The High Five

On two different days last year, we entered The Box Canyon with philosopher James K. A. Smith and musicians Andy Gullahorn and Gabe Scott. On each occasion, the weather was different, the mood was different, the purpose of our coming together was different, but ultimately we arrived at the same topic: the spiritual power of habit.

For Smith, habit may be the very basis of Christian life. For Gullahorn and Scott, it’s the theme of a strange story they’re living together. Every week, these two friends walk to a halfway point between their Nashville homes to give each other a high five. Nothing more. It’s just an intentional ritual. A new rhythm. An odd act that somehow becomes substantial.

“[I]f you want to know who you are,” wrote Frederick Buechner, “watch your feet. Because where your feet take you, that is who you are.”

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