Friday Five: Memorable Pets

This week's revgalblogpals FF is to name five memorable pets.

I say, oh my! Only five?

I will try....
In no particular order:

This is our Lucky cat, who is old and crotchedy and whines a lot these days, except when he is fast asleep, and he looks like a bunny-angel. Beloved rescued him off the side of a road where a farmer had shot him. Rushed to the vet, Lucky survived, albeit with a bullet still lodged under his skin. You can even feel it to this day.


What can I say? Aren't poodles always memorable in their silly, high energy ways? This is Daisy and Tikky, 11 and 10, respectfully. They still act like 3 year olds.



This is Callie, who has more personality than any human or animal or plant should ever have. She is currently leaping from the chair to my desk...then I pick her up, put her down so I can type, and then she just keeps doing it. Relentless. But loves her bling!


This is Venus las Vegas--she survived major surger this fall, and is doing well. She is truly our angel. Besides having lots of arthritis, she has recently started to lose her hearing. But not her love!


Buster crossed over the Rainbow Bridge this fall. He could not have been more sweeter. He was the calm, even-tempered, laid back presence in our family. We miss him.


This is Cowboy Kojak the One-eyed wonder. We found him in a parking lot, skin and bones and what looked like an eye injury. The vet said he might live a month. He spent two and half years terrorizing our household. I could throw him over my shoulder and do dishes, and he would purr and be so happy. However, he hated all four legged creatures and he would prowl the house to chase poodles, cats, and other dogs. We had to lock him up at night so the other kitties could come out to play. Oh, and did I mention he had chronic diarrhea for those two and half years? However, he learned to mellow slightly, and I just loved him. He loved me, too, in his own way. I know he is raising hell over the rainbow bridge now.



This is sweet Annie. We only had her six months. We adopted her at 13 years, after she retired from being a guide dog. I never knew a creature before that truly embodied the word--Joy. She was the most happy-pants thing in the world. She died from cancer, but she had a rich life.

So...that's it for now....but I have to say our animals enrich our lives in so many ways. We all miss Molly, even if we only knew her through the virtual world of blogging. We are grateful for the ways in which she was God's Blessing to so many, and we celebrate her life. Love to Songbird and family as they walk through this great loss in their lives.

a day off

yay! it's monday....and I am just lounging, drinking coffee, and looking at my List of Things to Do. Just looking, mind you. I have already crossed off cleaning the kitchen. Still have to go out into the yard and pick up another layer of poop that has emerged in the melting snow. Ylech. At least it is sunny out. Must exercise, must hem pants, must get manicure ;-), must read, must walk doggies. Everything else is gravy.

The women's retreat was really, really great. We had around 40 women, and I had organized our time into three sessions, based on three poems by Mary Oliver. St. Mary Oliver, I should say. The first was The Summer Day--you know, the one that ends with "tell me, what will you do with your one wild and precious life"....that phrase became the sharing question in the large group: Tell one thing wild about you, and one thing precious to you or about you. It was fabulous--hilarious, dear, teary, and again, hilarious! I had asked them to each bring a poem or scripture that they treasured, and was going to use this in small groups, but we ran out of time. So, I asked several volunteers to read theirs during our brief worship time before "relaxing" time. It was beautiful.

In the morning, I used Oliver's poem, "Prayer", from her collection Thirst to launch morning devotions around the topic of prayer. For scripture, I had a list of mostly NT verses about prayer, and then I talked about my journey with prayer, with descriptive language for God, The Lord's Prayer, and more. Then, we broke into small groups, and I asked them to share with each other how they engaged in prayer or meditation, when they prayed, if they prayed, etc.
THEY LOVED TALKING ABOUT THIS. Honestly, I thought it was a risky question, because it is so personal, but they appreciated the diversity and integrity of the sharing in their groups.

After a break, we made prayer beads. I gave a little history on prayer beads, and then showed them how to make an Anglican Rosary, or how to adapt it to an Earth Rosary; and also showed them how to make LovingKindness strands, if that is what they wanted. I asked them to choose beads that spoke to them; and to choose a number of beads that was significant. I had purchased a ton of beads--about $100 dollars worth, besides others bringing some to share. I wish you could have seen the sight of 40 women, ranging from 27 years to 94 years old, beading together, on the floor, on chairs, at tables, helping one another, talking, laughing, relaxing, and very intentional about making a meaningful creation. My heart rejoiced. I loved it--every minute.

After lunch, we had a closing communion service. We used the poem "Thirst" to talk about what we thirsted for in our lives and for the world. That became our prayer. After the feast, we blessed the prayer beads, by passing them around the circle, one by one. The creativity was stunning. Truly.

Those 24 hours were full of the glory and grace of the Divine.
I am so grateful to have been a part of it.

Amen.

Day 2.

What bliss. In spite of it being 9 degrees outside, we have had two days of beautiful, joyful sunshine. Love soaking up my vitamin D the natural way!

Today I am finishing up my plans for the weekend retreat, getting things ready for Sunday, ordering curriculum, ordering 4th grade bibles. I had a lovely coffee meeting with a young woman who has been visiting our congregation...I love this part of my ministry--when I can spend time with people, and hear their stories and hopes and thoughts and regrets and....everything.
What can be richer?

What's up with you all?

yet to be revealed.

(picture from a national geographic forwarded email thingy with lots of other great pix)
Sometimes, I feel like this monkey, free, happy, in the middle of a treasure.

I was fortunate to be able to have the weekend off last weekend. A trip to NYC made it all the more fantabulously fun, in spite of frigid temperatures. A highlight, among many, was seeing the musical "Billy Elliott." Elton John wrote all of the music. It was so great. I highly recommend.

Today is our weekly snow day, it seems like. Once a week we seem to have a dump that snarls traffic and waylays plans. Poor kids around here are going to be in school until the end of July because there have been so many snow days. (slight exaggeration.)

Am trying to settle in and plan my women's retreat for the weekend. Of course I have a theme and many pieces, but it is putting it all together. PLUS not overpreparing. My church girlfriends like to have plenty of time for talking, talking, talking, and just having fun. It's a balance, for sure! The theme is from that beautiful Mary Oliver poem that asks, "Tell me, what do you plan to do with this one wild and precious life?" I have asked everyone to bring a poem, piece of scripture, or short reading that has been a source of strength for them. We are going to make prayer beads (how fun will that be?) and have time for large and small group sharing around strength, faith, and spirituality.

I am in a good place. In spite of obvious concern about the economy, the strain it puts on people's lives and budgets, as well as the strain on all of our church budgets (I suspect there are many congregations facing shortfalls this year), I have hope. Or, at least, I have no worry. My heart trusts in what will be, and I truly believe Julian of Norwich when she says "all shall be well and all shall be well and all manner of being shall be well." (I might not have this strictly quoted.)

So. We do what we can do, be kind as often as we can to whomever we can--when we remember--, we acknowledge that the people we encounter have lives that have trouble and joy just like our own...and we hope that we can be as gentle to others the ways in which we hope others are gentle to us.
Oh. yes. and we pray.
Amen.

