In the year 2000, I began working for the Elkhart Township assessor’s office. In the prior 17 years, I worked in the private sector, where independent thought and productivity were highly valued attributes. Government is an entirely different environment.

Never before had I been given a voluminous employee handbook to read nor had I been required to withstand a day-long orientation covering everything from bathroom breaks to bomb threats (both of which I thought I could handle on my own without orientation). I was not at all prepared for the large number of rules and regulations and the small amount of space in my new work cubicle.

My saving grace in the transition from the real work world into bureaucracy was my co-worker, Grace Johnson. She had survived many years as a civil servant and that fact alone commanded my respect. Grace possessed the ability to work accurately and efficiently while maintaining a great sense of humor. Honestly, there is little hope of enduring local government without a robust sense of humor.

Part of the task of an assessor is to review blueprints of buildings that are under construction in an attempt to calculate an estimated value prior to the building being completed. One of my first blueprint reviews was that of the Music Center at Goshen College. There were more than 30 pages of blueprints with every detail itemized: plumbing, electrical, floors, walls, ceilings and even the parking lot with appropriate landscaping. The review of the plans took more than a week, during which time it became crystal clear that this was going to be an exceptional facility.

It took me until 2012 to ever set foot in this beautiful building….

>> Read the rest of this article on the Goshen Commons website.

We kicked off the school year by focusing on the core value of Servant Leadership. Mid-year, we poured out our hearts and hammers to help Habitat for Humanity build a home for custodial staff member Eddie Mayorga and his family. As the year closed, we sent a new batch of Servant Leaders into the world as ambassadors of Goshen College.

In saying goodbye to members of the Class of 2012, I reminded them that their true vocations, no matter their majors, were to be Ambassadors for Christ and Diplomats of Reconciliation. I asked them to consider a few basic questions: In a world where those on all sides of every issue consider themselves to be prophets, do we need more prophets running around? In a world where those on all sides of every issue consider themselves to be “rightly dividing the Word of Truth,” do we need more clever exegetes and historical deconstructionists? In a world filled with moral ambiguity and indulgence, do we need ever more rigid legal and ethical guidelines, judicial decisions, and coercive moral arbiters? In a world of ever more selective identity politics, do we need more excommunications by the right or left, the red or blue, the purple or other-than-purple? I sincerely doubt it.

We are called, instead, to bring former enemies together, to unite friend and foe. How radical is that? Amid pervasive ideological conflict, being an ambassador, a diplomat, may be the most radically counter-cultural calling. To be a diplomat of reconciliation may truly be more radical than that of an apostle, a prophet, a priest; more so than a preacher, a teacher, a nurse; beyond that of an artist, an engineer, or judge. Whatever one’s profession, there is no greater vocation needed on earth, no more timely calling than to be an Ambassador for Christ, a Diplomat of Reconciliation.

Recently, I led a group to one of the most conflict-riddled places on earth, Palestine/Israel. While there, we visited a great Christian leader, the Rev. Zoughbi Zoughbi, founder and director of Wi’am, the Palestinian Conflict Resolution Center. He also happens to be the father of Marcelle Zoughbi ’13.  Some of our students spent last summer serving in Wi’am’s summer programs for kids. Wi’am in Arabic means “cordial relationships” – developing relationships across profound differences. That is exactly what Zoughbi Zoughbi’s team does, day in and day out, year after year. In our parting, he presented me with a red stole with white Jerusalem crosses embroidered in its fabric. I wore the stole at our Baccalaureate service as a sign of our common bond in Christ, our common call to be Diplomats of Reconciliation and our solidarity with him in his holy work.

In a time of division, demonization, and polarization without end, Wendell Berry reminds us, “the ground of our reconciliation will have to be larger than the ground of our divisions.” The role of prophet may just have to give way substantially to that of diplomat, ambassador, and reconciler.

Jesus said in his great Sermon on the Mount, which underlies the mission of Goshen College, “if we are only friends with friends, how are we different from anyone else? Anyone can do that. Rather, it is when we are able to befriend foes that the true miracle of our faith is made plain for all to see.” It is that “second-mile” love that demonstrates whether or not we are truly Christ-followers. Our greatest challenge today may simply be to deeply befriend someone with whom we have profound disagreements.

