Too much Good?

Some things are good in small doses but not large.
Like medicines.

Some things we need more of.
Like water and food.
But if we have too much then it's not good.
Although some people say you can't have too much chocolate!

Other things are good for us in small doses.
But can cause harm if we have too much.

Yesterday I was talking about not having enough wind.
Some wind is good.
But tornados, hurricanes, and typhoons, are bad.

Even the sun is not good if we are overexposed.

I like being out in the sun.
It was very sunny today.
I should have had some sunscreen on.

Some things are so good that we can't ever have too much.
But if we get too close then that goodness makes us feel not good ourselves.
Then we feel uncomfortable and prickly like being overexposed to the sun.

Ultimate goodness will accept us if we acknowledge our imperfections.
So don't screen out the light.
Let it in - all the way in!

Breathless

When I woke up this morning it was raining.
Although that was a dampener I was more concerned about the wind.
Or to be precise the distinct lack of wind.
There was enough but only just.

Through the morning I got on with my tasks.
The rain was intermittent, but the wind was dropping.

By lunchtime when my friend and I were ready to set off there was no wind at all. And when you are heading off to go sailing that's a bit disheartening.

Sure enough, when we got to Port Edgar the Forth was like a mill pond.

After ten minutes checking out the facilities we gave up on the sailing plan. It would have been too boring drifting about not knowing where we were going.

It made me think of some groups that I know.
There's no wind driving them.
Not even a breath.
They are just sitting there waiting.
Almost motionless.
Just drifting about not going anywhere.

What they need is for the Windmaster to send them a strong wind.
A warm life-giving breath that will drive them on to their destination.
A breath of Spirit that will give them love, strength, and purpose.
It will set them moving and cavorting amongst the waves.

If it's You then call me to come to You across the waves!

I can't wait for the next windy day.
I want to go sailing!

A Milestone

It's official at last - I passed.

Now I know that I will be able to graduate next month.
I was confident that I had already achieved the minimum standard.
But until my number appeared on the list it was not certain.
So today it has been signed, sealed, and delivered.

Which is good - because my training would have ground to a halt if I had not passed!

The three years has been a long time.
My family have sacrificed a lot - not only in money terms, but also in my absence, my irritability, my lack of attention to their needs.

They have known why, and have been very supportive of me.
In fact, without their active support, never mind passive agreement, I would not have learned as much as I did. I might never have reached this point.
They have my thanks, but also know that the hard work is not over!

My friends too have also been very supportive and encouraging - embarrassingly so at times! And I thank each of them - you know who you are!

The academic staff at the university, my fellow students - postgraduates as well as undergraduates, and all the support staff, have made it all possible. So I thank them all - and wish them well as our ways reach a parting point. Although I shall come back and visit New College from time to time - some of my companions will probably have moved on by then.

It is often the way - that one person picks up the prize, or receives the reward, which was only achieved as the result of a team effort. So I congratulate my whole team - and look forward to journeying onwards with those of you that remain onboard.

And for those of you who are still curious - it's a 2.1 (or Upper Second in old money)!

X marks the spot

I was hoping to know my degree result by now - but no.

The results have all been reviewed and finalised.
The list is prepared and ready to publish.
All that's needed is a signature.

It reminds me of that old nursery rhyme:
For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.

Of course we are not talking about a war situation here.
But for want of a signature the paper remains in the office and not on the noticeboard.

Of course, we don't want any incorrect results to be posted.
But if the signatory has no power to make changes, in other words, is adding an authenticating signature, then what difference does it make?

There were half a dozen students waiting in the lobby for the results to appear. We'll just have to come back tomorrow.

I wonder how much time is wasted by pointless bureaucracy.
I'm sure you could give me plenty of examples.
But perhaps we should consider our own inefficiencies too.

Let the perfect one throw the first stone!

Might be useful one day?

I was round at my Mum's today.
She lives nearby and her garage needs cleared out.

Most of the stuff in it had been collected over the years by my Dad.
It was full of things that 'might be useful one day'!
But after his death earlier this year their day of potential usefulness was over.

So today was the start of the chucking-out process.
There were shelves and other bits of wood.
There were various bits of metal - all kinds of gadgets.
There were even some chairs.
But the garage has been a bit damp, and corrosion and mould had been busy taking the shine off much of the stuff.

