by Rich DuBose
What do people mean when they say something is, or is not, a “cakewalk?” According to the website CrossIdiomas,“The idiom ‘cake walk’ is a well-known expression that has been used in English language for many years. It is often used to describe an easy task or a situation that is easily accomplished. However, the origins and historical context of this idiom are not widely known.” *
It has been suggested that the etymology of the phrase can be traced to an activity that slaves sometimes participated in at the behest of their masters.
A cakewalk was, “Originally an African-American form of dance and music that developed after the Civil War, later popularized by minstrel shows. It was danced at social events, with the best dancers often receiving cake as a prize. It derives from dance competitions by plantation slaves in which the style of dance lampooned the ballroom dances of the slaveowners. Slaveowners seem to have found the competitions entertaining and the habit of offering cake may originate from this period. The name is sometimes also applied to the dance's precursor on the plantations.” (CrossIdiomas)
Author, James Anderson, of CrossIdiomas says, “A cake walk refers to a type of dance competition where participants would walk around a circle while music played. When the music stopped, each participant would try to land on a numbered square on the floor. The person who landed on the winning square would receive a cake as their prize.”* I’m sure America’s slaves did not view their lives as a “Cakewalk.” Their plight was cruel, inhumane, and offensive. Man’s inhumanity to his fellow man is astounding. How we justify such cruelty is an evil art. The cakewalk dance was possibly a diversion that helped slaves keep their minds off of the hell they were being put through.
If you are overwhelmed by man’s inhumanity to his fellowman, and overwhelmed by the gut-wrenching wars of our day, and the dog-eat-dog competition of the marketplace, and the “slave owners” of the twenty-first century who charge exorbitant amounts of interest on owed debt, and of the hate speech by political leaders, and the unfulfilled longings you have to be loved for who you are, instead of for what you can do—you were not made for this world. None of us really were.
Right now we’re in a weird, disappointing space, filled with the tawdry dreams of fantasy retirements that can never deliver, of “cruise ships” filled with hordes of sin-infected aliens, and of strange ideological bedfellows who tout peace but wage war. We're in a place of wasted years, where many tire of chasing after poppycock, fake news, and politically driven nightmares.
The Psalmist refers to our world as, “The valley of the shadow of death” (Psalm 23:4 NKJV). Shadows can be cold, damp, and tepid—away from the light and warmth of the sun. The “shadow of death” is not death itself, but the next thing to it. We live in the shadow, in close proximity to death. It’s all around us and will eventually overtake us all against our will. So what good does it do to even try?
David says, “Even when the way goes through Death Valley, I’m not afraid when you [Jesus] walk at my side. Your trusty shepherd’s crook makes me feel secure” [Psalm 23:4, MSG). David acknowledges he’s a sheep (with all the negative connotations that come with that), but he’s OK with it because the Good Shepherd travels with him.
Our only hope of surviving this journey comes with the decision to “dance” with the slaves of old and with Jesus around the circle; to listen to heaven’s music of grace and forgiveness. And to take the “cake” of God’s assurance of love that we find in Jesus.
Rich DuBose writes from Northern California. Photography by Megwara Favour, with Pexels.
* CrossIdiomas.com, “Understanding the Idiom: "cakewalk" - Meaning, Origins, and Usage,” by James Anderson
MSG: Scripture quotations marked MSG are taken from THE MESSAGE. Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries.
NKJV: Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.