Snowfall Commentary

Well, first. Let me say a few things about the Wovel (to the left) that I got for Christmas, while I worry about the load of snow piling up on my rooftop that is incredibly heavy from moisture, wondering if my roof will cave in. Please. That would wreck the weekend plans to getaway to NYC. I digress. The Wovel is like a snow shovel, except, as you can see from the picture, it has the capacity to move a lot of snow. This is a great tool for when the snow is light and fluffy, or when you don't have five feet of snow already piled up in your driveway, frontyard, backyard. The problem, is as the snowbanks get higher, it is increasingly difficult to try to pop it up that high, and you just end up making a mess that you have to go to your old fashioned shovel to fix.
In addition, the wovel has a pretty big shovel on it--which does in fact move a lot of snow, but one needs a lot of space to maneuver it--and since I am a urban dweller, there's not a lot of room to manage it. I would suggest a wovel lite, or mini-wovel, wovel petit that would make shoveling the tight areas feasible.
Would I throw 100 bucks at it again if I could do over. Probably. But, I am sorely tempted to check out the sales on the snow throwers (as they call them up here).
But, speaking of snow throwers, I feel like there is a little bit of competition between the two 20-30 something guys on our block that have these machines. It is really sweet--it is as if they are racing each other to help out all of the neighbors to blow their snow for them. Next door Fireman Guy was a little late in getting out, and across the street Hocky Guy had not only done his own sidewalk, but the neighbor across the street, next door to us, and all of the my driveway that he could. Wow. Lovin' that. Fireman Guy (also new to the neighborhood) had to go further down the block. I am sure that secretly he was so dissappointed he couldn't do our sidewalk--we are the best next door neighbors ever.
So, he did two driveways down the block. I was curious to see if he would do Skanky neighbors next to him, who have the dog that attacked another dog and my beloved while she was trying to save it. I couldn't really tell.
And, just randomly--why can't it be a rule that all snow should be light and fluffy and never wet, heavy, slushy, sleety, messy, icy stuff? It would be such an improvement. NOT that I am complaining or anything.

Day off and housebound.

It's Monday.
It is sooooo cold outside today, but I am home, and can't go anywhere until I get an important delivery that we missed on Friday. So, I have exercised, checked email, and now will settle in to do some planning for a women's retreat I am leading the first weekend in February.
Anybody got something great?

Anyway--there are a ton of things I should be doing, but I have been chilling out, surfing, shoe shopping...later I will bundle up and take doggies for their stroll. I am dying to get to the studio because I made all of these test tiles and I am so curious as to how the glazes came out. Hopefully the box I have to sign for will get here SOON.

In the meantime, the house is so quiet. Every single one of the nine furry friends that live here are happily snoozing.

I had an opinion I wanted to post, but I can't remember what it was!!! silly.

off to the races

well, not really.
just off to the gagillion things to get done today.


But, just had to tell an urban wild story. Yesterday, a guy like this one took exactly one hour to kill, pluck, and eat an entire sparrow in my pristine snow covered back yard. Now it is full of tiny feathers.


(picture totally not used with permission, a google result.)

intention.

maybe I wrote about this before...but I have been focusing on "intention" in what I have been doing lately.

In my ministry, I am urging others to be intentional, about invitation, about community, about praying. Intention gives so much more room for the Spirit to work, I think.

In me, too...being intentional is about being aware and mindful more than I am.

It's a spiritual discipline I am working on embracing more fully.

so wondrous...

(Thanks to Processing Counselor for the obamiconme.com website!)

This Day.
Hope,
Act,
Now.

Amen.

note to self.

when playing Friday Five late, one should read other's plays before playing.
let me offer one or two less superficial things you should know about me:

1. I can't hold a conflict or issue that needs to be resolved very long in my heart.
I have a deep need to not harbor resentment, or misunderstanding. It's about peacemaking.

2. I am incredibly adaptable and flexible. For example, if a child in my Sunday School want to move up to the next age level because her friends are in that class--I say "go for it!". If I make a plan, and someone says...you know, maybe we should add this or subtract that, its great. If I walk into a room, and it isn't what I expect, I go with the flow.

3. I love to collaborate. Love, love, love it. Really collaborate. That being said, at times I can be a tiny bit type a--you know what I mean--a sort of "it's easier to do it myself and get it done..." I am better at this than I used to be...but it creeps up.

4. It should be no surprise that I have a deep passion for the non-human world. I think that the veil between me and trees and plants and animals--wild and domestic--is fairly thin. I am no dog whisperer or Jack Hanna--but my heart hurts when I see a tree cut down for no reason, or possums in the back yard because their habitat has shrunk.

5.If I could be a rock star for a day, I always thought I would want to be Madonna. Now, I would rather be Beyonce.

very kind...

Purple gifted me with this:
"The Friends Award isn't about being the most popular blogger or having the most read blog. It is just because you consider the author a friend. These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award."

Aw...thanks, Purple.
I blog just because...it is a form of writing that I can just jot notes..just about the ordinary in my life. Thanks...friends and lurkers for stopping by once in awhile. I find the blog community lovely and interesting.

That being said, I don't know eight bloggers that HAVEN'T received this award! All of my bloggy friends are wonderful, deep, and authentic. And funny, too!

However, I can award one blogger who has reached thousands of parents and teachers and others around the topic of parenting and autism and advocacy and education. Jess, the author of Diary of a Mom has created an amazing community of support and friendship--a place where tears flow and laughter floats and caring abides. So, Jess, here you go! What you have done and are doing--is amazing!

Saturday "Friday Five"-5 Things You Should Know About Me

I didn't get to play RevGals Friday Five yesterday, but since I am needing to prime my pump for writing something that will preach tomorrow, I though I would play today. So here are five things you should know about me.
1. I love red shoes. I only have two pair, but two is enough. I also love all kinds of shoes.
2. I am very rule conscious and cautious when driving or parking. I never double park, or park in handicapped even if it is for a second, and I will never go over 8 miles past the speed limit.Some say that I drive like a "gramma". This is probably true.
3. I am GREAT at chilling out.
4. A nap is a treat for me--better than pizza.
5. I am shy way down deep in my heart. That being said, I love to laugh at myself and with others.

it's been a year...

We miss you.
We are so sad today, remembering how we didn't know the depth of your pain and desolation...
You were so beloved, and continue to live in our hearts.
We celebrate you,
with Aric special coffees (what a jolt of caffeine, whew!)
and your music,
and with yellow flowers,
with your sweet friends, who adored you.
We remember you as we flip through photos, and search for You-tube videos of you on the internet (by the way, I came across some poety by someone with your exact name--did one of your friends post these? where is the notebook? jus'thinking that if you could send a sign or somethin' somethin' to confirm whether or not those are yours...)
Anyway, it doesn't matter.
You were a light, a joy, and so much more.
You are missed..
but we know you are free...
and that you know now, how deep and wide you were loved.
Rest well, dear nephew, rest well.

so...

I have been doing all of this training in discipleship/stewardship and becoming a church coach.I love it. It is interesting, engaging, and makes me think creatively.

Now, I am not what you would call an old fashioned evangelist, or even someone who will say, let's pray about this for God's answer. My embrace of prayer and of Christianity would be what some label progressive or liberal.

However, I do firmly believe that if the Church, and congregations feel the need to grow, feel the need to be revitalized, then the center of those endeavors is an active, communal, personal, intentional prayer life. Pray and listen. Be still...and know.

I don't know how to talk about prayerin New England churchspeak without scaring people. I mean, we pray for each other on Sundays, but the only people praying out loud--except for my youth and children, are the pastoral staff. We have a prayer circle, but it is virtual. They don't meet in real time--or have an intentional plan for what to pray for except for what is on the list from Sundays--which again, is really, really, important. I guess what I am really asking about is how does one encourage adults who aren't used to praying out loud in a circle of community members, to pray together? Am working on this........

this is why I have a blog...

so that at times I can vent when people are politically incorrect, claim it unapologetically, and it's not worth it to mention that perhaps some of the words or actions you use really are like little arrows that hit you, prick, and then bounce off.
and...perhaps, one (as in me) is a little overly sensitive.
but here it goes.

Dear You.
you have no clue, do you, that when you
use words like "stranglehold" or clutch your neck with both your hands,
or point an imaginary gun to your head
that a person who is listening to you
has to stop, catch her breath,
as she imagines her loved one
strangling himself to death by hanging on a rope,
or he almost doubles over because remembers his dearest
who blew her brains out and he was first there at the scene....

To you, to most people these are words and actions that are part of common conversation, words that are used in metaphor, in imagery, meaning really nothing real...
but there is this club that some of us belong to,
where those words
evoke an emptiness, a slash of raw pain,
because they don't evoke a metaphor,
they evoke reality.

