PORTLAND, Ore., Sept. 6
Doughnuts are
an important part of a trip to Portland, and they can also tell us something
about human creativity as a reflection of God’s love.
Voodoo
Doughnuts, known throughout the Northwest for the tasty and eccentric confections
it makes, had a line 39 persons deep this afternoon when I arrived to buy a
dozen, and that’s only counting the persons outside the lobby, wrapping
down SW 3rd Ave. I queued for
about 20 minutes this time, which, according to a nearby restaurant hostess who
recognized the signature pink doughnut-box, is less than it could have been.
What draws so
many people? Doughnuts, doughnuts and
more doughnuts, in virtually every shape and color imaginable: doughnuts with
Froot Loops or Cap’n Crunch on them; the Bacon Maple Bar (yes, a maple bar with
bacon on top); doughnuts with grape dust; the Oreo-crumbled “Dirt” doughnut;
even the mysterious, Rice Krispied and peanut buttered “No Name” doughnut. You name it, they’ve probably got it, or
something very close.
Sure, doughnuts are nothing new, and no, they don’t require a 300-mile round-trip to
obtain. The Safeway and Fred Meyer
stores near my home will carry doughnuts, which, at a cost of $3.75 a gallon
for gas to and from Portland, would probably be a cheaper alternative when I
get a hankering for some dessert, even if the bacon-maple bar is worth what you
pay for it. (It is.)
But there’s
something about the way Voodoo approaches the art of doughnut-making
that is inspiring for the unorthodox nature of it. Dunkin' Donuts will sell a decent
jelly-doughnut with white powder, and Krispy Kreme lets you know when the cakes
are hot. But Voodoo puts fun into it,
taking an old idea—fried cake batter with frosting—and dishing it out with a
layer of artistry (the chandeliers, stained glass, and glittered bricks in the
facility, plus the doughnuts themselves), a tongue-in-cheek, stylized sense of humor
(the four-foot wood coffin loaded with 36 doughnuts available for sale), and
social conscience (the company supports a list of organizations).
It’s classic
Portland. The local spirit of “Keep
Portland Weird”—the city’s famous slogan, painted in all caps on a building
across the street—is in full bloom at Voodoo.
Or perhaps it’s classic Northwest: the Westside’s pioneer-rooted
fascination with putting new spins on old ideas, of challenging what’s
accepted, of living life for the pure fun and adventure of living life. It’s reflected in every doughnut here.
Couldn’t we
church-people take a lesson from something as creative as the Tangfastic
Doughnut (vanilla icing, Tang powder, marshmallows), served up with love to a
waiting public? What if we allowed
ourselves to be as geeky, as adventurous, as creative with our own passions and
gifts as the people at Voodoo have been in making their battered-and-fried
creations?
Look at the way
the Psalmist can’t contain her or his explosive worshipfulness in Psalm
66. “Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth” (66:1), or maybe sing something
(66:2), or say something (66:3), or tell some kind of story about God’s deeds
(66:5), or give some kind of gift (66:13, 15), or just explode in a yell
(66:17)—anything, just do something! Let it out.
Paint something. Make something
with Popsicle sticks and Legos. Jam on
your guitar. Write a social-justice
manifesto. Dance.
What do you need to let it out?
Maybe your creativity isn’t from being a doughnut-maker, but maybe you
have some other form of passion, some other “place of geek” in your spirit,
that you can give to God in praise and worship.
Are you an artist? Do art for
God’s glory. Are you a biologist? Do biology as worship to the Lord. Are you a science fiction writer? Then write the next Star Trek series
for the glory of the Lord. Are you a
sportsperson? A graphic designer? A dentist?
A student? A
compassion-giver? “Whatever you do,
whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks
to God the Father through him” (Col. 3:17 niv). Live life.
Let your geek out. Set someone
free. Do something new.
“What
will your verse be?” asks Apple’s new iPad TV ads, invoking Walt Whitman’s immortal
“O Me! O Life!” “The powerful play goes on,” he wrote, “and
you may contribute a verse.” Voodoo
isn’t a faith-based organization, but they incidentally teach a lesson to those
of us that are, we who also want to see a broken world restored, and justice
and peace for all people. The lesson, it
seems to me, is this: take an idea, something you know how to do, and do it
with joy, with passion, and an eye to the community. That’s all it takes to have 39 people lined
up outside to experience the results of that passion, to ask what all the fuss
is about, to go out of their way for a taste of something better, something out
of the ordinary—a little taste of what the world could be. May you learn how to contribute your
verse, indulging in God’s creativity by letting yourself be yourself, or maybe
just by making a doughnut.
Author’s note: as this is a personal blog of my own reflections and travels, Voodoo Doughnuts has not endorsed this article or my reflections or conclusions. Also, for the record, the author does not endorse the practice of voodoo itself, nor any particular products or services at Voodoo (fair warning: some of the products may not be family-friendly)—just their awesome sense of creativity.
Quotation from The Complete Walt Whitman: The Collected Works (Bybliotech [via Google Books], 2014), accessed September 6, 2014, no pagination.
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