You Thought Boys Have Cooties?

I have to preface this week’s article by stating that my wife is probably the cleanest person I know. Not only does she practice perfect personal hygiene, but she tends to act as a reverse hurricane by leaving a wake of organization and bacteria free surfaces wherever she goes. This is, I digress, a significant contrast to my own filthy habits. I am improving daily (I even received a vacuum from Sara’s parents as a birthday present!), but I don’t think I will ever surpass my wife’s levels of tidiness. We are the competitive equivalent of a 3-year-old wearing water wings and a tube with a ducky head against Michael Phelps. It’s just not going to happen.
That said, I read a very interesting article today that states “Women carry more bacteria than men”. I put the quotes there so you don’t suspect me of paraphrasing. Though I am not skilled in the use of clothing irons and folding clothes might as well be complex origami to me, I carry less of a variety of bacteria than my female associates. Bacteria differ greatly from person to person, but women simply have more than men. Researchers aren’t entirely clear as to why this is the case, though some argue that men have more acidic skin than women. It might also be because of moisturizer and cosmetic product usage, differences in sweat and oil glands, skin thickness, or hormone production. Of 4,742 species of bacteria identified, only 5 were found on every one of the hands in the referenced experiment.
We have to recognize just how different that we are as individuals. No two of us is exactly alike. However, the Bible constantly stresses that we all need to get along. Ephesians 4:1-6 is just one of several passages in the Bible stressing unity. We have to show humility, patience, gentleness, and love in our interactions with others. There are people that we come across who seem to be more trapped in sin and more involved in evil deeds than we are and we judge them. However, we all of sinned and we all have a responsibility to be united in peace. We all have our own bacteria. Let’s wash them off.