Meming for fun

Soda Chicky was reading the Luther Punk's blog of this meme and said, "Mom, you HAVE to do that!" So here you go, Chicky! Now go do your homework!

4 crushes:

1. Chris - during much of the latter part of grade school. He was smart and had a cute smile. By the time he might have noticed me, he moved to a different school.


2. Bruce - during the first half of college. He would call me up to tell me about all the sadness he was having with his long distance girlfriend. I can remember being called after 11:00 midweek, pulling the curlers out of my hair, slapping on makeup, putting on clothes and being ready in under ten minutes so that I could have coffee at Denny's with this guy.


3. Some tall guy at sem - can't remember his name. Hmmm.... After a disappointing response to a theological question I tossed his way, he became much less attractive.


4. The husband - after his mother kept throwing us together, he finally caught on.
   

4 Pieces of Clothing I wish I still owned (and/or that still fit):

1. Dreamy midnight blue strapless that my sister lent me for the "Senior Prom" at seminary. Also known as "the princess dress". I wish this one still fit. I'm thinking my sister wishes the same thing.


2. Norwegian cardigan that got lost in transit after internship. Too many boxes. Bad UPS Man. Very bad UPS Man.


3. Khaki colored two piece dress that was ruined by a dry cleaner in Tiny Town, Missouri. When I pointed out that they had removed all the color from the dress along with the dirt, they asked me if I still wanted the dress. Very strange!


4. My size 7 1/2 shoes. Mommyhood makes your feet a half size bigger, but I still have some of the shoes. Maybe Soda Chicky can wear them?
   

4 names I’ve been called at one time or another:

1. Hildegarde - by my father


2. HRod - by friends in my high school art department


3. George - by my mother


4. Moo-ma - by the Chick
   

4 Professions I secretly Want to Try:

1. Florist


2. World famous novelist


3. Professor


4. Sous chef

4 Musicians I’d most want to go on a date with:

1. Billy Joel - back when we were both younger and cuter. Say 1978.


2. James Taylor - most any day of the week.


3. Mozart - when we were both single and alive and I'd need a Babel Fish in my ear because I don't speak German.


4. Paul Stookey - not for romance but conversation.
   

4 Foods I’d rather Throw than Eat

1. Brussel sprouts - they are really nasty. I don't care what my mother-in-law says, they are vile.


2. Liver


3. Deviled eggs. Cannot stand the smell!


4. Mashed yucca. Had it at a restaurant. Very strange stuff.


5. A runner up: gluten free communion wafers. They are not tasty.

4 Things I Like to Sniff

1. Snow


2. The top of Pseudo Grandbaby's head. (With thanks to Luther Punk.) Baby heads are the sweetest things.


3. Fresh baked bread


4. Brut after shave. It's a Daddy smell from my childhood.
   

Where did you get that outfit!

Luther Punk posted some really interesting pictures of famous folks in their liturgical garb and wondered if maybe wardrobe should be a future topic of ecclesiastical dialog. His entries for craziest outfit of the day were:

But I would like to counter with these two.

What ever happened to basic black? Or white? Or off white? But pink?!? Not this preacher! Mmm-hmm-mmm.

If we do these things in the green wood...

There's a Unitarian Church on my pathway home from work. Almost every Wednesday there are members on either side of the street protesting the war in Iraq. There signs say things like "Honk if you want to stop the war!" I always honk.

I wonder how long they will have to stand on the curbside before all of the troops come home. Not just the "surge" troops, but everyone.

General Petraeus seems to think that 30,000 will come home in the next year. That's good. But that still leaves 130,000 men and women fighting this war.

I thought of an old Peter, Paul and Mary song while I was driving today. If I could find the audio file, I'd post it. But even without the haunting tune, the words are very powerful.


I've seen a thousand people kneel in silence
And I've seen them face the rifles with their songs
I always thought that we could end the killing
But now I live in fear that I was wrong

The killer and the cynic waltz together
Their eyes are turned into their skulls
They do not feel the bullets in the bodies
They do not hear the dolphins or the gulls

If we do these things in the greenwood,
what will happen in the dry?

