Bingo

Bingo- what a satisfying word.

Moving to Grand Rapids, Michigan, the epicenter of the Christian Reformed Church and home of many people with Dutch heritage, I learned of a game people like to play. The game is called Dutch Bingo and the idea is for you and a stranger to start searching for common ground and naming names until, "Bingo"- you find someone you both know. Little did I know, I had already been making common connections by growing up with a family of Dutch heritage and attending a Christian Reformed Church. Since moving away from Grand Rapids, I've played the game with strangers all the way from Maine to Nicaragua. 

Just the other day, I played the game of Dutch Bingo with a stranger staying at the lodge where I work. However, I am finding a similar game being played among my coworkers here in Mt. Rainier National Park. It starts when two employees meet. Introductions open the door to questions about employment: "Have you worked here before? Is this your first seasonal job? Have you worked in other parks?" Since many of the employees in National Parks have done similar jobs in other parks, there follows a search for common ground (a certain park or area) and common connections (former coworkers). You would be surprised at how often two people can find common ground or a common connection. Jackson Hole seems to be an epicenter for seasonal workers, and since I worked there, I am often able to find a common connection.

Something about finding people, places, or things in common helps break the ice with strangers to begin building relationships. The trump card of these weird forms of Bingo is a man named Jesus. On my first day of work I worked with a guy named Zack. When we found out that we both knew Jesus as our Lord and Savior, all the walls blocking the initial building of our relationship fell down. There was suddenly a connection so deep between us that all else seemed irrelevant. Immediately, we were brothers. Bingo.