ENTRY #18: Nowhere Man
In this small chapter McManus reveals that that is not really his true last name. He's taken it on as an alias. His mom remarried and her second husband, I assume, is named McManus. The point he gets to in this entry is that we all long to belong.
I remember the feelings of envy and respect I felt in junior high for the coolest kids in class. They apparently all smoked pot. That was a real social drug during the 70s. It was so prevelant during that time that I am actually quite shocked that marijuana did not get legalized in the 80s. I wasn't expecting the Reagan Revolution and the "Just Say No" campaign to change our culture. It certainly did, though. Where heavy metal and rock concerts used to be a haven for pot smoke, where ten thousand or more dopers under one roof were too much for a small police force to handle, so the smoking went unregulated in the arena. As soon as the lights went down, a cloudy haze settled over pretty much the entire audience. I was afraid of drugs as a junior high student. I'm not sure why, but I was afraid of what they would do to my body or something. My reluctance to do them kept me on one side of an invisible yet very real fence between the cool kids and me. Even though I got along with most kids in my class -- including the ones that did drugs -- I was not part of their group.
Once I crossed the line late in my freshman year of high school, I was amazed at how seemingly instantly I felt "in." By the time I was a senior I was experienced enough to hold my own in just about any pot smoking context. When I travelled out of state and partied with others, there was an instant bond. I was part of their tribe. When I arrived in Austin for my college years, I was able to make quick friends with those that got high.
For me, I was able to feed my insecurity and longing to belong by taking illegal drugs. Not everyone goes to these ends ... and some people go way beyond them to belong. One of the things McManus uses to define a "real" community is that it is inclusive -- not exclusive. It is inviting. That does sound like a good defintion of a God initiated community. Everyone is welcome.
Posted by Doug Van Pelt at September 5, 2007 10:39 AM