By Susan Wordal
I was reminded the other day of a joke I heard from my Dad many years ago. Dad wasn’t much for telling jokes, but the ones he did tell were generally good ones.
A fellow decided to write a book about famous churches around the world, so they began their tour of churches in Europe.
On the first day, the Writer was inside a cathedral taking photographs when they noticed a golden telephone mounted on the wall with a sign that read “£10,000 per call”.
The Writer, being intrigued, asked a priest who was walking by what was the purpose of the telephone.
The priest replied that it was a direct line to heaven and that for £10,000 you could talk to God. The Writer thanked the priest and went on his way.
As the Writer moved through the great churches, and some local ones, throughout Europe, the Writer saw the same golden phone with the same type of sign. When the Writer asked, they got the same answer: It was a direct line to heaven and for the equivalent of $10,000 you could talk to God.
The Writer returned to the US and began visiting churches while making their way home to begin working on the book. In every church the Writer again saw the same golden telephone with the same “$10,000 per call” sign under it.
The Writer arrived in their home state of Montana and stopped in at various churches as they drove through the state. The golden phone was the same, but the sign below it was “10 cents per call”.
The Writer walked into their home church and found the newly installed minister, an old friend from their days as undergrads. “I’ve traveled all over Europe and the states and I’ve seen this same golden telephone in many churches. I’m told that it is a direct line to Heaven, but in other places the price was $10,000 per call. Why is it so cheap here?”
The old friend just smiled and answered, “You’re in Montana. It’s God’s Country, my friend – it’s a local call”
Now, I might have taken a little literary license with the language (especially since if you check on the internet, the state is often referenced as Texas) but I’ve always liked this joke. I suspect all those I know who are native Montanans, or those who have adopted Montana as their home, appreciate the take on “Big Sky Country” and our ready access to the open sky of the Treasure State, and the feeling we are in a place where you can easily commune with God or can access that space which speaks to your inner being and allows us to find our spiritual center. I’ve visited other states and even had the chance to visit other countries, and Montana has always called me home. The Alps may have made me feel dwarfed, but their majesty did not do it for me. Montana’s mountain ranges are “it”.
There is much to “treasure” in this state of my birth and that of my parents, and even my grandparents. But the treasures to be found have less to do with the copper and gold exploited by our settling forefathers (the Copper Kings) than they do the abundant natural beauty to be seen and experienced as we walk and camp and drive through our state. It calls out to us in a way nothing else really does.
This reminds me of a song from Manhattan Transfer: Operator. The important parts of the song go something like this:
Operator…Give me Information.
Information…Give me long distance.
Long Distance… Give me Heaven!
…I’d like to speak to a friend of mine.
Oh, prayer is the number, faith is the exchange, heaven is the street and Jesus is the name.
Some hear the music, and some the roar of the river, and others just enjoy the blessing of silence. Whatever it is that calls to our hearts, know this - - - the phone call is free! And someone is sure to be listening!