If we don't stop there'll come a time when women
With barren wombs will bitterly rejoice
With breasts that dry and never fill with promise
Gladly they'll not suckle one more life

Is this then the whimper and the ending?
The impotence of people raised on fear,
A fear that blinds the sense of common oneness
Common love and life or death are here

If we do these things in the greenwood,
what will happen in the dry?

Will no one light the candle in the darkness
Will no one be my guide, not let me fall
I've lost the sense that tells me where the path is
I feel the chill of winter in my soul

There's no way I can say the words more plainly
There's no one left to point at anymore
It's you and me and we must make the choice now
And not destroy the life we're living for

If we do these things in the greenwood,
what will happen in the dry?

If we do these things in the greenwood,
what will happen in the dry?

More About Madeleine L'Engle

In looking for more reflections on Madeleine L'Engle's life and work, I found a web interview that Newsweek magazine did. It's from the three years ago. I include not the whole, but parts. For the whole interview, go to http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4926262/

What are you working on at the moment? A book about aging: enjoy it, you might as well. And it’s not all bad. I can say what I want, and I don’t get punished for it.

Such as? Such as I sometimes think God is a s--t—and he wouldn’t be worth it otherwise. He’s much more interesting when he’s a s--t.

So to you, faith is not a comfort? Good heavens, no. It’s a challenge: I dare you to believe in God. I dare you to think [our existence] wasn’t an accident. Many people see faith as anti-intellectual.Then they’re not very bright. It takes a lot of intellect to have faith, which is why so many people only have religiosity.

.........

What are you against? Narrow-mindedness. I’m against people taking the Bible absolutely literally, rather than letting some of it be real fantasy, like Jonah. You know, the whole story of David is a novel … Faith is best expressed in story.

If the Bible is not literally true, does that mean we don’t need to take it seriously? Oh no, you do, because it’s truth, not fact, and you have to take truth seriously even when it expands beyond the facts.

So when you call the Bible a book of stories, you’re not diminishing it? Anything but. Right from the beginning, from the story of Eve. Eve has gone on to be considered far worse than she is in the direct Bible story—and David far better. I love the story of Jonah; I think it’s very funny. And I like the story of Esther, as long as you stop about a quarter of the way through, before she turns into a real bloody girl.

I always felt sorry for Vashti, though—the first Mrs. Ahasuerus. All she did was refuse to dance. Yes, she gets forgotten. But that was a very big thing she did, refuse to dance. Enormous.

Thank You Madeleine and God Bless You!

One of my very favorite authors died today, Madeleine L'Engle. In its obituary posted today, The New York Times wrote: "Her works — poetry, plays, autobiography and books on prayer — were deeply, quixotically personal. But it was in her vivid children’s characters that readers most clearly glimpsed her passionate search for the questions that mattered most."

I knew this day would come eventually. She was 88 years old. But I kept hoping she would be around to write just one more, maybe two more books.

I first discovered her books when I was a young teenager. My mother had purchased a subscription for hard covered "classics" for me and my two sisters. A Wrinkle in Time was among these treasured books that I read and reread.

When I reached young adulthood I still found in Madeleine's adolescent novels ideas that stirred my heart and stories that helped me dream. As I grew older I began reading her adult novels, her journals and nonfiction articles. Never was I disappointed by her writing. There was always something for me to glean.

One of my favorite books has always been A Ring of Endless Light. In The Washington Post in 1980, Carol Van Strum wrote: “The cosmic battle between light and darkness, good and evil, love and indifference, personified in the mythic fantasies of the ‘Wrinkle in Time’ series, here is waged compellingly in its rightful place: within ourselves."

In Seminary, I convinced the Dean of the Chapel to supervise an independent study of L'Engle's works. As I reread books and journals, as I looked for more information about this woman, I came to understand more and more how her writing had impacted my faith. She is always so clear in asking the important questions, in admitting her own lack of answers, and in sharing the insights that she has found.

I regret that there will be no more new books from Madeleine L'Engle, but I thank God for her faithful witness, her creative inspiration and the joy that her gifts have given me.

“Why does anybody tell a story?” Ms. L’Engle once asked, even though she knew the answer.

