By Chuck Davis
Sentinel Contributor
This summer I learned a new driving term in Cornwall, England. “Pull-ins.” We were traveling down a one-lane wide road that was designed for two-way traffic. Our friend Sara was instructing her daughter Bethany who was a relatively new driver. She said it many times, “Always mind your pull-ins.”
“Pull-ins” will not show up on a driving test in America. But traveling on many one-lane roads as we did this summer in Europe, “pull-ins” are standard equipment. The counsel to “always mind your pull-ins” was more than a statement of knowledge, it was a conscious attitude to be ready to back up if necessary so that the other vehicle could pass. Basically it is an attitude of service to the other.
I was able to experience “pull-ins” first hand in County Kerry, Ireland. This time I was the driver. The issue of remembering to think opposite of my driving instincts in America by staying to the left side of the road did not apply to many of the roads we followed along the coast – there often was only one lane. And some of these roads had so much growth up to the sides, that it was more like 3/4 of a lane.
But even though the correct side of the road was not an issue on these one-lane roads, I still needed local knowledge. I had been adequately prepared by Sara’s instruction, “always mind my pull-ins.” Be mindful so I would be ready to back up to let the other vehicle through.
I was amazed to discover how the majority of the Irish drivers take delight in pulling over. It is almost a race to see who can stop first and backup to the most recent “pull-in.” Lights flash in greeting, a hand goes up in friendly wave, smiles as you pass, a raise of a finger from the steering wheel in tighter spaces that only leave inches between side mirrors. No angst. No clenched teeth.
Amicable society.
We did not have the same driving experience in some of the other countries that we visited over the summer. And what about in my own backyard. We have a one-lane causeway leading to Stanwich Church from North Street. If I am honest, I usually speed up to be sure that I am on to the causeway first.
Amicable society. We experienced it in multiple forms during our travels this summer. But this form of driving in Ireland almost felt prophetic in the face of the world in which I normally live. My world feels so un-amicable on the road and in local parking lots!
I vote for amicable society. That means that I need to live out amicable society. It would be a farce to vote for something that I do not want to live. So I choose to lay down entitlement, rights, self-interest, for the sake of counting others better than myself. When you see me not living that way, I give you permission to call me on it. “Chuck, mind your pull-ins!”
And I hope you will vote for amicable society with me, along with the implications of that vote.
As one who writes out of the context of Christian faith I am called to this lifestyle choice of avoiding selfish ambition and to count others more significant than myself through the example of Jesus. He did the most amazing “pull-in” in history – “thought he was in the form of God, he did not consider equality with God a thing to be grasped, but he emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant” (Philippians 2:5ff.).
I do not know where you get your spiritual inspiration from but I hope you will take the “pull-in” challenge with me.
May our reputation in Greenwich be prophetic in the world in which we live – amicable society!
Chuck Davis has been the Senior Pastor at Stanwich Congregational Church since 2007. Prior to Stanwich, he served as a missionary in Mali, Africa, and professor of Intercultural Studies at Alliance Theological Seminary. He has been married to Ingrid for over 30 years with 3 adult children.