It would be so bad, you...
if you just used those words once, in passing...
but they are phrases that are clearly part of your teaching canon.

Call me over-politically correct.
I don't care.
I think you would like to know that they hurt, but then, maybe you would think I was just being over the top.
sigh.

putzing...

I am having a hard time getting my teeth into anything right now. In other words, I think I am slacking a bit, and when I slack, I feel guilty. I should be out changing the world! I should be scheduled for the day within an inch of a minute!
I should be praying until my knees are bloody! I should be ahead of my game, or on top of my game, or at least...PLAYING my game!

But, mostly, right now, I feel quiet and still and like I am marinating on something unknown. And in the midst of that, I have putzed this morning. Cleaned the kitchen, (btw, takes forever as we are out a dishwasher. it broke. in the middle of painting said kitchen and changing all door hardware and it is all a cluttery mess...however, because of the broken dishwasher, we decided to replace both dishwasher and fridge--an unpredictable appliance in our home---but the dishwasher hasn't even been scheduled for installation, which means I will be throwing a luncheon for 10 people on Friday in the middle of chaos. Thank God for amazing Italian restaurants that make meals for 10 and are delicious!) Back to the moment.
It is grey and soggy and icy and wet snowy outside. My early morning meeting was cancelled,and my next isn't until 1:00, so I decided to work from home this morning...catching up on email and reading blogs and pondering.

Wish there were something more profound niggling at my mind and heart, something to hash out, but maybe, frankly, just having peace for awhile is something to embrace...instead of feeling guilty for! Moments of peace I think surprise us, because they rarely linger, and when peace lingers...well...it is a bit foreign and I feel like I should get busy rather than take the luxury of lingering with the peace.

my charge today: be peaceful. be at peace. amen.

p.s. while I write this in the quiet of my attic office, my skitzy Lucy cat is sitting in the window and leaping into it, everytime a bird flies by, as if she can catch it. Her tail is doing that swishy thing, and now one bird is on the sill. It is as if the bird knows she is quite safe and is happy to torment my silly Lucy. And Lucy is definitely falling for the sparrow's antics.

so, I will be at peace...and belly laugh with the Buddah.

amen.

Tuesday, today.

So,
the second half of the program year is off to a start!
everyone is back in the office...
and we are sorting dates and making sure we have pretty much every minute planned until June.
seriously, that is almost 100% true. every Sunday is planned between here and there, with just a few preaching slots to fill in...programs planned, etc.
do you all do that out there? just curious.
I am not complaining about it, though, it is just different. most congregations or insitutions I have been a part of haven't had most of the year mapped out by the August before. it's not a bad thing. not entirely all good, though, if there isn't wiggle room for the Spirit to move. I think we have enough space, though.

well, I have a few things to update before my meeting at 10:00.
just wanted to ramble for a few moments to prime the pump of my mind...

New Year Friday Five

At RGBP, Sally writes:
As we have stepped from 2008 into 2009 some of us look back with joy and others with saddness; probably most of us with a mixture of the two.

As we look back we may come to understand how God has worked in and through us in joy and saddness. how we have grown against what may seem impossible odds. As we look forward we may do so with expectation, and we may do so with fear and trembling. As we look back and forward in New Years liminality I offer you this simple yet I hope profound Friday Fivein two parts:

First list five things that you remember/ treasure from 2008

1. I cherish my B. I treasure the ways in which B and I have deepened in our marriage. By far my best friend and heart of my heart and love of my love.

2. The suicide of my nephew in January. I remember those days with razor sharp clarity. I don't treasure the experience, but what I do treasure is the resiliency of my sister (his mother) and all the ways in which she has walked through this fire and pain and grief of this year without being burned to ashes. Her grace and honest way of living in this has been...I am so grateful. I also treasure the way in which my family really became family in so many more ways than we ever have. So, I treasure that too.

3. I treasure the arrival of our sweetie Fenway,an adult chocolate lab mix, who picked us last spring to be her people. (Why would she do that? There is a lot of competition for attention in our animal farm household. In any case, I am glad she did!) I also celebrate all of the goofy dogs and cats that we love and care for. Never a dull moment.

4. New colleagues. I am coming up on three years in being in New England, and two years in my congregration. Making collegial friends, finding support, working together--it all takes time. I feel like I am finally in a network of folks that I can trust, laugh with, synergize with...and of course, I just love RevGals. I talk about this community all the time. Thank you for creating this community!

5. I treasure the memory of B's mom, who died this summer. She suffered from alzheimer's. I was honored to lead the memorial service, and to write her remembrances/eulogy with input from all of her children. People laughed and cried, and all I have to say, she was definitely something else.

6. I treasure so many more memories, but I will stop at six. I will have to say I treasure the people in my congregation with whom I have the privilege being in ministry with. Right now, I am picturing all of them in my mind's eye. Thanks be to God for them.

Then list five things that you are looking forward to in 2009:

1. I look forward to deepening my creativity and skills with clay. Ah! I just love it.

2. The BE2!

3. The mystery of the journey--where will it wind to next?

4. Learning more. About everything, but expanding professionally.

5. This should be number one, but growing deeper in my relationship with God. I am interesting in connecting with Shalem, or something like that. There is a spirituality center locally called Ruah, and they have some contemplative practise offerings that are intriguing...

Sally also left this gorgeous New Year Blessing from the Iona Community:

We stand to face the future:
God behind us in the past
Christ before us; the way ahead;
Christ beside us in this moment;
Christ beneath us in our weakness;
Christ above to shield us-
beneath the shadow of his wings we are safe;
Christ between us to bind us in the unity of his love;
Christ in us equipping us with his all sufficient grace.
Thus armed and guided, and protected we face the new year.
Now we arise and go forth on the journey before us,
knowing that, where Christ leads, life is a journey home.
Therefore we travel in faith, in hope, and in love,
in the name of the Father/ Mother, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
May the blessing of God
be upon us
all this year
and into eternity. Amen.

brrrrrrr

January 1, 2009.

Wow.
2009! Crazy.

Today...
1. is bitter and cold, beautiful and bright
(can you tell I grew up with farmer parents? I always report the weather!)

2. I am so grateful for the snowplower who plowed our street, because he/she actually did a careful job, making sure that there wasn't a five foot berm in front of my driveway.

3. In spite of being pleased with my Wovel, I am enormously thankful for the two of neighbors, next door and across the street, who are young and happy with their snowblowers, and feel like they should plow our sidewalk because we are middle aged old ladies. No, they don't say that, but can't you see them thinking that? I am grateful for their parents who raised such considerate men ;-)

4. I am waiting for the coffee to brew, and then I am going to get back into bed and read and ponder Sunday's sermon. And then write it. I want to go cross country skiing on Saturday.

5. 2008 was a year for us, like for many, full of dramatic contrasts. The world news and economics paints everyone's personal lives in so many different ways. So, there is that. Then, my nephew died from suicide. B's mother died. There was lots going on at work, stress. And then, so many things to be grateful.
I would say that 2008 was full, full of the work and joy of life and living.

6. May peace be real, and hope a way of life in 2009.

Amen.

Tuesday. AGain!

So, it's Tuesday and I swung by the office to check in...although no one is really around, since the office is cold. Sorted some mail, made some calls, looking out at a windy but bright New England December day. Tomorrow we are supposed to get more snow...so I need to get that durn Wovel put together. I just don't have the right tools...I need a ratchet, which in my meager and sundry collection of tools, I do not happen to have.

I was hoping to make a couple of pastoral calls, but that looks like they will happen on Friday. That's o.k.

On NPR this morning, I was listening to an interview with Juno Diaz and he said this:
The work of the artist is to strive to undermine her/his previous work.

I find that so interesting, but I get it. You want to push, pull, stretch, engage even deeper with each artistic endeavor. I find this so true in clay...whether I am making the same thing over and over, I still want to tweak it, get into more, try something a little different.....

