What an expression! This owl was given a tit-bit by its handler- I think M. Owl was expected chocolate.
A similar face is pulled by kids taking medicine, or being persuaded (i.e., compelled) to sample some broccoli.
“It’ll do you good!” is the hearty phrase uttered by the person giving out the delightful treats. I have come to loathe the expression- every time, it meant there was something that someone else expected me to do.
Now I’m old enough to make my own choices, I like broccoli. I even understand the need to take medicine. The mystery remains… why does “It’ll do you good” always lead me to expect the worst? If only once they’d said “Try ice-cream- it’ll do you good…”
Going for the sympathy vote, I turned down a doughnut once. About four years old, I was “shopping with mother” (as if I had a choice) and a smiling lady popped her head out of the shop door and said “Would he like a doughnut?” (Don’t panic, it was a friend of my mum).
I said “No.”
Then I hid behind Mum. Was I shy, or scared? No- I didn’t know what a doughnut was. (We had a simple childhood, and Mum baked cakes- to her, the thought of BUYING a cake was, well, unthinkable.)
It was a problem of language and understanding.
We face a similar problem when we try to share our faith in Jesus Christ. We offer people the “holy package” and are surprised when they haven’t a clue what we mean. (We could offer a ring doughnut- they’re holey…)
Perhaps WE are the ones who need to do the work of translating and explaining the good news. We know what we mean when we “offer a doughnut” but if that person has never tried a doughnut before: no surprise when they turn us down.
Go on, this weekend: do a bit of work on how to explain the “good news” of Jesus to someone who doesn’t know about the Bible, or church, and probably thinks that “Christ” is a swearword.
Be a wise owl. Have a go………. It’ll do you good.
The Reflectionary 