“It does indeed have something to do with faith,” she said, “faith that the universe has meaning, that our little human lives are not irrelevant, that what we choose or say or do matters, matters cosmically.”

On Overcoming...

The Friday Five from the Rev Gals is a bit more serious this week. From the author of the questions, I am preparing this Friday 5 just before I take Chris into hospital for a cardioversion, right now we are all a little apprehensive. But this whole thing has got me thinking, so many of us are overcomers in one way or another, so many have amazing stories to tell of God's faithfulness in adversity. And so I bring you this Friday Five.

Have you experienced God's faithfulness at a difficult time? Tell as much or as little as you like... Yes, but it was not a thunderbolt kind of thing. A dear friend died unexpectedly during my second year at seminary. Gunhild was a mentor, a care giver, an inspiration and a friend to me and she was also an unabashed athiest. Raised in the early part of the last century, her father had made sure she was baptized but as a child he taught her to think that church was probably a lot of bunk. There were a lot of things that happened in her life that made it hard for Gunhild to imagine that there really is/was a God who loved her and the rest of the world. One chief example being the Holocaust. Gunhild's husband escaped from Austria at the beginning of World War II. With the exception of an uncle and brother, the rest of his family died in Auschwitz. When she died, I really struggled with trying to understand what had happened to my bright, caring compassionate friend. A foolish classmate said that if she had rejected her baptism, God would reject her. For months I struggled to believe in a God who would do such a thing. I thought I had lost my faith. But through what seems to me like a very strange set of circumstances, I found myself at a conference on death and dying. The speaker that morning talked about the fact that many faithful people find it almost impossible to express anger at God when a loved one dies. And since they can't get angry with God, they begin to think that maybe there is no God. A light went off for me at that point. It wasn't that I didn't believe, I was just really pissed. God was faithful to me. God was faithful to Gunhild. And I am ever so grateful.

Have you experienced a dark night of the soul, if so what brought you through? In part the wonders of therapy and medicine. In truth, remaining within the community of the faithful even when I wanted to go hide under my bed or run away from home.

Share a Bible verse, song, poem that has brought you comfort? When I couldn't pray any other prayers, I could always pray, "Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take. God bless....."

Is "why suffering" a valid question? As we try to understand and grow within our relationship to God and other people I don't think there can be any invalid questions. We may not however, like the valid answers. I don't believe suffering is a punishment. It's simply part of the human condition. And God will not leave us alone in times of trouble.

And on a lighter note- you have reached the end of a dark and difficult time- how are you going to celebrate? The things that have been difficult have not usually had a finite ending where I could stop to celebrate. But I laugh more now than I did eight years ago. The "happy pills" are really helpful. ;-)

Blue air all around...

We went to a back yard barbeque today. And there were folks smoking. A pipe, two cigars and one guy with a little tupperware box rolling his own cigarettes. As a closet smoker, (I know it's really, really bad for me,) I was a little fascinated by the variety of smoke wafting through the air. The cross currents through the yard were really interesting. The hostess was a little peaved with her hubby- he brought out the cigars. And for some reason it made me think of a scene from "Agnes of God."

It is out in the back of the convent near the belltower. Mother Miriam and Martha are sitting there talking. Martha is smoking.

MARTHA Does my smoking bother you?

MOTHER MIRIAM No, it reminds me.

MARTHA Would you like one? Huh?

MOTHER MIRIAM I'd love one. Martha hands her a cigarette and lights it for her. Mother Miriam coughs a lot. Martha pats her on the back.

MOTHER MIRIAM I'm out of prac... (cough) ... practice. (cough)

MARTHA All right?

MOTHER MIRIAM Fine thanks...

MARTHA Do you suppose the saints would have smoked if tobacco had been popular back then?

MOTHER MIRIAM Undoubtedly. Not the ascetics of course but, well Saint Thomas More...

MARTHA (chuckles) Long, thin and filtered.

MOTHER MIRIAM Saint Ignatius would smoke cigars and stub them out on the soles of his bare feet. (they roar with laughter) And of course

MARTHA Hand rolled.

MOTHER MIRIAM Even Christ would partake socially.

