Fri Oct 4 2024
Mr. E. D., Generosity, Stewardship
Dear Friends of Odyssey,
Mrs. C. D. is now a widow, the once wife of a noble man, taking long walks on the board walk, in impressive health at seventy-seven, stopping for his 16 oz. latte, few words, much respect. A man of gravitas.
Why didn’t I help? How can we (even) help?
Think back one week to the last days of September. The tourists are truly gone, and it rains for four days straight, and Main Ave is a gray haven all the way to the ocean.
Zoom in, walk with me a few doors east of Odyssey, and there’s a professional woman sweeping leaves and sidewalk debris and I ask her about life and she looks at me and beyond me to the ocean. She stands the black plastic broom vertical, weighs both palms on the top, and leans a tired lean.
Tired of sweeping more than sidewalk debris in a gray autumn.
“He went to Vietnam and we had no idea til four months ago. Agent orange, Joey, and he’s not well and he’s my husband and there’s not much time.” And by the end she is outright weeping.
From the broom she glances to me, then to the ocean, then to the leaf pile, and sweeps.
“How can I help?”
“There’s nothing, oh thank you. There’s nothing. I’m leaving, just somewhere away. But close, just to keep the business going, and he’s my husband, Joey. And I’m almost done here really, but thanks.”
The funeral for this noble, well-loved man is today.
Elsewhere in Odyssey life, we finally have our zoning permits for the new space — they only denied us once, not bad for Neptune Township, though certainly not pro-business either — and I’ve been thinking about generosity versus stewardship lately. Do you want to think with me?
Generosity assumes that it’s mine to give away. Stewardship assumes that it’s ultimately someone else’s and it’s just mine to manage wisely.
What if Odyssey isn’t mine? I mean, of course, come on, it’s definitely mine. But, no, what if it’s not?
What if it’s Someone Else’s, and it’s just been given to me to manage for a time? At some point in the future it will be someone else’s to steward. Do you believe this about your possessions? What about your mind and your body?
Don’t worry, we can balance this idea of stewardship with a robust notion of private property.
My mind is mine, not yours (so mind your own business), but not mine, Someone Else’s. In fact I do believe this. So the question is not so much How do I maximize my personal enjoyment of my mind, body, and possessions while I’m alive? — though that’s not a bad question per se — but How do I steward these beautiful gifts from a Giver to enable myself, my family, and my country to flourish with and beyond me?
The purpose of a business is to earn profits for its owners by doing good for its customers. The good that Odyssey aims to do for you is to curate a refuge for thinkers with every amazing cup.
Next time you’re walking on Main Ave think of Mrs. C. D., her suddenly deceased noble husband, and the life you’d be living if the possessions you possess were actually Someone Else’s, entrusted to you — for love, for service, and for human flourishing.
To that end we work,
Joey