Sudden storm

I was here, playing hearts on-line, when I noticed out the window that the sun that had been shining all day was gone. And I heard thunder.

I rushed downstairs and got the cushions from the Adirondack chairs just as the rain was starting.

I got my keys and took an umbrella to roll up my car windows but still got pretty wet.

Then I closed the windows in our bedroom though one of my pillows already had rain on it.

It thundered and poured for about an hour and then thundered and drizzled for another hour.

They say "the weather in New England is always changing".

But not usually this suddenly.

At least it's 20 degrees cooler than before the storm.

 

 

Backyard life

 Everyday that it's not raining, I sit for an hour or so on one of the Adirondack chairs that our old friend Hank Fotter helped Bern build, and watch the life in our backyard.

(Hank died a few months ago and we're going to the celebration of his life in August.)

This time of year, life abounds out back.

Trees in abundance! Over a dozen trees line our east and south.

Plants in bloom. I don't know how Bern did it (she has had almost 30 years to do it!) but there is always something blooming in the back yard, full of color and joy.

Birds, birds and more birds. Mostly Robins and Cardinals and lots of smaller birds--wrens and such--as many as a dozen at a time in our yard. We have the occasional Blue Jay and tiny humming birds about as long as my middle finger. Crows in the trees, cawing and complaining. And once for a few minutes a Snowy Owl. There's a bird bath there always full of water and I love watching birds splash around in it.

Lots of critters--squirrels and chipmunks mostly--with an occasional bunny. And our dog Brigit's favorite--ground hogs down at the end of the yard that she delights in chasing.

That doesn't even mention the spiders and insects and butterflies that are always around. And the worms, that the birds come to feast on after a rain.

Sitting there watching backyard life gives me life.

What a wonder that Nature lets us be in her domain!

Blueberries!!!?

 I eat blueberries almost every day. They are my favorite frui

But the heat in the west have ruined most of the blueberry crop.

What will I do?

I'm going to the store tomorrow and buying all the frozen blueberries there are.

Maybe that will do me.

Maybe not.

Given what's going on out there in the west, how can anyone not believe in climate change?

Given the Covid variant causing damage in under-vaccinated states, how can anyone refuse to get the shots?

Given the violence of police against people of color, how can anyone not believe in police reform?

Given the disparity of income among people of color and white people, how can anyone not believe in systemic racism?

With 400 people shot over the 4th of July weekend (of all times!) how can anyone not believe in gun control laws?

Given the facts and courts that all disprove "The Big Lie" about the election, how can anyone still support the former president's claims?

I don't know exactly how to ponder all that.

But I'll try to ponder it, even if it makes me a little crazy.

July 4th

 I celebrated my first Eucharist as priest-in-charge of Trinity Milton today.

They gave me two ovations, once when the Senior Warden announced my position and once after I said words of thanks to them for welcoming me into their parish family.

I'll be going up twice a week--once on Sunday and again another day. I already have an appointment Wednesday week to talk to a couple about re-affirming their marriage vows in August. She is a member, but he is not so we'll figure out some way to do it to suit them both.

There were two bagpipers who led us out to the flagpole to say the Pledge of Allegiance, I prayed for the nation and we sang the National Anthem. Then the pipers led us in to the church.

I preached a sermon (I printed it on the blog yesterday) I was afraid would offend some--but it didn't. Maybe I'm in the right place!!!

Then we went to Jack and Sherry's with almost 20 other people --all vaccinated except for a little 19 month old boy, who was a delight.

We had a great cook-out with much too much to eat and lively conversation.

We came back to a Brigit, happy to see us.

A great day throughout.

Hope your 4th was as good.

Sermon for July 4, 2021

(If you go to Trinity, Milton, don't read this tonight!)

          I wanted to be here, on your level, instead of up in the pulpit because I want you to know I’m not ‘preaching AT you’, I’m ‘sharing my thoughts and opinions WITH you’.

          On this 245^th Anniversary of the founding of our nation, I want to share my thoughts and opinions WITH you about where we are as a country.