MARTHA Saint Peter?

MOTHER MIRIAM Pipe!

MARTHA Right...

MOTHER MIRIAM Mary Magdelen?

MARTHA (imitating) Oh, you've come a long way baby.

MOTHER MIRIAM And Saint John would chew tobacco.

Leaning to the Middle

It is almost Labor Day and I am thinking of my father-in-law. Labor Day was always a time when he fired up the grill making ribs or pork steaks. Christmas brought his famous fudge, chocolate chip cookies by the dozen and the best Chex mix on the planet. (He used the expensive mixed nuts and real butter!) We miss Dad but most often I miss him on these barbecue holidays. Memorial Day, the Fourth of July and Labor Day. So in his memory, some words from a Springtime sermon.


Two years ago, my father-in-law died of cancer. He had stubbornly stayed away from the doctor and by the time he started to feel really sick, it was too late to do anything.

He spent the last month of his life in the hospital. And my sister-in-law worried about him being by himself. And it was hard to imagine Dad in a lonely hospital room.

But she needn’t have worried. His pastor came to visit every day. His buddies from the church bowling team came by. Old friends and family sent cards and letters. Customers from his handy man business, called my mother-in-law to check on her and Dad.

There were times when he was alone in his room, but he wasn’t lost or forlorn. Dad knew that his family, his friends and his church loved him dearly. He had their prayers and their support.

A friend of mine used to say that when times are tough, we need to lean to the middle. That way we prop each other up even when we are our most weary selves. We lean to the middle and nobody falls.

The Friday Five... Seasons Change

From the RevGalBlogPals...

It's Labor Day weekend here in the United States, also known as Summer's Last Hurrah. So let's say goodbye to summer and hello to the autumn.

The start of school is always the sign for me that Fall is coming. As a child the thing that was best about all of this end to summer was it meant that my birthday was coming. One year though, the first day of school, WAS my birthday. Not my favorite way to celebrate. The biggest problem my much younger self had was that everybody was so caught up in the excitement of it being the first day of school, nobody really noticed it was MY special day. I have since gotten over all of that, I think.... And now for the list!

1. Share a highlight from this summer. This summer I combined a business trip with a visit to Baby Sister and best friend, Adventure Girl. One night we had an early dinner with lots of red meat and chocolate followed by a movie. It was lots of fun being three women out and about. The conversation at dinner was great. The food was down right hedonistic. The movie met everyone's cinematic needs. A good time was had by all. Of course we felt pretty pitiful when we realized we were home before 10pm!


2. Are you glad to see this summer end? Why or why not? I think I am glad that summer is over. Mostly because I can stop feeling bad about all the things I was going to do that I didn't get to. Now I have an excuse, summer is over! If I get them done now, it's like a bonus prize.


3. Name one or two things you're looking forward to this fall. Getting Soda Chick settled into her new high school routine. I'm really excited for her. I am also looking forward to cooler weather, especially when supply preaching at churches without air conditioning. I am not a woman who "glows" when it's hot. I get wet!
   
4. Do you have any special preparations or activities to mark the transition from one season to another? Getting Soda Chicky new clothes for the new school year. Today's shopping day and I hope we get through it without having too many Mother-Daughter debates. Also, the Husband feels that some kind of grilled pork is required for Labor Day. Preferably ribs or pork steaks. So after the girly shopping it's off to the grocery store.


5. I'll know that fall is really here when the trees on Lincoln Drive are red and gold. When my commute changes color, I'll know that autumn has come.

Things I hope my daughter knows...

My friend the Lutheran Zephyr tagged me for Five Things My Children Should Know. As the Soda Chick is now 14, I hope she has learned many of these things already. And I think she has. But just in case she's reading this, here goes!