Mum and I were rather ruthless.
Which is funny, because Mum's name is Ruth!
But ruthlessly we chucked the stuff in the bin, or the recycling.

When we had finished for the day the garage had some real space in it! And now that space is going to be more useful than all the potentially useful clutter that Dad had built up over the years.

It's amazing how our lives get all cluttered up with rubbish.
I was out on my bike earlier - pedalling happily along.
And then I came to the cycle path entrance where I fell off in February.
It was a rather painful experience at the time, but no harm was done.

But I could tell that my animal body remembered the experience too.
My adrenaline level was up, tension was increased.
Something bad had happened here before, so be very careful indeed!

Well there was no problem really.
I had cycled that way many times before.
It was just as easy this time as all but one of the previous times.
But there was no way my mind could convince my body to calm down until after we were passed the accident point. Once I was passed then it was OK to relax again.

I think our memories, both conscious and subconscious, often make us wary of potential hazards far more than the actual risk of the hazard. As a result we worry more than we should and miss out on much that life has to offer us.

My friend Steve Martin is a Risk Consultant and has a lot to say on our perceptions of risk compared with the real probability of the hazard. Check out his Cool Risk website.

A long time ago someone offered us 'peace beyond our understanding'.
Don't miss out on the peace due to bad memories.
Give your memory a clear-out and get rid of the rubbish.

The Meaning of Life?

My wife Liz read an article about meaningless work yesterday and I wondered why they stopped at work. What about meaningless life?

Douglas Adam's classic series, "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy", is set around a search for the meaning of Life, the Universe, and Everything. The first attempt to find an answer gives the almost equally famous result, 42. Without spoiling the series, or maybe I am, the next attempt turns life on its head.

And that seems to be the current state of much of our Western society.
Life is turned on its head. We strive to reach a pinnacle of happiness and when we get there we discover it's the pits.

The problem is that we have forgotten our purpose.
In fact, many of us think that there is no purpose in life.
And therefore life is all about enjoyment.

Unfortunately, they are only half right.
Unless we know why we are here then the enjoyment is meaningless.

Humans are the end result of a creative process.
And I'm not talking about human reproduction.
I'm talking about how we came to be here in the first place.

Humanity's creative instinct is not evolved but given.
The One who created us breathed his/her/its nature into us.
We're made to keep the creator company.
And we're placed in a world that offers us creative opportunity.

We're not here only to enjoy ourselves.
We're here to make something along with our creator.

So don't get bogged down in just living.
Live life to the full - creatively.

Tadpoles

I saw some tadpoles today.
They were in my friends' fishpond.
The sun was warming the water amongst the stones at the edge of the water and the tadpoles were snuggled in there away from the fish.

It made me think how tadpole are a bit like caterpillars.
They begin life as one thing and end up as something else.

Of course, the difference with tadpoles is that they gradually change into frogs while remaining active, unlike caterpillars hidden away in their chrysalis. The tadpole's legs grow and its tail shrinks and eventually it can get out of the water and hop about in the grass. It's escaped the dangerous fish and now has to avoid the dangerous birds - never mind the lawn mower.

It's like my progession through training.
Gradually my electronic engineering skills shrink.
And my ministry gifts grow and develop.
It happens almost without me noticing.

Are you changing too?

Waiting ...

Are you good at waiting?

Sometimes I am.
And sometimes I'm not!

Yesterday I was waiting for news of a friend.
She is in hospital with a brain tumour.
Today I heard that they removed the tumour on Tuesday.
But we are still waiting to hear what kind of tumour it was.
And my friend is still in intensive care.
There's a lot of waiting going on.

Other waiting is much easier.
Waiting for a bus or train is no problem.
That's provided we have plenty of time.
And it's not too long to wait if we've missed it.

But if the time is tight, and we have no control, that's different.
There's nothing we can do, but we stress up all the same.

I'm waiting to hear my final Degree from the University.
The External Examiner comes in on May 28th.
She or he will go over all the results for the department.
Then they'll publish a list.

There's nothing I can do now to influence the decisions.
Am I merely interested in the outcome, or over-anxious?
It's a fine balance!

I don't need any particular classification of Degree for my training.
I know that I've already met the minimum requirements.
So to borrow a phrase, "Am I bovvered?"
Well 'Yes', I am!

It's probably a pride, or self-esteem thing.
I should just forget about it.
They'll tell me their decision in due course.
But it's easier to say than to do!