          Some of what I say may be disturbing to you—it’s disturbing to me!

          But it needs to be said.

          This is the greatest country in the world. I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. I love this country.

          But as great as it is and as much as I love it—the United States has flaws. And we need to look at them and address them as a nation.

          As remarkable a document as our Constitution is, it established a ‘democracy’ on the back of slavery of Africans brought here to do our farm work. In the Constitution we all love, slaves were counted as 3/5^th a person in the census to allocate seats in the House of Representatives!

          3/5^th a person!!!

          We are a deeply divided nation. Since the last election we have seen how deep the divide was with a violent assault on the Congress.

          We are also divided in other ways.

          Those who take the vaccine against Covid and the anti-vaccine folks.

          We are deeply divided over issues of climate change.

          We are divided over voting rights.

          We are divided by race in a remarkable way. Black and Brown people are much poorer than White and Asian-Americans. They have worse health-care and housing and are having it much more difficult to vote by states passing voting bills.

          And rich and poor are not just Brown and Black, poor white Americans are in the same boat.

          The county I grew up—the southern most county in West Virginia—McDowell if you’re not from there and Mac-Dowell if you are from there—had a population of 100,000 when I was a senior in high school. The latest census put that population at 27,000. Coal mining is dead—which is a good thing—but no one worked to find new jobs for those 73,000 people who had to leave to find work.

          During the pandemic the rich got richer and the poor got poorer.

          We are so deeply divided as a people. And disagreement doesn’t mean ‘looking for compromise’ any more—it means taking sides and refusing to compromise.

          I was saying some of this to a casual friend who is much more conservative than I am a few months ago.

          He stopped me and said, “Love it or leave it!”

          I said, “No. We have to Love It and Fix it!!!”

          That’s why I chose to read the Gospel of the Good Samaritan for today’s gospel. Jesus tells us there—“Love God….and Love your neighbor as yourself.”

          Sunday before last, on my way back home, my car broke down on Rt. 8 in Watertown. Triple A took an hour to get there. Hundreds of cars passed me but only one stopped—Brian who made sure I was alright and gave me a bottle of water. Brian was my ‘good Samaritan’.

          And, as the Samaritan teaches us, our ‘neighbor’ is anyone in need, anyone struggling, anyone we can lift up and help.

          On this glorious holiday—even a ‘holy day’, I would say—we must commit ourselves, as followers of Jesus, to do everything we can to Love our Country and ‘fix it’, by loving our neighbor—who is anyone in need.

          It’s really that simple.

          Really that simple.

          Really that simple.

Amen and Amen.

 

                  

 

Sweater weather

 It's July 3rd and I'm wearing a sweater! 

The temperature is high 50's. Air-conditioning off. Slept with the windows open last!

A week ago it was hot.

But nowhere near as hot as it's been out west.

Over 110 degrees in Seattle!

Be sure to give thanks for our weather while praying for those suffering from the heat.

Summer will be back, I'm sure.

Time for some quotes

(From the Mastery Foundation Quote box.)

You can easily judge the character of others by how they treat those who can do nothing for or to them. --Malcolm Forbes

If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use the pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time--a tremendous whack. --Winston Churchill

Within you there is a stillness and sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself. --Hermann Hesse

Train yourself to listen to that small voice that tells us what is important and what's not. --Sue Grafton

You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of you hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand. --Margery Williams Bianco, The Velveteen Rabbit 

The world is cold, make it your business to build fires. --Horace Traubel

God, whose love and joy/are present everywhere/can't come to visit you/unless you aren't there.  --Angelus Silesius

I would feel more optimistic about a bright future of man if he spent less time proving he could outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority. --E.B. White

The spirit of liberty is that spirit that is not too sure it is right. --Judge Learned Hand

He drew a circle that shut me out/Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout/But love and I had the wit to win;/We drew a circle that took him in. --Edwin Markham

In dreams and love there are no impossibilities. --Janos Arany

Enjoy pondering all that!