1. Nothing can separate us from the love of God! Not anything. No way! No how! Nothing you ever do, nothing you ever leave undone. No power, no vacuum. God will find you, love you and go with you- no matter what.
2. That goes for me too! There's nothing that will ever cause me to stop loving you. You cannot lose my love.
3. Church is a good place to be. It will help you keep focused on what's important. It will always be a place where you can learn new tools for survival. There will always be people at church who care about you. Don't stop going there just because you're having doubts. It's easier to be faithful when you're surrounded by people who are also trying to better understand God, themselves and the world.
4. Follow your joy. Don't follow dreams that are lacking in joy. Find a job/career that helps you be at your best. Marry someone that loves you even when you are being unloveable. Make choices that bring joy to your life. Not happiness, but true joy.
5. Smart and funny is better than pretty and popular any day of the week. Now, let's be clear. I am not saying that you aren't pretty. You are. But what is really important is what's on the inside. And not just your insides, but the insides of the people you hang with. It will be true of the guys you date, too. Plus, the folks who will bring out the best in you, will be the ones who make you feel smart and funny. Does that make sense?

So that's my motherly advice for the day. I would really love to hear what Pink Shoes, Songbird, Reverend Mommy, Soda Chicky and Mountain Mama have to say. Tag! You're It!

Gradual School

Gradual school... from a small voice in The World According to Garp.

I used to think about going to Gradual School. But then I would think, "No. I don't need a DMin. No, I don't think I have the umph to do a PhD." But lately, I've been thinking differently. I am dwelling in the middle of the seminary community and I keep wanting to get in on the studying. I have a friend who is determined that I get another degree and pursue teaching. But what would I want to teach? What do I have to say?

Well, today I took a first baby step. More of an inquiry than anything else. We really can't afford for me to get to invested (literally) in Gradual School since Soda Chicky wants to go to college in four years. Her BA trumps my PhD. But we'll see....

From the middle of yesterday's sermon

Every year, new seminarians begin their study of Lutheran theology. They are very keen to learn how to do things the right way. They want to be good theologians and excellent pastors. They are being evaluated and graded and they are intent on making the right choices.

Some times they worry about how to fold their hands during worship. Some days the issue is the translation of a particular verb. But it is absolutely certain that at some point in the first semester, some one will raise the question of baptism and still born children.

Professor, what do you do if a baby has died and the parents want you to baptize their child?

It’s a difficult situation to imagine. And an all too painful reality for some. The thing is, our Lutheran theology, our doctrine, our rules, say that baptism is meant for the living and that it is not necessary to baptize an infant who has died. Luther very compassionately argues that the tears of the parents are all the blessing that their child needs and that there is no doubt that God welcomes these little ones into his kingdom.

But when faced with grief stricken parents, who insist there can be no other way, do you break the rule?

I have come to believe that whatever you do in a situation like that, make sure, absolutely sure, that you are a sign of God’s love to those people. Try your best to be a means of mending and not breaking. Unleashing and not binding. And trust that God will bless all those involved with his love and mercy.

Soda Chicky's Blog

I told Soda Chicky that I had gone back to my blog which inspired her to start one of her own. I was fascinated to find that she entitled it "Writings From A Pastor's Daughter." Spelling is not one of the Chick's gifts, but her thoughts in her first post were interesting. Maybe it's just because I'm her mom, but I think maybe not. I look forward to reading more from her.

The Chick goes off to high school this fall. I keep wondering how I got so old! She had the choice of two schools. She picked the smaller one which I think will be a great benefit for her. The tough part is that her buddies picked the other school. Having had to start at a new school only two years ago, this adventure is a bit daunting for her right now. But she's a smart cookie and I hope that she will find new friends who will be as much fun as the one's she found last year. Her friend the Smart Blonde is from Poland and will be going back there in just a few short days. Smart Blonde's parents have been in the States with a three year academic program. It's hard for the girls to say goodbye but I am so glad that they found each other. It's been a truly enriching friendship.

Chicky's friend the Chatterbox is going to the other high school. But given the number of emails, ims and phone calls that currently happen, I don't think there's much danger of them losing touch with each other. Two of the other good friends Flying Monkey and Too Clever are still in junior high. Personally I wish Too Clever was about thirty years older so we could hang together. She is an extremely witty thirteen year old. Some day if I hear she won an Academy Award for screenplay or wrote the number one best seller- I won't be surprised.

Flying Monkey will be celebrating her Bat Mitzvah this fall. It will be a great chance for the whole gang to celebrate. They have two months till the event but they've already started planning their ensembles!

