[I]f the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it?
Naaman has leprosy. He’s gone to Elisha to be healed. Elisha tells him to go wash seven times in the nearby river. Naaman leaves angry, saying that aren’t the rivers in Damascus better than the rivers in Israel? He came to be healed, and he could have just as easily washed in his own rivers, without the travel, without the humility. His servants pointed out, however that if the cure had been something more difficult, Naaman would have done it without question. So Naaman goes into the Israeli river, washes seven times, and is made clean.
I’m struck by this human tendency to dismiss the easy, to seek complicated things when simpler things would do. If what Naaman wanted was to be healed, what did he have to lose to wash in that river?
Perhaps he’d presumed that his problem was so complex that it couldn’t be resolved with a simple fix. His big, complex problems deserved big, complex fixes. Maybe he assumed that he deserved a big fix, that it would say more about the bigness of his dilemma. But that’s backwards, isn’t it? You’d think that humanity would seek the simpler, easier solution, the path of least resistance. But when it comes to our problems, we want to think they’re a big hairy mess that no simple solution could resolve. After all, if a simple solution fixed it, maybe it wasn’t so big of a problem.
I have done this too. My problems are certainly more complex than a simple fix, so when the simple counsel is offered, it’s hard to not be skeptical. Note to self, pay attention to the simple solutions. They might just work.
In my home world, I can see places where the simple solution should be given a try. My sick loved one is currently living on our property in a tent, and has been since we found them at a homeless encampment 2 hours away. Our loved one is not taking medicine, and not making sense to me. Yesterday, they talked to the police to try to file a restraining order on me because they overheard me talking about my past week, which involved parts of their story too. They continue to wear a helmet in the house, because someone might hit them in the head.
The complicated solution, the solution that matches my perceived understanding of the complicated problem involves medicines (they aren’t taking and have sworn never to), a court determination of the need for hospitalization (which would be a huge stressor for everyone), and a hospitalization (which our loved one has sworn to avoid, and honestly won’t cure them). Although it would provide a respite for me, that complex solution is hard, stressing, and temporary.
The simpler response, the response that causes the least amount of stress is to support our loved one as they live in the tent. They’re not hurting anyone, and most importantly, happy. It may not be a long term cure, but given the nature of disease, there is no cure, long term or short term. Why should I decide that their way of life, their way of seeing things is not right? I don’t think I’d be happy living in a tent, but I’m not, so it doesn’t matter. Besides, living in a tent might in fact be a better option than meds that drastically alter personality and thinking, a contentious court battle, and a frightening hospitalization.
If someone could give me a 1000 step process to make my loved one happy, I’d take those steps. Today, I have a much simpler option which is to support them right where they are, as long as they’re happy and not hurting anyone. This morning, I’m thinking about taking the easy option for once.