Would that each of us find that friend or better, make a friend, who is so different from us that the opportunity to be an Ambassador for Christ, a Diplomat of Reconciliation, is truly an opportunity of a lifetime. In so doing, our lives will truly manifest the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven. In so doing, healing and hope will be born anew in this broken world, little by little, peace by peace.

This year we have a bumper crop of dandelions at Goshen College! In fact, I think it is safe to say that in the 108 year history of our campus, dandelions have never been this abundant or healthy. For the last several decades at least, these perennial yellow harbingers of spring have been kept mostly in check with applications of various chemicals. But last year, the college made a major decision to revert large sections of lawn to native landscaping.

First we eliminated most of the turf grass and planted a mix of native wildflowers (forbs) and native grasses. Knowing that it would take a while to fully establish a mature native landscape, we made efforts to educate everyone that this would be a work in progress for many years. Last summer, we watched the first battle of weeds and native seeds compete in this freshly open terrain. Opinions were mixed, but for many of us it was exciting to witness the late summer/early fall display of wildflowers and butterflies that had replaced our monoculture of grass.

And then this spring the dandelions cut loose! What a sight!

For some this was exciting; an institution that has said it was committed to environmental sustainability was taking large prominent sections of lawn and restoring it to native plants. No longer were artificial fertilizers or herbicides that pollute our waterways and destroy wildlife being used.

However, for many others this was just too much. For years we have prided ourselves on beautiful, well maintained lawns. We have gone to great lengths to create a positive impression for visitors, prospective students, and members of the greater Goshen community by keeping our grounds green, lush and well mown. To see sights like this picture in front or our beautiful Music Center is just plain embarrassing.

So what should we think about all these dandelions? Most of us, including myself, can think back to early childhood memories of early spring harvests of bouquets of yellow blossoms that we would present to our mothers, the yellow (butter) stains, the milky stems and of course launching the multiple seeds to the wind. Those are good memories.

But as we grew older, we declared war on this blight and we used everything in our means to destroy these amber monsters. We dig, chop and pull these things out from the roots only to find the next morning that they are back, having multiplied overnight. In most cases the only sure-fire way to kill dandelions is to resort to chemical weapons. Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent each year on this never-ending herbal war.

My question for the season that I have asked numerous people is WHY. Why do we start out thoroughly enjoying the dandelion as a child and then grow to hate them so? What is behind the intense feelings that are evoked when we see the dandelion?

Perhaps deep in our psyche we still seek out the open savanna (grass lawn) for comfort and safety. There are other plausible deep-seated reasons, but I believe in this day and time, the dominant opinion is that dandelions represent neglect. Right up there with un-mown grass or tall dead weeds, when we see dandelions we think “neglect.” And certainly neglect is not what we want to communicate at Goshen College.

Now I’m ready to question that attitude, both within myself and in others. Did you realize that dandelions provide the earliest seasonal source of pollen and nectar for the honey bees? Along with the native wildflowers and grasses that are becoming established on our campus, dandelions have deep roots that draw minerals and nutrients to the surface and provide channels for water to be absorbed into the ground. Even though we have forgotten how to use them, dandelions can be a source of food, rich in vitamins. So I challenge the notion that allowing dandelions to grow is neglect.

If you have a few minutes, check out this short video The Dandelion Testimony. Or in the interest of equal time, consider this video How to Kill Dandelions in Your Yard. You decide. As for me, I’m pleased and proud that Goshen College has chosen to make this commitment to the environment by restoring part of our campus to native plants, which for the time being includes dandelions.

Look closely at that first picture. In amongst the long stems and gray balls of fluff you will see young healthy coneflowers, daisies and black-eyed susan plants along with dozens of other native species working to take their place on our campus. In time, these forbs and grasses will mature and provide plenty of competition for these delicate yellow blossoms. But for right now, I’m Making Peace with Dandelions.