Just a random thought for the day.

huh.

you know when you have a Sunday where you do pretty much everything right,
but it all felt flat?
yep.
that could sum up today for me.
the liminal space felt like a huge chasm.
yes, it was a low attendance Sunday, so some of the community energy wasn't there.
the best part was coffee hour, getting to chat with some people I don't usually get to connect with.
oh well.
this happens.
and in spite of me, it was still worship,
and God was with indeed with us. I know this, because God shows up, even when we don't feel God.
Amen.

saturday procrastination.

yes. so I got up early to write my sermon, and now, a couple of hours later I realize that I haven't done a thing but catch up on my blogreading. well, maybe that is my prep for writing...
now I will head downstairs for another cup of tea, let the cat in, and get started. and finished. yes, I will finish before noon. yes, I will, yes I will, I will, I will....
because I promised these girls a long walk this afternoon, and they are WAITING....


Wiggy


Daisy


Venus las Vegas


Fenway

procrastination

I should really be writing my sermon.
but I am just putzing about.
That's about all I have to say!

lefse--or norwegian burritos?

Lefse is a norwegian potato bread that sort of looks like a soft tortilla. You spread butter on it and brown sugar and roll it up and eat it. My mother has made this every christmas every year of my life and beyond--and she has probably eaten it every holiday season of her life. So, I thought it time for me to start learning. It requires all sorts of special baking items like a pastry board, lefse stick, lefse griddle, rolling pin with a stocking. I have never really been a pastry maker.

A good lefse is very thin, and round.

As you can see from the pictures, uhhhh, well, my first try wasn't exactly round or thin....



Lefse balls



Pastry board and rolling pin, without its little sock.



The griddle and lefse turning stick, ready for action!



Final six. Then the electrical element died. Now, what I am going to do with all those left over balls of dough?

christmas eve day!

this is one of my most favorite days of the year. growing up, my family would go to the drugstore to eat cheeseburgers and fries and cokes at noon. we are going to do this today--b and I--in harvard square. (veggie cheeseburger, for me though).

I got up early and went to the grocery, and got all kinds of stuff to make for tomorrow. I am even going to try Songbird's Crash Hot Potatos, since no one volunteered for mashed potatoes (which I can take or leave) but I feel certain will miss the good old potatoe if there aren't any. Don't you just love the name of them? "Crash Hot Potato"? It is fun to say out loud.

so, now I need to get on the stick and write my pastoral prayer (unless someone wants to share theirs) and the welcome for tonight, and practise my story a little more.

last night I tried to make lefse. I will write more about that later, but imagine my dissappointment when my brand new lefse grill (gift from dad, stepmom, and twin sister) had a bummer of an electrical element. I made about six, and then had to just quit--since the griddle quit itself.

prayers for beautiful and deep and surprising worship this evening for all congregations...everywhere.
amen.

tuesday.

The snow is pretty today. It is still cold, but brilliant with sun. Hard to believe that all of this will melt (well most of it) in the next few days.

This is a funny thing about Boston. If people dig their cars out on the street, they are allowed to put cones or folding chairs to mark their "spot" while not parked in it, for at least 48 hours, sometimes more. It is your...reward, I guess, for doing all the work. So, when you drive around the streets, if you see cones in parking places, you better NOT move them and park your car there. It is grounds for getting slashed tires! Thank goodness we have a driveway!

Not much going on here at the office this morning. I am piddling, you could say. I need to write my sermon for Sunday...so I could get a start on that. If I can get it sketched out, I am going to reward myself with a manicure. ( I actually have a gift certificate with money remaining on it.) My new favorite color is OPI's "We'll Always Have Paris". I ought to tidy things up a bit, too.

I feel like I am in a good space. It feels a little empty, but that is good. Maybe I am making room in my inner inn to be ready for the wild blessing of Christ-mas.

Open me, even more.
Help me be receptive to where and how the journey unfolds...
in these moments, in this day, in this week...
Amen

monday morning wanderings

It is cold and windy here in Boston. (not as cold as North Dakota, though)
I spent the good part of the weekend, among other things, shoveling 15 inches of snow. Am really looking forward to getting my wovel...or a snowblower. There are no snowblowers to be had, though.

The Christmas Pageant yesterday was great. We even had a real baby Jesus who could not have been more precious! The only thing that wasn't covered is that there was no one assigned to put away costumes. Needless to say, there was a mess. I just stashed everything in the CE Resource room, and will ask those in charge of the Pageant to deal with it. Afterwards, we had a pizza party with decorating cookies and Yankee Exchange with the Youth.

When the holidays come, my grief in not having children is heightened. This year is no exception. It is always a source of suprise that I never have had a baby. B and I consciously decided not to, but still, there is that part of me that lingers in some regret. It's o.k., we talk about it, and B is always wonderful to listen to my grief without taking it personally. Or, if so, we talk about that. Anyway, I would have been a wonderful mom. I know that. Literally, all of my friends have families. I love their children. I love all the children and babies and young people I get to work with...and my adopted nieces and nephews...and my two nephews are precious to me. I just find it curious that the unfolding of my journey hasn't included being a mommy. Just mulling on that today. A little, anyway. sigh.

So. On another note, I spent some time in my studio this morning, and am headed back down there, shortly. I working with some terra cotta clay today, doing some experimentation with carving and glazes. As soon as I finish up some stuff, I will post the pictures. The photo above is scraffito through yellow slip on brown stoneware--the picture is taken before it had been bisqued.

Peace to you on this cold and windy winter day.

Friday Five Five Things Before Christmas edition

This is what I hope Santa will bring me for Christmas. It is a "wovel"

Songbird made Friday Five quite easy today.
Five things you need to get done before Christmas.

hmm. I was just thinking of the five things I need to do in the next hour! But let me think more expansively...

1. Order and pick up pasta dishes at Comella's for beloved's staff party she is hosting on Monday. Also, go to Trader Joe's and get easy appetizers, clean house, make dessert, decorate house, get stuff like wine, soda, teas, etc. You get it.

2. Learn the story I will tell on Christmas Eve.

3. Restock pantry for guests coming on Christmas Day (just two)

4. Enjoy the snow storm that is a'coming

5. I am sure there is more, but strangely, the bulletins are all finished for the 28th and the 4th of January, sermon titles/topic in the hopper, and frankly, I am not really stressed. At all.

what? rick warren?

I have to say, I am dissapointed in Obama's choice for the invocation giver at the inauguration is Rick Warren, Saddleback Church in California. He is rabidly anti-gay. I think if the administration wanted to reach across the aisle, which I am totally for, I think a less radical evangelical would have been nice.
Actually,
I think what would have been wonderful for the Change agenda would have been to include a rabbi, priest, imam, and pastor...and some of them WOMEN.

hmm. my word verication is "phinc" which sounds like "fink"

spooky sighting!

so, we have had a feral kitten living in our basement for the past three months. long story on how she got there. we feed her everynight, and she eats all her food, drinks water, and uses the litter box.
however, we have never seen her since the first day we took her in, when she escaped from her kennel. I named her Spooky.
but finally, last night,
we were able to trap her.
I am so relieved she hasn't turned into a one-eyed ghosty light depraved monster. She just is scared, wild, and fierce.
And a cute calico kitty.

Not sure what we will do with her now.

I am just glad to see her.

exhausted!

Petsmart Howl-i-days

(photo from http://www.ohmidog.com/tag/santa-claus/, but could have been from Saturday, December 13, at PetSmart!)

so Saturday, Beloved and I volunteered for Kitty Connection by taking photos with Santa at PetSmart. This is a great gig for rescue groups--Petsmart pays for everything, you just have to supply volunteers and Santa to run the booth, which is the dogtraining area in PetSmart. For that, PetSmart charges the customer $10, in which they receive a digital photo in a cute (debatable) plastic frame that says Holiday 2008. $5 goes to the rescue organization. For small rescues, this is great--much better than having a yard sale.

