Last Sunday Arborlawn UMC launched our latest sermon series entitled, "Photo Op." I am very excited about this series because I love pictures, and I love the story photographs can tell.
A few years ago, I posted one of my senior pictures on facebook and was quite surprised by the response. I graduated from Western Hills High School here in Fort Worth in 1993. Back in the olden days, the school told you what company to go to the summer before your junior year to have your senior picture made. (This is quite different from today's practices in which our seniors have personalized photo shoots and look like models.) I went to the "studio" equipped with outfits & "props" that spoke to my heart. One of the things that spoke to my heart at the time were hats. Now, remember, this was in the early 1990s and the Seattle grunge scene had taken over every teenager's life. That is why, in the sweltering over 100 degree heat in the middle of summer, we wore flannel shirts and hats to Starplex for the music festival Lollapalooza. Somehow, as Gen Xers, we believed we were stickin' it to "the man" if we sweat to death while we rushed the stage at a concert. The comments on facebook were lovingly (I think) making fun of my self-styled senior portrait. In fact, my dear Sister-In-Law Susan commented that the picture was so funny it was "giving her life." Because of who God created me to be, I saw that picture in a brand new light. I saw some of the wonderful absurdities that photo encapsulated, and had a good laugh at myself.
Hats were important to me because I never really fit in at my school. But in my church youth group, and Glen Lake Summer Camp, and district and conference youth events, well, there I fit in. Part of fitting in meant wearing wild and crazy hats to church events. (Don't judge. Remember, it was the 1990s.) When it came time for senior pictures, I thought it appropriate to bring all of those hats and have my picture made with them. Please note, this wasn't me being ironic. Past me, whom I will refer to as "Hat Christie", felt like I was showing everyone who I really was.
In a way, in 1993, that's who Hat Christie really was. Somewhere along the way I learned that if I didn't fit in in a social situation, the best way to cope was to get people laughing with or at me. I learned that if I could make myself the subject of the joke first, it was harder for people to make fun of me. When I found I wasn't popular at school (And to quote Lyle Lovett: "I went to high school. I was not popular. Now I am older, and it don't matter."), I found somewhere to fit in and threw myself into that group. 1993 Hat Christie was optimistic, and whimsical, and spent a lot of time making her hair look like a triangle. Hat Christie believed that more is more, and that hats shouldn't be just worn on the head. Hats could be worn on the knees, or toes, (but, also strangely for the purposes of my senior picture NOT on the head. See above about the triangle hair.) Hat Christie knew no limits, and knew she was about to be set free.
2021 Christie owns none of the hats pictured in this picture. Somewhere along the way, I didn't need them. All that is left to remind me of that time in my life is this picture. 2021 Christie knows that life got much better after high school, but it wasn't always easy and sometimes she lost her whimsy. 2021 Christie is still someone who likes to be the first to make fun of herself and loves it when others join in. In fact, 2021 Christie tells people "Teasing is my love language." When 2021 Christie is teased, she feels loved. And if she teases you, it's because she loves you. 1993 Hat Christie and 2021 Christie both love witty banter.
The Apostle Paul, whom I never picture as very funny or whimsical, reminds us in Romans 12:3 offers this sage advice: "Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you." (NIV) It's a good reminder for all of us that when we think highly of ourselves, we are oftentimes placing our opinions higher than God. And I guess when God looked at the picture of Hat Christie, he probably saw a daughter who had a lot of frailties, but was trying to do her best. I hope that's what God still sees in 2021 Christie.
Pictures can tell us a lot about who we were, who we became, and who we are becoming. Our creative God is never finished with us, even after death I believe God continues to perfect us in love. 2021 Christie looks back on Hat Christie with a lot of love for who I was, who I still am, and who God is creating me to be.
Written By: Christie Robbins