I have another friend.
A decision went against him a few weeks ago.
So he has appealed against it.
Now he is waiting too.

All we can do is put our trust in the One whom we serve.
He knows our circumstances.
He knows what is best for us.
He loves us and provides for us.

In our waiting - do we trust?
If we trust - will we submit to Him?
If you doubt His care for you then talk to Him.
If you don't know Him, then start talking to Him.

He is faithful.
He is trustworthy.
He will bring us through this time of waiting.

Whodunit?

I was watching a 'whodunit' on the TV tonight.
It was a mixture of Dr Who, Agatha Christie, and Cluedo.

It was quite entertaining, although not as scary as some episodes!

Anyway, it made me think about why we want to know who dun it?

After all, the bad thing already happened.
We can't undo it.

Is it about punishment?
Or prevention?
Or revenge?

In an ideal world no-one would do wrong.

But we don't live in an ideal world.
People die all the time.

How much are we responsible?

A Shut Door

Today I heard of a guy who couldn't get in.

He had arrived at the right place at the right time.
But the normal door was closed - bolted shut.

He decided that it must have been the wrong day and went home again.

But in fact the event was open.
It was just they were using another door 25 metres along the road.

If he had persevered and looked for another door he would have got in.
The people inside were visible through the window.
But not through the shut door.

Sometimes we give up too easily.
Other times we keep pushing for too long at the locked door.
We should really check out all the options before going home.

Obedience

Obedience is not a popular word these days.
Many people seem to want to do their own thing.
They don't want anyone telling them what to do, or not to do.
Rules are for avoiding not obeying.

It's a good job that nature obeys the rules.
The earth spins, the sun shines, rain falls, ground is solid.
Occasionally the earth doesn't behave, but we know why, even if we don't know when.

But people are not so predictable.
We want to make up our own rules.
Although even when we do, we break them too.

When we look at God's rules for life we find that they are good rules.
It's just that we are not good people and we don't like His rules.
If we're honest about that then at least there is hope for us.

When our neighbours are nice to us then we are happy to love them.
But when things go wrong then we need God's help to keep on loving.

The next time you are tempted to make up your own rules remember that rivers always flow downhill. It's the law!

Contour Canal

This afternoon my wife Liz and I went for a bike ride.
We cycled along the side of Edinburgh's canal.

It's an unusual canal because there are no locks on it to change the level (except where it joins the Forth-Clyde Canal at the Western end). Instead, the canal follows the contours of the ground at the same level almost the whole 32 mile route, from the Falkirk Wheel, right into the centre of Edinburgh. There are a couple of aquaducts over rivers and a tunnel under one hill, but they only cover short distances.

This meant that the canal could be constructed quickly with comparatively little digging or building of embankments. And boat traffic doesn't have to stop and queue up to pass through locks as on most other canals. But it does mean that the canal wends and winds its way across the countryside, and through the city of Edinburgh at its Eastern end. And the wiggly route extends the distance travelled from 24 miles as the crow flies, to 32 miles by boat. So if you're about to travel by the canal, make sure you know the true distance.

The curves and corners make the canal a delight to walk or cycle beside. There's always a new view opening up, and few long dreary straight stretches. And the towpath is almost completely flat. You can settle into a rythmn and charge along at full speed (except for passing children, dogs, and under the bridges). There were lots of those today, but it was a fun ride nonetheless.

The canal is a nice route to travel when you're travelling for fun. But in the old days when it was a major transport route for heavy goods, and for passengers too, it must have been hard work. The horses had to work hard to pull the boats. And the men had to work hard, not only guiding the horses, and steering the boats, but when a boat came from other direction, ropes had to be cast off, horses and boats guided past each other, and then hooked up again, all without losing boat speed and steerage way. You didn't want to meet another boat at a bridge!

Life's like that. It's pleasant when we don't have to work. But it's hard work to earn a living. And sometimes we meet obstructions and complications that stretch us to the limit. That's when we really know the value of an experienced companion. One who has been through life before and knows all its pitfalls. Someone who knows what lies ahead and can plot a safe route through the troubles. It's good to have a friend like that.

Vision for Life

Today I have been thinking about Vision.

It's a popular theme.
How many companies or institutions have a Vision Statement?

If you don't have one then you're sidelined.
The implication is that you don't know your purpose or direction.