Well, wow. People and pets and photo shoots--HILARIOUS! PICKY! WEIRD! FABULOUS!
Some people thought we were professional animal handlers or professional photographers. hah!

I was going to be Santa, but we were there a little late, so someone else suited up.
Beloved was the amazingly patient and cheerful photographer, sometimes taking 20 photos for people who thought their little doggie or kitty should be smiling, or posing perfectly. Only one couple decided they didn't like any of the pictures. Please. Just buy one for the spirit of giving!

Anyway, we were exhausted after five hours of doing this, but truly it was fun. I loved meeting all of the dogs and cats--animals are extremely forgiving of their nutty owners (including yours truly). They were patient as we called to them, cajoled them to sitting close to our somewhat glum Santa, happy when we fed them treats, and just generally wonderfully spirited as they wagged tails and stretched out for ear scritches and belly rubs.

I highly recommend the experience!

Over at RGBP,
Sophia writes:
This Friday Five is inspired by my husband's Lasik surgery yesterday....He'd been contemplating it for a while and was pushed over the edge by the fact that we put too much money in our healthcare spending account this year and it would have been gone anyway. (There was only enough for one eye, but the kind people at the eye clinic figured out a way to divvy up the charges between surgery and followup in January=next year's spending account). So please say a little prayer for his safe recovery and share with us your thoughts on eyes and vision.

1. What color are your beautiful eyes? Did you inherit them from or pass them on to anyone in your family?
My eyes are blue. Norwegian blue. Got'em from the family heritage.

2. What color eyes would you choose if you could change them?
Big dark brown eyes with little hazel flecks. (a girl can dream, right?)

3. Do you wear glasses or contacts? What kind? Like 'em or hate 'em?
I used to wear both. Contacts usually irritated my eyes, and I liked glasses, but had such coke-bottles that when I didn't have glasses on, I could see nothing. My first pair were in 4th grade. Now I wear reading glasses. But that is the bonus of being 45, right?


4. Ever had or contemplated laser surgery? Were you happy with the results?
Yes, yes, and yes. However, I have to say, I had to have it twice--a follow-up correction. The first time was cool, the second time I was a little nervous. But oh, oh, oh, how wonderful to SEE!!!!
5. Do you like to look people in the eye, or are you more eye-shy? Definitely look people in the eye. Eyes are the window to the soul, right?

Bonus question: Share a poem, song, or prayer that relates to eyes and seeing.

"No object is mysterious--the mystery is your eye" --Elizabeth Bowen

"I shut my eyes in order to see" --Paul Ganguin

Tikky

hard to believe she is 11 years old.
hard to believe at just ounces over 5 pounds she can take on a doberman, if needed!
hard to believe that she is as sweet as she is saucy!

notes to self

*it's easy to feel blue when planning a blue christmas service.

*i like Mindy Smith's My Holiday CD

*sitting down to carve a very large ceramic platter covered in blue slip takes a lot more time and intention that I planned on.

*i LOVE carving pottery. it's about the third most popular thought in my head.

*it is rainy and cold. it is 2:27 pm. i am in my office. i forgot my bag so i don't have my list and books and stuff that i need.

*there is still plenty to do.

*why isn't there a naptime for adults? the preschool across the hall always has naptime. not fair.

*i am not feeling particularly inspired or motivated.

*advent/christmas makes me sad, thoughtful, hopeful, quiet.

*i wish we could be with my family of origin for just a couple of days. this christmas will be so hard on all of them, missing aric's joy.

* the titles of books on my desk are earthprayers, growing together, bread for the journey, the green bible, sacred journeys, in wisdom's path, guerillas of grace, imaging the word. isn't that a delicious combination?

*last year, a little girl in my congregation gave me a christmas card. it is on my bulletin board. it says, "pastor karla, i hope you are looking stunning. happy holidays! love, f." that must mean that sometimes i must look stunning. ;-) i hope in a good way.

*the sooner i finish my edits on sermons, the sooner i can go home.

*i am so glad i exercised already.

silent night.

this weekend was very full...christmas caroling on Saturday afternoon,then on to Sunday. Packed with the beginning of a new church school term, getting new teachers settled, worship, with advent candles, reception of new members, communion, then an adult forum afterwards,after that a youth holiday show at another nursing home, then back to church for a community crafts and carols event.
whew!
a lot of EXTROVERT energy pouring out from me. so today, I am a little left over, but in a full way.

what struck me, amidst many other things that were meaningful, was the singing of silent night in all of these venues.
first, in a small dark living room, with a housebound elder and her adult daughter who lives in a group home with other developmentally disabled adults...her daughter brought the aides and her friends from her home...and we sang a gajillion christmas carols...and when we got to silent night, it was so moving to witness the young family that was with the group of carolers....a couple with 4 children, 7years to 3 months...singing with wide eyes and rosy cheeks with this room of elders and other adults. Baby girl was sleeping, indeed, in heavenly peace...
and then,
at the next nursing home, with gangly teenagers, all self conscious and proud, singing with a large room of elders all in wheelchairs, and in various stages of chronic illness or aging...stumbling through three verses of silent night....where elders had tears in their eyes, and the teens, not really having a clue what an impact their presence was in that room...such a deep expression of what advent hope is...
and then, later in the day, singing silent night again, with 30 children and parents sitting in folding chairs, all trying to match the high key of the piano accompaniment, sweet high little voices, warbling in earnest...
ahh,
this is what glories streaming from heaven afar means.
gloriest stream, and heaven sings,
alleluia.
alleluia.
alleluia.

hope

yesterday,
in worship,
my colleague described Moltmann's idea of hope as a restless waiting.
indeed, this fits my heart these days...
Moltmann also describes hope as a "passion for the possible"...
and I can resonate with this.
so much more is possible...
and yet, the time isn't now...
it is a balanced pull between present in the restlessness, and still having passion for what is possible.
in this threshold, liminal place I am, I pray for gentleness and mercy and grace.
amen.

Thanks to Peace Bang for this....

PeaceBang has this on her website,and I just had to share it...

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

dark at 4:30 and wandering....

The hardest adjustment I have had to make living in New England is the darkness of December. It's 4:30 pm and night has fallen all around me...and I still have meetings to go to, and if it is before 5:00 pm, shouldn't it at least stay light for rush hour traffic?
I want to curl up on the sofa and read a book, sip tea, and fall asleep.
Lucky my office only has a church pew from the 1800's and you know, people were smaller back then.
I know that for Advent, it is fitting for it to be so dark...we wait in darkness...we look for the light..we hope for the light...
we just hope...
sometimes just to endure the darkness.
Morning always comes.

I am very aware of the shroud of shadows today. I am restless...I am not feeling very challenged (NOT PRAYIN' FOR CHALLENGE, THOUGH. That's like praying for patience.) o.k.--I am not feeling creatively challenged right now...and that creates restlessness. I remember when I was a chaplain in an institution that was incredibly so much more conservative than me--not theologically (although many were)institutionally. Tradition above all else was to be kept, in spite of the fact that it held the institution back. Anyway, I felt like I had to fold up my wings and pin them inside my back...and because I didn't feel like I could fly sometimes, it really affected my groundedness. In fact, the balance was so off, I was simply stuck.

My wings now, are not necessarily folded up...I wouldn't say that at all. But I don't think I am flying creatively as much, either. Hence the shroud of shadows. I need a flight plan that will keep me rooted and free at the same time.

That's where I am wandering in the darkness today.

smiles

This has been, in a word, a happy week.
When I am happy, rested, content,
I tend to smile a lot. Without really being conscious of it.
What has been fun this week,
is the surprise of returned smiles.
Seriously.
I have had so many people smile at me--returning my content expression...it has been so sweet.
and dear.
and lovely.

last day...

