The parable of the man with a Holden

The parable of the man with a Holden

Monday 24 October 2016
Used by permission: Nurture, October 2016 edition
Author: Shaun Brooker, Principal of Hamilton Christian College NZ

A friend from church asked me today why would I send my child to a Christian School when it is so much cheaper and closer to send her to the State school down the road? They are both schools after all!

Here is what I told him...

I told him of a man called Harry, who saved up for years to buy a brand new Holden HSV sports car. At over $100,000 it was his pride and joy. Every weekend Harry would meet with other Holden owners to talk about their cars and encourage each other. They were so happy and grateful for their cars that they even sang songs about them, and whenever they got the opportunity, they tried to tell Ford owners what they were missing out on, invited them to their meetings, and tried to convert them.
Harry was protective of his new Holden, and at first he would sacrifice nothing to be sure his Holden only got the best of everything. However with insurances and the rising cost of petrol it was expensive to own a new Holden. But as every new car owner knows, it is very important to keep the car serviced. This meant the car would be in fine form for a long time and with regular servicing the car was bound to be a classic Holden one day.
Just down the road from Harry there was a Ford Servicing Centre. It was very good at servicing Ford cars, the workshop was shiny and had all the newest gadgets. Most of the people who worked there were very good at servicing Fords and there was even the odd worker who was secretly a Holden lover and was there trying to put a little bit of Holden in the cars they serviced. Some Holden lovers knew this and sent their beloved Holden babies to this Ford Service Centre with the hope that one of their fellow Holden lovers might service their car. However, the real reason some Holden lovers sent their babies to the Ford Service Centre was because it was close and most importantly, because the government funded the Ford Service Centre, it was much cheaper than the Holden Service Centre across town.
When it came time to start servicing his car, Harry considered the Holden Service Centre, but because of the location and the extra cost in sending it across town he chose to send his car to the Ford Service Centre. Harry knew the Ford Service Centre would only use Ford parts on his car. In fact, Holden parts were very much forbidden at the Ford Service Centre, but it was closer and cheaper. What was good was that once a week for half an hour some people from the Holden Club were allowed to come in and show videos of Holdens. They showed pictures and told some stories about Holdens from many years ago. They even sang some songs about Holdens, sort of. They were only really able to sing songs about tyres, towbars, and paint jobs – but definitely no stories or songs about the intricacies of what made a Holden a Holden. They weren't even allowed to talk about the main Holden symbol and what it really stood for.

Harry even knew that at the Ford Service Centre there were some rough individuals, and there was a good chance that his baby would be roughed up a little. Actually, the fact that his baby was a Holden in a Ford's world meant there was an even higher chance of some damage, but Harry hoped that the damage would not last. After all, he reminded himself, it is cheaper and closer at the Ford Service Centre.

After a few years, Harry found his baby was changing. Not all the time, but sometimes when his baby got hot it made noises like a Ford. Actually sometimes it even drove a little like a Ford. But worst of all for Harry, sometimes it would not start on Sunday mornings when it was time to go to the Holden Club. He didn't really think too much of it as it happened to all sorts of Holdens. Harry had even heard of this happening to a Holden that was serviced by the Holden Service Centre!

One such Sunday morning, instead of walking himself to the Club he decided to get to the bottom of what was going on. He spent a lot of time digging around. Everything looked fine on the surface, but when he looked deep in the car he found something he hadn't realised: some of the parts had been replaced. There were Ford parts all over the place! Some of them didn't look like they even fitted well and would have to be beaten into place. As Harry closed the bonnet, wondering what he could have done differently, he realised for the first time that the Holden badge was starting to slip: just a little.
Why would you send your child to a Christian school when the school down the road is closer and cheaper? The answer seems relatively straight forward to me . . .