Not Created Equal

When I was little, I thought everything thing in life was unfair.  Being the youngest of four, I saw a world around me with lots of possibilities, but I was always too little to do anything. I lived near the corner of two streets, one of which had this huge hill.  I would beg my mother to let me bike down this hill, but she didn't think I was ready for it.  I would get so upset when I would see my older brother skating down this perfect hill, full force, his blond curls blowing in the breeze.

One day I couldn’t take it anymore.  I snuck out of my house, got my bike, and walked to the top of the hill.  I hesitated for about a minute, contemplating the risk.  It looked easy enough and I had seen Shawn do it a million times.  I mounted the bike, took a deep breath, and pushed off.  The wind blew hard against my face. I went to break…but I couldn’t.  My bike began to swing out of control and down I went into a pile of gravel at full force.  I cried, but no one came.  I had to make it home.  I looked down at my knee, covered in blood and gravel.  I took a deep breath, sucking in my tears, put my hand around my knee and stood up.  I took the walk of shame all the way home, with each bend of the knee sending blood down my leg.  My mother heard be when I was near the back door.  She scooped me up and took me into the bedroom to examine the injury.  She never said, “I told you so” although she had earned the right. 

I remember asking her why there were different rules for each one of us.  It was so confusing.  Why couldn’t we all be treated the same?

“I can’t treat you the same because you are not the same.   I treat you differently because I love you.”

I don’t think I really understood that until I was in college.  Looking back, my brother was big and strong as an ox.  He could handle the hill.  I was little and lacked athletic ability.  She knew that I couldn’t handle something that big yet.  It just wasn’t my time.  That wasn’t a reason to hold my brother back, though. 

Sometimes I wonder if that’s how God sees us as well.  He tailors our experiences to complement our uniqueness and readiness.  He loves us so much that he can’t treat us the same.  He treats us differently because we are different and I’m okay with that.