But it's all very well having a Vision Statement.
Writing them is the easy part - although that's not easy.
The difficult part is accomplishing the Vision.

The Vision Statement says what you want to be.
Or perhaps what you want people to think you are.

When an organisation has lost its Vision then it begins to decline.
It can be hard to set appropriate goals.
If the decline has been 2% a year for ten years then what should the Vision be?
Some might say 'Stop the Rot', or 'Arrest the Decline'.

Perhaps a more appropriate Vision might be 'Double or Quits'.

Assuming that the organisation does have an attractive benefit then surely it would be possible to involve a new person into the group. If everyone does that then the group will double in size. Is it too hard for each member to involve one new person each year? If everyone does that each year for 4 years there would be ten times as many members (allowing for some people to leave each year too). That might solve the budget problems too!

So what should our Vision Statement be?

How about 'Double Annually'?

A Fly Fisherman doesn't just have one lure.
He or she has a whole range of lures.
If one doesn't work then try another one.
Work through the whole range.
And if none of them work, then make some new lures.

Here's another Vision Statement -
If you don't at first succeed then try, try, try, ...

Three in One

I met a lady called Catherine today.
We hadn't met before but ended up at the same table over coffee.

We got chatting about who we were and where we're from.
And we discovered that we have a mutual friend who has recently become rather ill.
Catherine was able to fill me in on some of the earlier story.
Whereas I was able to update Catherine with this morning's news.

It was amazing that we just happened to sit down at the same table.
As we continued chatting we discovered another two mutual acquaintances.
Not quite so well known in either case.
But surprising nonetheless!

I took part in an exercise recently called Six Degrees of Fellowship.
The idea is that on average everyone on the planet is separated by only six connections. But Catherine and I are connected directly by three connections!

So much for averages!

The reality is that we are all unique.
No-one else has the same characteristics or relationships.
Our characteristics and our relationships are continually changing.
Yet we remain the same person, despite changing on both the outside and the inside.

In our life of continuous change it's good to stand on solid ground.
To have a friend who will never let you down and always stand by your side.
Someone who is deeper than we can ever fully know.
A person whose relationship lasts for ever.

Seek and you will find.
Knock and the door will open.

Back again!

I had a strange day today!

It was my first duty as a Steward at the Assembly conference.
The venue is attached to the university where I have been studying.
So although my stewarding duties were new;
I was back in the university again!

Actually, it was quite nice to be back.
It was my choice and I saw several friends.
Some of them were about to sit an exam.
But they didn't seem to mind us having a chat before they went off for some last minute cramming.

And later on in the afternoon I met a couple of friends I hadn't seen for a longer period. Sadly, one of them had suffered the death of his mother back in April, after she had been ill on and off since Christmas-time. I was glad to hear that the university will take account of his circumstances. I think he was comforted to hear of my own loss of my Dad back in February.

My other friend is a post-graduate research student but also was a member of staff on one of my courses last semester. So it was good to catch up as peers, rather than in our staff-student roles. He has just become a grandfather again.

This evening I was at a prayer meeting where we were praying that the delegates at the Assembly will make good decisions on all the business that the conference will deal with during the next week. It was a good meeting and we were glad to share each other's concerns and hopes for the future.

Life has many strange turns and twists.
The path may seem straight ahead.
But then it suddenly veers off to one side or the other.

At other times we seem to be travelling blind.
But we sense which way to go to stay on the path.

Sometimes we travel together as a group.
And other times we seem desperately alone.

But despite what you feel God is always right beside you.
Call out to him and he will answer.
He loves you and wants your friendship.

That's what I enjoyed most about today.
The company of friends.

Exams Over!

Well yesterday was the last of my university exams.
After nearly three years of effort it's all over.
Now I just have to wait to find out my final results.

I've learned a lot.
About how things started and spread all over the world.
About how people came to understand what life is all about.
And I've even learned some ancient Greek as well!

I've learned a lot about me - and about other people too.
The last time I was at university I used to hate writing.
Now I've discovered I quite like writing.
Although I'm not so keen on writing exam answers!

It's a funny thing about exams.
They count for 60% of each course assessment.
But we only ever have to write about 30% of the course.
There are 10 questions; one for each week of the course.
But we only have to answer 3 questions.

