A Dead Pig in the Sunshine: Sally Genter
A funny, timely, and apt reminder on why we want to be “kosher.”
Happy as a dead pig in the sunshine
by Sally Genter
Cajun folk seem to be full of sayings that contradict mainstream thinking. One of my favorites, “Happy as a dead pig in the sunshine,” struck me as odd, but it still warrants a chuckle. Embarrassingly, it took me years to fester on its meaning. Only recently did I see it for its full implications.
What brings more delight to a pig than to bloat to its fullest capacity? “Nothing,” we’re prompted to answer. Everyone knows there is no happier state for the swine than to be fat. Never mind the fact that the animal in our quip is dead and has no knowledge of its depraved condition. The fat that pigs glory in comes from gorging on food, not from heat swelling their rotting flesh.
That paradox is exactly where I’d like to camp out for a moment. It is a clever way of presenting a glossed over picture of a life gone bad.
It is not enough to appear to have all you set out to accomplish. While piglets are deemed by some to be pink, cute and cuddly, they grow into enormous swine, complete with swine behaviors. They wallow in the mud, eat slop and grunt loudly through their snouts. In short: they are disgusting creatures. But it’s not the animal’s fault. Their nature makes them what they are — pigs.
People have an inborn nature as well. We are all sinners, and quite frankly, sinners sin. Romans 1:29-32 lists a host of traits we exhibit: greed, hate, envy, murder, fighting, deception, malicious behavior, gossip, backstabbing, hatred of God, insolent behavior, pride, boasting, inventing new ways of sinning, disobedience to parents, refusing to understand, breaking our promises, heartlessness, unforgiving attitudes, and encouraging others to sin.
Blah! There is nothing happy about that picture. A life of sin is tragic. In reality, people living sinful lifestyles are no better off than the deceased, cleft-footed mud-slosher. On the outside they appear to be happy, possessing everything they desire. But the fulfillment is in appearance only. Inside, they’re dead. Give them time and exposure to the sun and their state will begin to reek.
The good news is that Christ made it possible for us to escape our old nature. It says in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
Making the transformation is easy — the key is being in Christ. We simply ask Christ to save us from our sin and give us a new life. He will. Instead of having the similitude of happiness, like a dead pig in the sunshine, he will give us a new nature that truly experiences happiness in the Son. Or as another Cajun saying goes, “We’ll be sainted.”