I am looking outside the window at a foggy, frosty, silvery grey misty blue ridge mountain morning.
Sipping coffee, watching the gas logs burn (pretending that they are crackling, real wood logs but grateful not to have to tend a fire), writing, my mind seriously wandering,
I am content.
This has been true rest this week. Soaked in the bones and heart and mind rest.
It has been pretty amazing...we have been completely satisfied with just spending every evening in, reading, watching old movies, unwinding in the hot tub.
Typically, on a trip here, we would go into hippy town almost everynight, to enjoy fabulous dinners and pubs at the wonderful diverse delectable restaurants...but this time, not so much. One night, sort of...but mostly, we have grazed on leftovers and little things from the store...yesterday was lunch out, but yesterday we shopped a little (ooooh, new setting for my ring, originally made by these artists and now they will re-make it into a more sturdy setting since I have a tendency to be a little hard on my rings...and ignore the price tag. The original was much, much less, and I had my own diamond, and the re-making is a tiny, tiny, fraction of that tag. Not that I need to justify, but well, it is a luxury, I know.)
Back to the point.
My body is loose, (except where I am sore from hiking and dancing in the yard)
My breath is deep and clear...
My mind, is rolling a few things around but for the most part, open and fresh...
and I know I say this all the time,
but I am so grateful.
For this moment.
For this amazing life I have.

Oh holy one,
on this day, this first day of advent,
knowing that we begin in shadows and flickers of light,
hopefully hoping against all hope but with deep hope because you give it...
the candle in my heart is glowing, firm, strong,
and today, this week,
help me to offer that light and warmth
to places that are cold...and on short fuses...
amen.

just today...

beloved and I are have rented a rustic cabin in the Western North Carolina mountains for a week. we have been here since last Monday afternoon. we have slept a lot, read, hiked, jogged, and ventured into hippy-town to do a little grocery shopping and sampling of local micro-brews. ;-)
in the past, when we have done this, we probably would venture into hippy-town almost everyday. but this time...not so much. which is mildly ironic, since the cabins we have had in the past have been less rustic than the current one....
anyway.
we have hiked my favorite all time hike,
we jogged on a river trail that brings back so many memories--but that is a separate entry...
I cooked thanksgiving dinner--abeit with a little help from expensive grocery boutique store...
and we have watched both nights of the finals of Dancing With the Stars, as well as football, Saturday Night Fever (yes, with John T.) and another movie with no point...
oh,
and we visited Highwater Clays
showroom and store, and after I almost had a heart attack when I walked in-the tools! the wheels! the underglazes and frits and clays!! the slabrollers! the gorgeous books and breathtaking pottery all around!!--I am pretty sure I left drool on everything I touched and looked at. What bliss.

so...today it is grey and shrouded in frost and cool temperatures. it is quiet, with the smoky aroma of fresh coffee on the pot, the gas logs warming the cabin...beloved is sleeping...
and I am breathing deep..
the wonder of it all,
the beauty of fulness,
the love of this perfect moment..
oh yes,
how grateful I am.
Holy One..
thank you,
for being so present in this moment (ah, I hear you singing thru that bird outside in the tree...)
a call, I imagine,
reminding me that You Are as present in every moment as this moment.
Grant me the grace to know You more.
Amen.

on abundance...a pastoral prayer, with prayers of the people

O Holy One,
We come before you this morning,
Mindful of the abundance of our lives,
And mindful of the scarcity and fear in our world.

We bring to you this morning the concerns of our hearts…
For those people and places we can’t get out of minds because we are aware of their pain, their transitions, their struggles, and the hopelessness they face.


We also come to you this morning grateful…
Grateful for this moment
Grateful for the abundance of this congregation that is called to be your light and your hope to one another and to the world.
Remind us, o God, of all that we have to share, to give…to those who need your grace and love in the lives.
Remind us, not to hoard, but to give recklessly and with joy
Out of the thousand upon thousands of blessings you bestow upon us.

Holy one, we live in the abundant love of Your heart--
In the friendships you give us, the means by which we live,
The health we have--.
And even in the struggles we face,
The knowledge in our hearts and minds that we face nothing alone, but always with You, above us, below us, around us and in us.
Thanks be to You, o God.
Thanks be to you, o Christ,
Amen.

Funny Friday Five

Over at RGBP, Songbird is cooking Thanksgiving Dinner. I am laughing at her questions, because although I like to cook, her questions are far too technical for MY kitchen! ;-)
1) Do you have a food processor? Can you recommend it? Which is to say, do you actually use it? I have a coffee grinder--is that close?

2) And if so, do you use the fancy things on it? (Mine came with a mini-blender (used a lot and long ago broken) and these scary disks you used to julienne things (used once).)
see above

3) Do you use a standing mixer? Or one of the hand-held varieties?
hmmm. I think we might have a hand mixer,if it made it in the move two years ago. I will have to look. I guess you could say I use a spoon.

4) How about a blender? Do you have one? Use it much?
Yes! yes! yes! I have a blender. It is red. I used to use it alot when I had to grind up dog food crunch with water for our sick lab Annie in her last days. I also use it when I make butternut squash soup, a couple of times a year.

5) Finally, what old-fashioned, non-electric kitchen tool do you enjoy using the most?
I like my garlic press. Plus, it is the only kitchen tool that I can think of besides spoons and knives and forks.

Bonus: Is there a kitchen appliance or utensil you ONLY use at Thanksgiving or some other holiday? If so, what is it?
Well, I don't have one of these, but I really would love one to carry on the tradition of my mother making flatbread and lefse for the winter holidays. It is a lefse griddle.

"Through You, I am at Play"

It's Wednesday.
Just out of 90 minute staff meeting.
A staff of three, and we meet for 90 minutes weekly. Yes.
Anyway.
I have been thinking about this line from A Prayer Book for the 21st Century by John McQuiston II from the Wednesday Morning Canticle (Thanks to RevCrystalk for the recommendation)

"Before the oldest of my works,
From the timeless I was...
Before the beginning,
I was there...
My delight is in you day after day,
and through you I am at play.
I delight in the children of all people."

And through you, I am at play...
I wonder,
How God is playing through me today?
Is it the brief but lovely phone calls that connect me and my beloved during the long workday? I think so.
Did God play through me yesterday, when only one of my commission members show up for a meeting, so we played with our iphones for an hour, exchanging ideas for great applications? Silly, but yes.
Will God play through me this afternoon, as I administriviate? How?
Keep it light,
the Holy One beckons and reminds me...
Live in the play, the dance of life.
This is it. Enjoy dear one.

Oh Holy One,
Play through me,
fully and wonderfully today.
Help me remember how to play.
Amen.

How is God playing through you today?
p.s. my word verification is ferrhe, or furry. God plays through my furry fun friends, too!!

Supplication (Concerning the Parable of Talents)

In this blustery windy morning,
In a world where nothing seems sure anymore
We gather together,
In our worry, in our questions, in our shaky hope.
Lasting, faithful God,
Where it seems like the options are limited,
Where life seems either/or
Where there are those—us?--who don’t care off whose back their security is gained,
Where there are those—us?—who simply hide and hoard all of who we are in fear
Because there is so much potential for harshness, cruelty, uncontrollable outcomes.
We cry out to you.
Help us, we pray
To imagine other possibilities,
To dare to risk something other than what has always been done before.
Take the energy around our fear, and transform it into power that leads, that loves, that risks, that knows You are with Us.
Use our lives, our faith communities, to be the economy of Good News,
Another way to live in this world that respects all life,
and where all life is lived to fullness in You.
Amen.

(photo from farfromfrostburg.blogspot.com/2007_08_01_arch..., used without permission, yikes!)

oiling the wheel

(photo from stock photo on google)

what a day!
I spent it as if I didn't have something important to do, oh,
like finishing a sermon. We slept til 10 am, then I did a little pottery work, we walked doggies, cleaned house (uh, just a little), did errands, went to lunch, and stopped by a friend's house to celebrate a birthday.
The last hour I have spent drooling over new pottery tools, talking to my mom, and blog surfing.