In fact, one exam we only had to answer two questions.
But that meant we had to write for an hour for each question.
That was instead of the usual 40 minute answers.
I HATED that exam!
And that course resulted in my worst marks in both classwork and exam marks.
Not surprisingly. 80% of what I knew was unexamined!

And you can't tell which questions you will like.
Or whether you will have revised that exact topic from the week's lectures.
In the chaos of studying 3, 4, or even 5, subjects each week, it's very hard to make enough to time to review lectures, consider the subjects carefully, and commit everything to memory.
No, it's just get this week's tasks done, and then onto the next week.

So when it comes to exam time it's all rather much of a lottery.
Some people choose to revise only certain weeks of the course.
It's a gamble.
If the questions on those weeks are tough questions then tough.

That was too risky for me.
I always revised the whole of each course.
But then a lot of my revision was 'wasted'.
Although maybe I'll remember more of it in the long-term!

There must be a better system than these dreaded exams.
But who would do the research to prove it was better?
The staff don't want to do anything that would be more work for them.
The students can't be trusted to come up with a rigorous assessment.
And consultants may well just be after their fees.

But if anyone wants to ask me - I've lots of suggestions!

Anyway, for me the trauma is over.
It was all worthwhile.
A degree of some kind is in the bag.
I just have to wait to find out what kind.

And when I do - you'll hear about it!

Yippeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!

New Beginnings!

Yes, I know.
I said I was off blogging until next week.
But I couldn't resist it!

I was driving back from a meeting this evening.
It was late, almost 10pm, just after sunset.
There was a beautiful skliff of a New Moon.

It was lovely - just hanging there in the sky.
That wafer-thin crescent of light.
The sun shining off the edge of the Moon.

It made me think of new things happening.
Before they appear we can't see they're coming.
But things are moving even though we can't see them.

Then - that first glimpse becomes visible.
And when we see it, we can see it is just a beginning.
There's a promise of more to come.

I see that kind of new thing happening all around me.
Not just in my garden with the flowers.
But in the world of people.

New things are happening.
Just look around.
See these first signs.
And then look to find out what's coming next.

I can hardly wait!

National Gathering

The National Gathering at Ingliston was on its second day today.
I went with a couple of ladies from a group I'm part of.

There were people there from all over Scotland; telling their stories about their projects and activities. The creativity of the stories and projects was wonderful to see. Each group had their own tent. And all the tents will go to a disaster relief charity after the event is over.

There was an inspiring speaker too. He is originally from Uganda and lived through the reign of the infamous dictator Idi Amin.

You might have thought this man would be bitter about the treatment he received.
But no. His concern was to encourage us to be witnesses; to tell our own stories.

I met lots of people that I know from past times.
It was good to catch up and to be reminded of happy times.
All in all it was an inspiring day.

During this next week I need to focus on revision.
My last exam for my university degree is in 8 days time.
And the previous day I'll finish up at my current training placement.

So I think this Blog will be taking a few days holiday.
I'll let you know on the 13th how it's all been going.

Writing Letters

I was writing letters this morning.
Although you might say, "What else can anyone write?"

And I suppose most of what I was doing was typing and not writing.
Although you might also question whether pressing keys on a computer keyboard is typing.

For the letters I 'wrote' were printed by an inkjet printer.
There was no 'type' such as you find on a type-writer.
But then it would be bizarre to describe what I was doing this morning as 'squirting ink'. You might think that I am a Squid - even although I am not Colossal!

What I like best about writing letters is thinking about the person or people to whom I am writing. Although I can't see, hear, touch, smell (or even taste!) the recipients of my letters, I can remember them. I recall who they are, where and when we met, what we have done together (or not done!). A whole range of memories.

The people I was writing to this morning are members of a group that I lead.
We will be meeting up in a week or two's time and I wanted to let them know what we'll be doing, and where and when.
There will be a large conference in Edinburgh from the 15th to the 21st and we want to meet together to think and talk about the reports to that conference, and the decisions which the delegates will make there.

The Blue Book of reports is huge.
I may have been writing some letters.
But the Blue Book is on a different scale, a different league!
It's absolutely Colossal! There's a humungous number of letters.
It takes a whole Body of people to put it together.
I don't know how the delegates have time to read it all.

I'll be there too.
Not as a Delegate but as a Steward.
So you might see me on duty.
Holding the doors.
Directing the traffic.
Keeping a watchful eye.
Meeting old friends.
And making new friends too, I expect.

