Oh my.

I have struggled with television this week. I have basic cable so it's possible that the news channels that aren't included in my cable package have done a good job of covering the devastating storms of the past week. I haven't found that to be the case on the main networks.

According to the most recent article posted on the Associated Press website, "At least 297 were killed across six states in Wednesday's outbreak." The same article also noted that "The loss of life is the greatest from an outbreak of U.S. tornadoes since April 1974, when the weather service said 315 people were killed by a storm that swept across 13 Southern and Midwestern states."  I remember that. I was eleven years old and saw tornadoes cross the horizon just before heading to the basement in the house where I grew up in Elizabethtown, KY. Brandenburg, KY experienced significant devastation and loss of life in that sweep of tornadoes and Louisville's parks still show some signs of the damage wreaked by those winds. 

How is it, then, that preparation for the Royal Wedding along with coverage for the actual wedding has preempted any significant coverage of the storms through the south this past week? I don't begrudge Will and Kate their pomp and circumstance or the generous outpouring of support and well-wishes from around the world. I do struggle with the fact that in the midst of a weather catastrophe whose scope is still unknown, the primary television news outlets of the United States of America have barely cut into their planned royal coverage this week. 

Are we Americans truly so shallow that we have driven this news cycle away from this significant loss of life? Are we so easily distracted by glitz and glamor that we would rather watch a discussion of whether or not a royal kiss measured up to the expectations of the crowd? Again, don't get me wrong. I did watch this morning (I did not set an alarm to get up early, I simply watched after I woke up) and I did appreciate seeing the marriage ceremony with the inspiring music and Anglican liturgy. I just wish the news in the U.S. had remained the news and that our focus, as Americans, might have remained on the crisis on our own shores rather than on a patriarchal, fantasy-inducing - if beautiful - wedding in London.

Of course, what I'd really like to write about it how other people should get over themselves, but changing them is probably not within my sphere of influence.

You know who they are...

• the ones who won't read a blog created in blogger...
• the ones who live in public roles but limit their sphere of interaction to a comfortable few...
• the ones who...

Oops - wasn't going to write about them...

In all honesty - "they" are "me" too. 

I'm like them...

• I have strong opinions and don't mind sharing.
  
• due to my current 'in transition' status as a student (never mind that I co-pastored a church in another denomination for about eight years) I often find myself 'feeling' behind or cast aside (pretty sure this is my baggage and has nothing to do with what others are intentionally "doing")
  
• while my first inclination is not to take a passive-aggressive stance, it is incredibly easy for me to slip into that mode when I feel overlooked or slighted.
  

When you are (or have usually been) "one of the cool kids" (or at least one of those who floats around the edges of that category) you tend to live in a bubble - letting people come to you instead of going to people. I'm guilty of it. 

How many times have I been the one sitting while others seek me out for information or conversation or advice. Many. 

How many times do I actively move through a space, engaging people (not just friends) and checking in on folks who don't get checked in on much. Not so often. 

I'm not talking about networking. I'm talking about engaging with people about their lives for their sake.

It's easy to be the one people seek.

It's not so easy being the one who seeks people.

So today I'm getting over myself. I'm going to actively seek people and not wait for people to find me. I'm going to be present in my own life and in the lives of those around me. I am going to reject the bubble. I'm going to remember that not everyone who asks a question wants an answer. I'm going to remember that a critique of another's work (even when invited) is often going to be 'cause' for being ignored. I'm going to remember that even when I take the time to engage with others - they will not always respond. I'm going to remember that those people who drive me crazy with their inconsistent attention or disregard probably have no idea that I perceive them that way. And I'm going to interact on my own terms - generous terms at that.

So if you notice that I'm sitting around waiting for others to come my way - kindly pull the chair out from under me.