This text is hard, the parable of the talents (MTW 25:14-30). Matthew takes the original parable in Q, first seen in Luke, and fits it to his purposes of talking about the parousia. Don't sit around. Risk what you have been given. The master doesn't tell the servants what to do with the talents they have been given, but in his absence the first two servants do some pretty creative investing to double the talents they have been giving.

My heart is with the third, fearful servant. Burying money in the ancient world was a very reasonable thing to do. In fact, in a society who regarded those who created wealth as suspect (the only way to get rich was at the expense of someone else) this is what they would do.

And yet the master deals harshly with the servant who does what would be regarded as the best thing to do.

If parables are supposed to tip things upside down, shake up the balance of power, this parable doesn't seem to do so. Those in power crush those who aren't. What on earth is Matthew thinking as he tells this parable? Is he ignoring cultural norms to make a point about risking?
Could be.

The master is not God, I do not think. There are some biblical scholars who hold that view. And a talent is money--15 years worth of working!--it has nothing to do with ability, with god-given gifts--it is money. However, if Matthew is trying to create some symbolism in this story, maybe the talent is God. God in us, as one commentary writes.

God--is as valuable as money was for the ancient Jesus followers. What was important--was the God-life. And in the waiting for the Parousia, the Jesus followers just can't bury that treasure--the presence of God as they experience, but go out, and try to double that presence in the world. If we hoard God, hoard community grounded in Christ, then we will be cast into the edges of darkness..because it community can't be hoarded. It dies. It withers. It gets dry and crumbly and boring.
Indeed, what keeps community vital is the continual open door, and continual practise of invitation.
Which is risky, in a world economy that values riches, financial stability above all else rather than living in a Jesus-centered economy that throws riches to the wind, and challenges us to risk...even at the risk of losing ourselves to find ourselves.

I am not sure we know how radical that is...
on Sunday mornings of glorious music and fervent prayers and laughter over coffee hour.
If that is our God-life...then what are we risking to...double it? triple it?

Just thinking here.

wanderings....

This morning I...
- ordered some yummy books from Amazon...including The Green Bible, how cool is that?
-penned our weekly e-newsletter
-am still in my pajamas at 11:04 AM
-but got up at 7!
-But am working on administrivia
-am considering going to my alma mater seminary for inauguration of the new president.
-am considering going to the RevGalBlogPal Big Event.
-am thinking about the future.
-cooked dogfood
-should clean the kitchen, take my shower, get on in to the oficina
-can't believe I don't have a meeting scheduled for all day.
-am thinking about lunch since is is now 11:04
-excited about vacation in two weeks.
-am looking at two chipped nails that I can either paint over, or remove all paint from all nails. hmmmm. which will take less time since I really need to get in gear?
-am thinking about these clogs but know they would be a crazy purchase.
-am thinking my shoe wardrobe should contain more than clogs, but I like them.
-am listening to Venus bark b/c she wants to be let back in. I am on the third floor.
-am wondering why my thoughts are so random and not so deep...
-am grateful. I feel good today.
-am grateful. for health, for ministry, for love, for challenges...even for procrastination in moderation.

Amen!
Can she just wait? Like two more minutes? Venus! Be patient!

invocation

In the shortening of our days,
In the lengthening of these deepest nights,
We turn to the light within,
The precious light of grace, of truth, of hope.
You are the light,
Open our hearts, to tend that light…
With the oil of prayer,
The oil of music,
The oil of worship,
Oh Holy One,
Give us oil in our lamps,
Keep us burning, burning, burning
So that your Flame of love
Can stoke the heart of the world,
In the shadows of our living.
Give us oil in our lamps,
We pray,
Amen.

(photo from spectrum.com)

Flurry...

You know,
I can't believe I haven't written for a week. I keep putting off writing, as if it were a frivolity, something to do in my spare time (does that exist? for anyone?)
Indeed, life is full.
We live in an urban, sort of blue collar neighborhood...and things have been nuts. There was a dog attack on another small doggie that my beloved got in the middle of, trying to save the dog being attacked. She got pushed down...but was able to save the doggie, who only lived because of her bravery and her generousity when we took the animal hospital for emergency surgery. The people who own the attacking dog are living in substandard conditions. They feel victimized because we filed a police report. (what?)Our neighbor across the street thinks we should have settled this "peaceabley" rather than file a report. (What?) She says our neighbors feel really bad, but love their dog, which is a really nice animal (what?). Oh, and did I mention that no one from the attack dog house ever came over to see if my beloved was o.k., or called the owner of the little doggie that was torn to shreds, with broken ribs, injured kidneys, bruises every where and punctured lungs? (How neighborly is that?) Not to mention the owner of the injured doggie, well, has a big heart, but is not the greatest of social skills and so she is wreaking havoc, although we just try to encourage everyone to drop it. We aren't asking a dime from anyone. We do feel obligated to report the vicious attack--because there could be quite possibly a next time. We would prefer (and we are animal lovers extroadinaire) that the dog be put down, because my beloved doesn't feel safe living two doors down from a vicious animal that was clearly out to kill, for no reason. But we aren't demanding that, and the animal officer won't do that. He will just write it up. We are fine with that.
We would feel more like neighbors if one of the three adults in the house with the vicious dog would at least leave a note, make a phone call, stop by, and say something like "we are so sorry this happened, are you o.k.?" or "how are you doing?" or some sort of acknowledgement. Sounds decent, doesn't it?
Our neighbor across the street feels like we are over-reacting, basically.
WHAT???
And these, dear readers, all three of you, are the Days Of My Life.

Friday Five...for RGBP

So over at RGBP, Willsmama (who is one hilarious woman)writes:
As I zip around the webring it is quite clear that we are getting BUSY. "Tis the season" when clergy and laypeople alike walk the highwire from Fall programming to Christmas carrying their balancing pole with family/rest on the one side and turkey shelters/advent wreaths on the other.

And so I offer this Friday Five with 5 quick hit questions... and a bonus:
1) Your work day is done and the brain is fried, what do you do?
Many of my work days don't end until 9:30 or 10:00 pm. If that's the case, then I honestly will come home, put my sweats on, chat with my beloved, and relax with a glass of wine. If I get home at a normal hour, walking the dogs is really nice.

2) Your work week is done and the brain is fried (for some Friday, others Sunday afternoon), what do you do?
Face plant nap, the kind that when you wake up, you discover drool on your pillow.

3) Like most of us, I often keep myself busy even while programs are on the tv. I stop to watch The Office and 30 Rock on Thursday nights. Do you have 'stop everything' tv programming or books or events or projects that are totally 'for you' moments?
That's a good question. Reading a good novel. I don't want to read when there is other stuff going on. My favorite is reading in bed, before I go to sleep. I just love that.

4) When was the last time you laughed, really laughed? What was so funny?
About five minutes ago when someone sent me a photoshopped photo of political candidates dancing on Dancing with the Stars. It was so out of context, it was really funny, to me, at least. I laugh a lot, though. I get cracked up many times a day.

5) What is a fairly common item that some people are willing to go cheap on, but you are not.
kleenex, eyeliner, lipstick, and shoes. (so shallow, I know)

Bonus: It's become trite but is also true that we often benefit the most when we give. Go ahead, toot your own horn. When was the last time you gave until it felt good?
Before we moved here, we cared for a feral cat colony doing trap, neuter, and release (tnr). This was costly, both financially, time-wise, and heartwise. It felt like we were making a difference, until the property owner (a non-profit Christian institution) decided that all of the cats needed to be gone. We tried to save them, but didn't win. So, it was sad, but good. I guess. Since we have been here, we have helped our neighbor who runs a cat rescue alot, by taking in fosters, trying to work with ferals to tame them, etc. etc. Not always convenient, but the person is the real giver is our neighbor.