Letters are wonderful things.
The author means one thing.
But the reader can read another meaning altogether!
If the author is not present then the words can mean almost anything!

All those delegates will have read the same reports.
But they will have made different interpretations.
And some of the 'fun' at the conference will be sorting out the different meanings.

What's life all about?
One author wrote that the answer is '42'.

But another author wrote that Letters are the answer.
Not just from A to Z, but from Alpha (Α) to Omega(Ω).

Invisible Power!

The sky was blue and there wasn't a breath of wind.
That's what I saw out the window this morning.

On the one hand it was great.
The day was likely to be warm and dry.
On the other hand - no wind.

Today I was hoping to go sailing with my friend.
And we needed at least some wind.

By 9:30, when we met up, the air was stirring.
The view was beautiful going over the bridge.
And when we arrived at Dalgety Bay there was a breeze.

It was great to get the boat out again.
She's an old Mirror 14 and has been carefully looked after.
The tide was coming in so we decided to head for Inchcolm.

Inchcolm is an ancient Christian site.
The ruined Abbey is still roofed and dates from the 12th century.
Although Christian remains go back to the 900s.

The westerly breeze was strong enough to bring us quickly to the landing point at the eastern end of the island, but gentle enough to allow us to tack up through the narrow ferry channel without hitting the rocks, until we scrunched gently onto the golden beach. It is an idyllic place.

Unfortunately the welcome was not so nice as the view.
At the head of the beach is a notice from Historic Scotland.
They manage the property which they claim is the "best-preserved group of monastic buildings in Scotland." Iona Community might not agree!
The notice indicated that the entry price is £4.70.

We had gone for a sail and not for a sight-seeing visit.
Neither of us had any money under our wet-suits!
The Abbey would have to wait for another day.
We were confined to the beach.

We munched our snack in the sunshine as we sat on the rocks.
It was indeed a glorious day.

We set sail again and continued our circumnavigation.
The wind reversed itself and we had to tack off the beach too!
A bit tricky but we were soon into deeper water and then out through the channel.
The seals were keeping a careful watch.
And there were many kinds of seabirds calling through the air.

After a period of calm the wind settled into the west again.
We were flying along leaving a long white wake astern.
After creaming past one of the yachts being fitted out in the bay we landed again at the splendid sailing club.

It was a great journey.
For both of us it was the first time we had set off from one harbour in the Forth estuary and landed at another. It might have been a short cruise but perhaps it will be the start of bigger things.

In these days of fuel crisis and global warming it was hearteneing to be engaged in a sport that is almost carbon neutral. The nylon sails, alloy mast, metal fixings, and the paint and varnish, were the only artificial parts. The boat itself is wooden and it is powered by the wind.

I wonder what would result if Formula 1 racing converted to wind power!
Sand yachting is a sport in some areas. But imagine if we adopted wind power for road transport too! I don't think it's such a silly idea. It would just take some clever technology. A sort of four-wheeled bicycle with a mast and sails! And pedals for when there was no wind, or for tight maneuvering.

It's amazing the amount of power there is in the wind.
We're only just beginning to use it again after we abandoned sailing ships.
So far that effort is devoted to making electricity.
But the wind can do far more than that!

Just because we can't see it doesn't mean it's not there.
Let's make the most of it.

Beautiful Aromatic Lilies

A beautiful flower arrangement is brightening up our dining room. The lilies are not only gorgeous to look at but fill the house with their aroma.

Some seeds produce wheat that makes a nice bread smell.
Other seeds produce lilies with their powerful scent.
Not everyone likes the perfume of the lily, but you can't miss it.

The diversity of plant and animal life is amazing.
But I am even more surprised that we have discrete species.

How is it that we have cats, dogs, sheep, and cattle?
If all life developed incrementally one small step at a time then why are there such large differences between species?

It's a question that relates to humans too.
The Chimpanzee seems to be the animal most similar to humans.
But there is no danger of anyone confusing the two.

How can such a large gap have developed incrementally?

Today I was discussing leadership with a friend.
We agreed that the best leaders are also the best followers.
Good leaders help us to work together to achieve more than we can as individuals.
When we cooperate as a cohesive group then we prosper.

Human skills of language and thought help us to work together.
Together we can make a beautiful bouquet, like the lilies.