Hippo vs Penguin

Yesterday SD gathering was refreshing.
What stuck on me was Hippo and Penguin. Haha

Sarah shared about a prophecy she received during the leaders' getaway. It was about penguin. How the penguin is to live in a community, to stick to the community and not to be alone, Interdependent of one another, learning from each other and sharing with one another. It reminds me of the movie about penguins,"March of the Penguins".



In this movie, the penguins travel together and huddle together in harsh winter. In the extreme cold of the Antarctic winter, the females are at sea fishing for food leaving the males to brave the weather by themselves. They often huddle together to keep warm and rotate positions to make sure that each penguin gets a turn in the center of the heat pack. This is community living. If the penguins are selfish and always stay in the center of the heat pack, then those at the outer ring will probably die. I guess slowly more and more will die eventually. less penguin = less fats and warm. =p

Then Eugene shared about Hippo. Hippo also live in community. Though they live in close proximity, they do not seem to form social bonds except between mothers and daughters, and are not social animals. The reason they huddle in close proximity is unknown. Within the pods, the hippos tend to segregate by gender. Bachelors will lounge near other bachelors, females with other females, and the bull on his own.When hippos emerge from the water to graze, they do so individually. Hippo are territorial animals. It is normal for them to kill crocodiles living in the same area. They are very violent-tempered too. It is claimed that they kill more humans than any other animal except mosquitos.

Am I more a Hippo or a penguin? Am I like hippo who react when someone step on my toes or intrude my "territory"(comfort zone)? Or am I like penguin who will accept one another readily, stand together and help one another in harsh circumstances? Or am I too individualistic? Will I welcome vulnerability and closeness like how the penguin huddle together? Or will I be selfish to stay longer in the center of the heat pack(each person for his own)? Am I outwardly joining cg and events but not connecting at heart level? Am I with the community like the Hippo or am I in the community like the Penguin?

Hippo vs Penguin... Who am I in CG, in church, in family and in workplace?

I like the prophecy spoken in the gathering about Subway burger. Every ingredient inside gives forth individual aroma and taste. They contribute to the nutrition value and taste of the burger. Everyone is unique but together as one we can serve a much higher purpose.

"The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up ONLY one body. So it is with the body of Christ....Yes, the body has many DIFFERENT parts, not just one part...But God made our bodies with many parts, and he has put each part just where he wants it...So God has put the body together in such a way that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other equally.If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad...." 1Cor 12:12-31

I want to be like a penguin. Haha... Ironically, I chose the smaller of the 2 and the gentle and lowly of the 2. God really has a way for us to learn from the meek.