a little of 'this-is' and 'that-is'

this has been a week! can i get an 'amen' to that????

so what's made it so?

this-is the month for reading, and i was invited to read to a third grade class at burbank elementary school; i hadn't been in a 3rd grade classroom since my children were in school. i read 'thanksgiving wish'; a delightful story! the students were so attentive! and that-is not all; i received a package of thank-you notes on sunday morning; drawings and everything! what made this so rewarding for me was reading through the notes and having the students share about where they went to church -- after reading, we had a 'q and a' time, and, as they knew i was a pastor, they had lots of questions. but they were very willing to share their 'church experiences'. we could learn from this group of students, don't 'cha think???? this was a great experience for me; that-is why i am writing about it!

this-is a picture of merced; for many reading this blog, you might say, "so...." or "why that picture"? that-is not just any picture! it is a picture of a bridge, crossing over 'g' street, that will gain us access under the train that runs through town. it will allow us all to get to the hospital and across town, unencumbered. so the 'bridge' is really a train crossing. this will be a great gift to our community when it is finished next year; that-is why i am writing about it.

this-is a picture of the retreat i am attending with other clergy members from the california-nevada annual conference of the united methodist church. it is at the mount hermon retreat center in the santa cruz mountains. that-is that we all cross over to 'get to the other side' as it were. our retreat theme is 'bridging the covenantal divide', so that-is why i thought about the two bridges; creative, no? bridges are unique in that they bring two bodies--be it people or land--in contact, one with the other. bridges are passages way, bringing lands together, but also souls. being in covenant means that trust is built and confidences are honored. we learn to cross over into territories that we may not venture otherwise.














this experience is a growth-filled opportunity; that-is why i am am writing about this!

there are other things to write about; staff changes and my mother needing to move into assisted living, but this-is not a time to write about those things. that-is a blog in and of itself. changes happen; sometimes we anticipate those changes, and sometimes they come out of the blue! but we deal with them, don't we, in one way or another?!

this-is the time to offer one more insight to my week. that-is: coffee! not just good coffee, but great coffee and wonderful surroundings. i am doing my 'blog' while seated at peet's coffee and tea. you have to know that i fell in love with peet's the first time i walked in, smelling the intoxicating aroma of coffee beans and hearing the soothing sounds of classical music. so, whenever i see a peet's i stop and smell the coffee! this day is no exception. but, the unexpected delight was to find one of my colleagues here; i tried to share my internet access code with her so she could check her e-mail, and the message said 'that code is already in use'. ok, so peet's could use a little tutorial on sharing! this might be the only thing needed by this wonderful coffee house, so i'm willing to have another cup of coffee and offer my pastoral insight; that-is the least i can do, don't you think?

so, what are the 'this-is' and 'that-is' in your life? care to share?