Well, I suppose I should get to writing my sermon. Soda Chicky and I have agreed that when you supply they only ask you back if you don't suck. I've been at this parish about seven times in the last two years, so I'd hate to preach a really sucky sermon at this point!

Did you hear obesity is caused by a virus?

When my friend Music Girl told me this, I waited for the punch line. But there is no punch line. And I really wonder who I caught the virus from? It's been much harder to get rid of than this cold I have!

http://archives.cnn.com/2000/HEALTH/07/28/fat.virus.ap/index.html

Rev Gal Pal Friday Five - Cultural Questions

I haven't played the Friday Five in months, but here are today's answers to the question: what unusual engagements with popular culture have helped/challenged you on your spiritual journey?

Book: This is a tough one. I LOVE books. And some of the most significant ones are in that catagory of sort of spiritual. One that really made me think and laugh was Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore. I read it while on retreat at Holden Village. It's irreverent and strange and really funny. But it did make me think about issues of culture, faith and ecumenism.

Piece of Music: The Seeger Sessions by Bruce Springsteen. His covers of some of the old spiritual songs have really warmed my heart over the last several months.

Artwork: I have a copy of a painting in my living room that I bought in Geneva over twenty years ago. It is of a rabbi and a Hebrew student. It was painted by Mane-Katz and it is called The Rabbi. The copy of it here is a little darker than the true piece, but you get the idea. The framed print has hung in every home I've lived in since I finished seminary. I just love it.

Film: Movies are a wonderful thing. I think there are several that have informed my faith. Babette's Feast, To Kill a Mockingbird and The Last Temptation of Christ are three oldies. Recently I watched I am David on the Independent Film Channel. IMDB.com has this to say about it.

I Am David is adapted from Anne Holm's internationally acclaimed novel North to Freedom. It is the story of a 12-year-old boy, David, who escapes a Communist concentration camp with little more than a compass, a sealed letter, a loaf of bread, and instructions to carry the letter to Copenhagen, Denmark. David is thrust into the free world for the first time in his young life as he travels across Europe. It is a spiritual voyage of discovery, where David slowly loses his instinctual mistrust of humanity and begins to smile, share, trust and ultimately, love. I Am David addresses the cruelties, politics, and suffering of warfare while celebrating the resilience of youth and the unbreakable spirit of a child.

It's a hauntingly beautiful film that came out in 2003. Joan Plowright and James Caviezel are two of the players. If you see it in the listings, watch it!

I Have a Purple Brain?

Your Brain is Purple

Of all the brain types, yours is the most idealistic. You tend to think wild, amazing thoughts. Your dreams and fantasies are intense.Your thoughts are creative, inventive, and without boundaries. You tend to spend a lot of time thinking of fictional people and places - or a very different life for yourself.

According to this particular blog quiz, www.blogthings.com/whatcolorisyourbrainquiz, I have a purple brain. Now if the truth be known, the same set of quiz questions have probably been used to determine what Simpsons character I am, what flavor ice cream I would be and my similarity to certain aquatic creatures. In other words, this quiz has nothing to do with the color of my brain. I knew it going in. And yet I took the quiz anyhow.

Why? Why do we take these little quizzes? Do we learn anything new? Does it make us feel good about ourselves? Apparently my purple brain is an indication that either I am a genius or my cold medication is really not doing its job!

The whole thing about spending a lot of time thinking about make believe people and places sounds kind of creepy. But again, it could be the bronchitis. Maybe my brain really isn't purple. Maybe I just need a nap and some antibiotics.

The Sabbath

I have a preaching gig on Sunday and I'm a little stuck. Just a little. And I think I'll get over it soon enough. But in the meantime, I keep thinking about our Orthodox neighbors walking in the street. More than once, the Husband has been out working on a Saturday when he has to carefully drive around someone walking to or from Sabbath worship at a local temple. It happens too often to be a coincidence. Being basically a Midwestern girl, this is a new thing for me. I feel a bit stupid, but I am also wildly curious. I have tried googling the whole thing with no luck. Could it have something to do with the Eruv chatzerot? (The art to the left is Eruv for the area where we live.)

