Carnal Reason

I am unable to find a copy of a cartoon by John Callahan that I would like to post, so I will describe it as best I can. I saw this cartoon years ago, and it stuck with me because it illustrates a deep truth.

To appreciate the cartoon, it helps to know a little bit about Callahan. He was an alcoholic who lost control of his car and wound up quadriplegic. The man has had a rough, rough life. In spite of this (and in part because of it), his autobiographical Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot is insanely funny. I highly recommend it.

Here is the cartoon as I recall it. A fat guy is holding an ice cream cone, but only the cone. The scoop of ice cream has fallen to the ground. The man is looking into the sky, screaming “How could a merciful God allow this to happen?”

Most people’s problems expand to take up all available bandwidth. I bring it up to acknowledge it. I’m no different. I plan to write some posts about my own circumstances. I do so not to complain; in the balance I have little to complain about. But I do have a five year old daughter, Celeste, with with serious developmental issues. I’ve learned a few things caring for her, and maybe I can say something that will be useful to someone in similar circumstances. But not tonight.

Memory is a funny thing. When I think of the Callahan cartoon, there is always another image in my mind. I have taken Celeste to the UNC neurological clinic several times. I remember someone I saw there, a man in a wheelchair unlike any other I have seen. There is an old saying, there but for the grace of God go I. Point taken. But I wonder, where was the grace of God for the man in the wheelchair?

Posted on July 22nd, 2006 by pwyll
Filed under: personal observations