Ohana | Midcentury Modern Hanging Art Mobile by Mark Leary

Mobile: Ohana

 On sharing
“Let me get this right,” asked bear, “the more I give away, the happier I’ll be?”

Thoughts while making
Her name is Lynn, although we knew her as Mrs. Scherer, our 8th grade teacher at St. Didacus. She wore Birkenstocks and asked us questions that made us want to think. In a recent interview, she shared her philosophy on life and teaching, “draw them in with beauty, and then hold them with truth."

One day when we were digging into the “loaves and fishes” Bible story. You know the one, thousands of folks follow some dude in a dusty robe out into the middle of nowhere, supposedly without any food. Apparently, meal planning wasn’t a strength of the early Israelites. “No problem,” says the bearded one. “We got this covered,” he states with a wink.

Somehow – “miraculously” – a few fish and some bread multiplies to feed the multitudes. I remember Mrs. Scherer inviting conversation around the story. “What do you think is going on, Mark?”

Oh, I had thoughts, believe you me. But I didn’t know if I should say them or not. But Mrs. Scherer created these beautiful safe places to share. She was honest in a way that I hadn’t known from adults. Real, respectful, intentional.

So, I blurted it out: Come on, we know those guys all had food. They tucked it away, worried that there wouldn’t be enough, that they’d have to give it up “for the greater good.” They clung stubbornly to it. “Nothing to see here,” they said as the apostles walked by.

But then somebody, probably Josephus – because he was one chill dude – said “Hey, I’ve got a stinky fish I could share.” And then Bob threw in half a loaf stale bread. The Smiths decided they probably didn’t need that extra baguette, and Mrs. Jones realized a fish necklace wasn’t all it was made out to be, so she tossed that in the basket, too. Before you knew it, there was food everywhere.

“That,” I said, “was the real miracle; that people felt safe, opened their hearts, realized they were all in it together, and shared.” Exactly what Mrs. Scherer had allowed for by creating beautiful safe places for us. And exactly what we’re being asked to do now.

Who was your favorite teacher at any age?