Wikipedia, the source of all partial investigations says...

The eruv chatzerot, or "mixed [ownership of] courtyards/domains", operates so that all the residents treat the entire area as their common "home". In other words, it is a religious-legal mechanism that transforms an enclosed shared living area (e.g. a courtyard) into a common one. In order to be enclosed, the area must be surrounded by a wall, fence, or tzurot ha-petah, "doorframes".

In many cases — for example, within a hospital, nursing home, school campus, apartment complex, or a walled city, the demarcation of the shared area consists of real walls or fences.

These fences can also be made symbolically, using stakes and a rope or wire to demarcate doorframes. When an eruv is made to demarcate a contemporary Jewish neighborhood, a symbolic fence is typically constructed in this fashion, using utility poles and wires as well as any solid walls available. Thus, a modern eruv is commonly composed of a series of "doorframes," with the poles forming the doorposts (lechi, pl. lechai'in)and the wire forming the lintel (korah). A natural wall such as a river bank or steep hill can also be used as part of the eruv, as can an actual wall of a building.

I'm mostly just curious about all of this. And as I move past the stickiness of curiosity to writing a sermon, I keep thinking of how hard some folks strive to keep the Sabbath while others see it as just another day. Personally, I think my Sabbath keeping has been less than satisfactory of late. I think God would like me to do more than catch a nap and make a nice supper. Hmmm.....

Hello Pink Shoes!

It's been almost a year since I last blogged. A couple of weeks ago, while hanging out at the ELCA Churchwide Assembly, I met a blogging pal face to face. There she was... Pink Shoes! She said that she missed reading my blog. I said I missed hers and then I started to wonder what had happened to me. Where have I been when I haven't been here?

Well.... I know I helped Soda Chicky with a lot of homework. I know the Husband has been using the computer a lot more now that he has access to MLB.com. (I've been asked to finish this up soon as the Cardinal's game starts soon.) I know I developed a strange love for my imaginary Sims people. But gee whiz! None of those is a good reason not to talk to or listen to Pink Shoes! So, here I am. Don't know if I'll have anything interesting to say, but I'm going to give it a shot.

At age 46, I am the mother of a 13 year old daughter. Readers, don't panic, I am not becoming a grandmother! I'm just old enough.

My staff is all at least 20 years my junior and when the generational gap has been visible I am reminded that "You are old enough to be my mother without having been a child bride." It's true. I don't feel that old, but it's true.

Two of the staff are a married couple expecting their first baby. Today we looked at the first ultrasound picture and while not as fancy as the picture here- the baby was about the same age.

I am not ready to be a grandparent mostly because my daughter is not ready to be a mother. But it is fun to watch these two expectant parents and share in their joy at what is to come. Not from the perspective of peer, but from the perspective of one who's "been there and done that." There's a sadness in knowing you won't go there again, but a joy that comes from watching the next generation come into the world.

So, I'm old enough but not quite ready to be a grandma. So I think I will just practice on this sweet young thing and wait for the adventure that lies ahead.

Long time, no blog...

I have been negligent in my blogging. But as I drive my car up and down Lincoln Drive (an experience akin to go carting) I think of things I could blog. Now if I could just get them into the computer. Well here are a few...

1) My daughter and I saw a group of high school kids walking down the street. Four boys and a girl all dressed in black. "That's an interesting group," I said. "They're goths," responded Soda Chick. I agreed that the boys had that gothic look. But the girl was dressed head to toe in a muslim jilbab. This caused me to wonder, are there Muslim goths? Or gothic Muslims? What do their parents think!?!

2) We are moving into a 162 year old house owned by the same church that owns the parsonage we've rented for the last 15 months. The house is smaller and sits right on the edge of the cemetary. The previous tenants were evicted and for good reason. A note was found by the cleaning crew, "This is not a crack house. It's a crack home." Happily, the place has been cleaned, painted and looks great! A friend asked me, "Are you still going to call it the crack house after you move in?"

3) If something has been in the basement in a sealed box for more than a year, do you still need it? Some say, NO. I say, "I will be glad to find all of my glass measuring cups!"