home turf
Or, still blowing off Morning Prayer after all these years.
I negotiated with the felines for some time off last week to take in some continuing ed back in the land of lovable losing baseball. It was wonderful to be back in the home place, with rainy weather, wind off the lake, good
friends, assorted Episcopal bloggers whose URLs I can't think of off the top of my head (Hoosier Musings, Reverend Ref, Family Letter, AngloBaptist, Nueva Cantora--am I missing anyone?) My parents wined and dined me on Friday night with Italian food, culminatng in a chocolate lava cake and pumpkin gelato. . .Another alum and I hit an old standby, Lulu's, for pan-Asian yumminess (I used to order in from Lulu's on Sunday evenings--X-files and sesame noodles go really, really well together.)
The whole point of this operation (wait, it's not about the food?)was to hear the reflections of Diana Butler Bass in two keynote addresses. Did you know there IS hope for mainline churches? Will digest more later; I'm still thinking about it all.
Sunday morning was about Stewardship and Sunday afternoon was about celebrating a fellow knitter's birthday with more good food. So this morning it's time for the unglamorous world of laundry and reasserting my authority with the cats. Yeah, that last part is just a fantasy.
Forgot to share this part
So on Sunday I read a story in the aisle as my sermon.
I borrowed a stool from the band (they're MIA these days, anyway). The one stool we had was back by the drum set. I used it just fine at the 8:00 service, sat in the aisle and worked out well.
At 10:30, I picked up the story, picked up the stool, gave my little intro about the author and why I was doing this, and got settled in to read.
When I noticed I was slowly sinking, sinking lower. Somehow I had jostled it while setting up. I felt like I was the Wicked Witch--"I'm melting, I'm melting."
Humility comes in many forms.
rained out
We were supposed to have our second Mass on the Grass today.
It turned into Picnic in the Parish Hall instead.
Quick Friday Five
1) How old were you when you voted for the first time?
I think I was 20 when I voted for the first time, since I turned 18 between major elections. So that would have been the presidential campaign of 87. Being a longtime Cubs fan, I am well trained in rooting for the underdogs. Sigh. 2) What was the contest at the top of the ballot?
See above. 3) Can you walk to your polling place?
People walk in Oklahoma City? I have in the past been able to walk in the polling place. In St. Louis, it was right downstairs in our apartment building. At seminary in Evanston, even though our dorm was a polling place, it was not OUR polling place, and we had to walk up the street.4) Have you ever run for public office?
Nope! Very unlikely. 5) Have you run for office in a club or school or on a board.
I ran for Commission on Ministry in a previous diocese and was elected. That's about as exciting as it gets, folks.
