Greatness

Yesterday I decided to go run a few errands and somehow ended up over at the campus of Purdue University. The campus is beautiful and very busy as students are coming back for the fall semester. I was in between breakfast and lunch and ended up at famous local hangout called Triple XXX Hamburgers. It was featured on the Food Network recently, and even though I’ve eaten there before, this time I decided to order one of their hamburgers. I wasn’t disappointed with my decision. As I was leaving, my friend Mike called to see if I wanted to ride down with him to southern Indiana since he needed to visit one of his job sites. We had an enjoyable ride together and discussed everything from A-Z. He is also a sushi lover and we stopped at Ocean World and had a soft shell crab roll. Oh my! Everyone needs a friend who shares their love for sushi. As we drove back to Lafayette, I shot a video of the roadside corn fields and emailed it to Spencer’s phone. Somehow, he wasn’t impressed with all those rows of corn.

We drove by the office and picked up Mike’s wife, Pam. Then we were on our way to dinner at a place called The Other Pub. The menu was fantastic and we sampled several items as we discussed life, family, and ministry, among other things. As we finished with dinner, a high school women’s volleyball team came in to eat. My friends knew some of the parents of the players. As one of the dads came over to our table, it was clear he knew my friends. Mike introduced us, and later shared with me their friend was an Indiana state senator. On the way home, I began to think how possible it is to be in the presence of someone who is considered great or famous, yet we don’t even realize it. By the way he dressed (coming from his daughter’s volleyball game), I would have never guessed he was a state senator. He certainly didn’t feel the need to let me know what he did for a living. I am amazed how great people so often simply fit in and have a way of blending in the crowd without drawing attention. They don’t have to remind you of their greatness, any past accomplishments, or how smart they are. Greatness doesn’t have to be advertised.