"Gazing on the stars and walking in the dust"

Several months ago I caught a piece on NPR where they were discussing a comic featuring a pirate with an eye-patch, a peg-leg, and a hook for an arm. Behind this pirate were two other pirates talking about him, and, after reading through several possible captions (which apparently listeners had sent in), the guest gave the official (or winning?) caption of what the one pirate was saying to the other. Pointing to the pirate in front, the one says to the other admiringly, "I could never be HALF the man he is!"

The main character in this upcoming VBS drama is a recurring character from our "Pirates in Paradise" VBS I wrote two years ago. At the conclusion of that storyline, the majority of the pirates voted to quit being pirates, accept the Royal Pardon, and devote themselves to spreading the word that even pirates can be forgiven and make a fresh start. They changed the name of their ship from "The Bloody Gem" to "The Heavenly Pearl," voted off their former captain Harry DuPillage, and elected as their new captain the former first mate, Dick Dead-Eye.

Dick Dead-Eye, as played brilliantly by our Assistant Pastor Ron, was a bit of a buffoon. Instead of a parrot, he had a chicken pinned to his shoulder, and when the children laughed and pointed to it, he pretended not to see, as the chicken was on the side where he wore an eye-patch (and hence, his name "Dead-Eye"). He also had a hook for a hand (though I can't recall which hand it was, and there is a good chance he changed it from day to tday). Elevating Dick to Captain of a missionary ship, and having his experiences parallel those of St. Paul will require some rewriting of the character (which will be somewhat eased by the fact that Ron, unfortunately, is unable to reprise the role, as he will be a real-life missionary in Brazil), but I hope to keep some of his fun-loving spirit intact.

"The one-eyed man still has one good eye," as Mark Heard sings in his song "Schizophrenia" (which focuses on seeing both the good and the bad in life). It seems a bit insensitive in the third person, but those I have known with handicaps of various sorts (including Ron, who lost his tongue to cancer several years ago), seem to be able to look on the brighter side of life and make light of their infirmities (if they are able to cope at all and not fall into bitterness and depression). That is how I imagine Dead-Eye Dick handling his disabilities. There are those who insist on referring to the Captain now as "Richard the Seer" (based on his growing reputation as a Christian leader, church planter, miracle worker, and visionary), but I see him as being a more earthy character who answers to both names. He is appreciative of the fact that he's "still got one good eye" (and one good hand), and he looks forward to the day when he lands on the King's Shore and receives a fully restored body, but in the meantime he gets by best he can, and doesn't pretend to be more than he is.