This is just so funny, I had to post it:
Let us know in the comments if you played and I'll come around and visit. The first 50 are entered into a drawing for a new car (sorry, that's a lie. We are immersed in political attack ads here in the US that lie and so I thought I would join in). Seriously, go ahead and let us know if you play. I will visit. And buy you a new house (lie). The last person to do the Friday Five is a socialist and hangs out with computer viruses (STOP!).


As always, comments and programming on this station do not necessarily represent the view and values of the revgalblogpals website or its associates. If you are an American citizen please vote by Tuesday or your computer will self destruct in 5 seconds...

cold out now....

I know.
It's not snowing.
The sun is even shining.
The wind is breezy and bold.

But it is starting to feel like November. When everything is really dead and grey and cold, but no snow.

I don't like the inbetween time of the transition. When it isn't fall really, any more, and it is not quite winter.

Makes me restless.
and my toes are cold.

my mon-Day

so today after I took my beloved to the airport for yet another business trip...I went to the studio and made
1. test tiles
2. 3 little bowls, also to be tests.
3. put one vase and one oval plate on the bisque cart.
4. slathered slip on another larger oval plate that I hope to carve (if it doesn't dry out.)

Then...I went to Target and bought four long sleeve t-s to wear under sweaters and a diet dr. pepper. ($40)

and to Ulta to get gel eyeliner and a brush ($30 bucks!)

then home, where I cleaned the kitchen--washed dishes, comet-ed the countertops, scrubbed the stove (all sparkly now) and swept and mopped the floor and the front entry way (why don't we pay someone to do this??...oh, yeah, can't really afford that right now)

then ate lunch and finished Augusten Burrough's book, "Dry"

watched two episodes of Entourage on demand as I worked out on treadmill and elliptical.

took shower.

talked to beloved several times inbetween all this stuff.

fed dogs, fed feral cat living in basement. Her name is Spooky. I have never really seen her. long story. for another time.

wrote a piece for newsletter. checked email.

went out to grocery store.

walked big doggies around the block--second time today.

cleaned up pee-pee in hallway from one passive agressive 5 pound poodle that did not get to go on second walk.

and am currently procrastinating editing a paper for a dear friend of mine.

all in all, a lovely day off.

am grateful.
for all I got to be today.
amen.

pain and suffering...

am acutely aware this evening
of loved ones tonight
that are in pain,
that are in soul-suffering,
that are so very dear and brave and courageous and good.
please send Your sweet angels
to hold them,
to offer courage,
to affirm their wisdom...
and bathe them in your comfort and your grace.
amen.

spiritual practise time...

So, I was speaking with someone the other day, who was listening well, and offering insight.
I know that I am at a place where I really need to take the time to discern, listen, and focus...and we were talking about that. I said, "wow, I really feel like I need to really be intentional about listening and praying about this...but I just get busy and forget about it until I sit and talk about it with someone like you...I used to be really good at this, journaling my heart out, taking that quiet time every day..."
Wise one said, "isn't that a little ironic and sad--that you, as a spiritual leader don't have time to be spiritual and listen to yourself?"

uh...oh....kay.

Guess who has some priorities mixed around???

So, I am wondering, do you have a daily spiritual practice of intention with God, and with year heart? Is it yoga/meditation? Journaling? walking slow? sitting in a chair and praying? Do tell. I am pretty certain my quiet time in the car while I drive to my office is not exactly cutting it for me right now--especially if I am trying to listen to NPR at the same time!

crazy dreams...

maybe it was the extra garlic in the whole wheat pasta, or the licorice gumdrops I snarfed down yesterday afternoon at our association meeting, or possibly the dissappointment that my Sox lost the AL pennant and another run in the World Series, but I had some zany crazy wacky dreams last night....
1)a nightmare. I dreamt I saw these women kidnapped and killed--shot--actually by these evil men in black. although everyone knew it happened, no one appreciated the trauma and fear I felt.

2) I was at my dad's farmhouse (doesn't exist anymore, the home of my early childhood). I was there with pottery colleagues, and it the bedrooms were divided up into studios. Outside, my dad had this sickly baby camel whose fur was a beautiful indigo blue. she was on a very short chain, and couldn't move or lay down.
my dad came into the house, and a very adult me said, we have got to call a vet immediately. My dad started to get defensive and said don't ask me to apologize...and I said I am not asking you anything, except to do the right thing. this animal is suffering, and you know it. I will pay for the vet, whatever. she shouldn't be in pain or suffering if she is that sick. He sheepishly relented, and the vet came. We put the baby camel in a large crate...she walked around, she was much better just off the chain and in the house. She settled into the crate, and a kitten came and curled up with her. The vet said that yes, the camel is sick, but she will get well. He also said that other people had baby camels from this litter, and they spoiled them, and two families got kicked out of their houses by their now bossy entitled camels. He suggested we have firm boundaries and rules for the baby camel so she didn't take over the house. I said, "don't worry"

3)I am a little boy, but me. About 9-10. Apparently I have done something against the law, or being scapegoated. The police are looking for me, and they will do anything to find me--including torturing my family. So, I run away and become a muslim actor in bollywood movies, where I dance in them. We set up a secret code so that I can tell my family this is me, and that I am o.k. My family is so happy, and they send secret code messages back to me, to tell me to stay. I am still being hunted down, and even though the charges are false, they will still throw me into prison for life.

4) I am young and beautiful. I am going to a big, fancy party, with several beautiful gorgeous friends. We have a benefactor who gets us these delicious evening gowns. Mine is a burnt orange paisley thing with leggings and a flowy top. I am stunning in it.

All right. That is all I remember. Carl Jung, have at my unconscious! I know these dreams are all parts of me!
Oh my. It is hard being me sometimes!

Thank goodness it is Monday, my day off, and I have a day completely free of outside commitments. I can do what I want to get done at a very leisurely pace. What a gift!

Time on Tuesday.

I find myself today in a lull. Sure, I have things to do. Probably some church growth things to read, visioning to envision, finish those bookmarks for the fall fair, count Sunday School offering, organize a living gift fair for Heifer project for December, make some pastoral calls (in person and via phone and email. it is 2008, you know.)
But all of it is not pressing up against me,
my attention isn't being demanded in this minute,
I have finished up my list for the day, had most of my meetings.
I check my calendar. Nope. nothing scheduled this afternoon. My early evening meeting is cancelled, and I just have Coordinating Council tonight.

I find that I have time.
How strange is this?
No one ever has time.

I sort of feel guilty about having a stash of time on my hands.
I wish I could give it away. My friend Jess could use some of this time.
If there was a way to "bank" time and give it away to people who need it, wouldn't that be great? I would still take the time I needed to be balanced and fulfilled and not overstretched....

but today I am bemused by this few free unscheduled hours.

I have time.
It is GORGEOUS outside.
This weather will soon sink into snow and dark and cold and winter.

I think I will put my time to good use...
and revel in the sunshine
and go for a long walk along the river...
and pray.

I am grateful, for this time.

gratitude...

I am grateful today...
for all your kind notes and wishes and prayers for Venus...
I am grateful today...
for the sweetness of understanding and compassion from you as I grieve and miss Bussy....
I am grateful today...
that Venus tumor is BENIGN (sp?)
I am grateful today...
for cool air, turning leaves, my tired but quiet soul...
I am grateful today...
for the 12 years that Bussy had here...living in Kentucky, North Carolina, and Boston..for his dear nature, for the way he cudddled up to Venus, for his tingly meow, for his wandering soul, the way he slept (the KING of snoozing and relaxing)and for his beauty...
I am grateful today...
for breath and breathing...
I am grateful today...
for Miriam who wants me to come over and knit with her....
I am grateful today...
for my home, my beloved, the animal friends who live with us...
I am grateful...
for the kindess of others,
and I am grateful that you, God, give me the courage to embrace that kindness.
I am indeed grateful.
Amen.