ways we affect others, the thoughts we inspire, and the impact we have.  For the gymnastic team on the tour, working and connecting with those kids was a simple part of our show, but for the boy I worked with, it was almost surreal.  It’s the everyday events in life, the everyday moments we live that can mean so much to someone else.  A smile, five minutes of connection, an encouraging note, a caring question that shows not our face, but the face of Christ.  Living is for Christ.  Not Week of Prayer, not a handful of Sabbaths.  Living… and that, my friends, is beyond anything else:  even being world famous.