Let’s Play Tetherball!

Tetherball. I thought of tetherball as I listened to the latest back and forth political party salvos following the State of the Union Address. Current hostilities have erupted into unprecedented, reciprocal personal attacks. Thinking of the hostilities and partisan onslaughts in terms of tetherball reminded me that I have seen the same thing during marriage counseling, in conflicts within a family, and during disagreements between folks in church. Playing tetherball during recess at Horace Mann Elementary is one of the funniest things I remember of childhood school days. Facing each other on opposite sides of the pole, a child and his opponent would battle over the ball, each trying to move it around the pole in his direction. Arms would flail, fists would fly, hands would slap in each other’s direction. But, opponents were not hitting each other. They were hitting the ball. Each had his direction, each battled over the ball, each was diametrically opposed to the ball going his opponent’s direction, but the players weren’t laying their hands on each other. Now, imagine, if these two tetherball opponents are going at it with arms flailing, fists flying, and hands slapping, and the ball with its pole were suddenly moved to one side, or better for the illustration, the two opponents in sync took sidewise steps away from ball and pole. Suppose they never altered their movements with the ball removed to the side. Now, instead of battering the ball, they are battering each other. Fists aren’t falling on the ball. Fists are falling on each’s head. Open hands aren’t slapping the ball, they’re slapping the opponent’s face. Political opponents used to battle over the ball. They battled over an issue. Now the issue is moved to the side, and the opponents just battle each other. Instead of their remarks to their opponents being points to be made on their view of the issue, their remarks are attacks on the person of their opponent, ad hominin. The issue is supposed to be border security. Yet, border security is not really being debated. The ball has been put to one side as those on opposite sides of the issue punch each other. One side cries to the other, “You’re a bunch of racists.” The other side responds, “You’re all anarchists.” Only it’s not all so polite as that. Many adjectives, superlatives, and expletives are added. The same thing in marriage conflict. The couple sits on the couch in counseling. Their relationship has grown volatile. Ostensibly, the point of contention is finances. At least that is the most recent. Suddenly there is an eruption. One spouse accuses the other, “You are nothing but a prodigious, wasteful, careless spendthrift;”--only, with not so nice of words. The attacked spouse, reacts, “And you’re nothing but a stingy, money-obsessed miser.” The ball, the issue of finances, has been set aside while the spouses exchange blows, only hurting one another and not touching the issue at hand that separates them. Folks in the church debate an issue of lifestyle. Those on one side openhandedly flail those on the other side with the epithet, “Liberals.” The others side slaps back with, “Legalists.” Again, the ball is untouched, over to the side. In the political arena the media must be held complicit to the constant brouhaha, this sham and shame. It’s the personal blows that get the attention and not the points of view on the actual issue. If the two playing tetherball stay at the pole and engage the ball, eventually, however fierce, numerus, and contentious the blows, the game will be finished, the outcome decided, and the ball at rest. The two can leave the game still friends. They are opponents, they each delivered fierce blows, but they had kept the conflict with the ball and not each other. As all things, the Bible addresses this about keeping the issue the issue and not, forgetting the issue and attacking one’s opponent. It states that the one that is pro-the-issue should not despise the one that is con-the-issue; and the one that is con-the-issue should not condemn the one that is pro-the-issue. My analogy and its application above may be all bungled; yet, I think we can concede what I’ve described is what we are seeing. Folks on opposite sides are beating one another to a pulp with their constant tit for tat blows, and the ball hangs untouched, the issues unresolved. When there is an issue between us and God, thankfully, He does not attack us; He deals with the issue. (A bit of advice here. If the issue is between you and God, don’t try to hit the ball back. And, for sure, don’t attack Him.) It may sound awfully naively nostalgic, but why can’t we all just play tetherball?

Let’s Play Tetherball!

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