an (unlikely) discovery . . . .

i experienced an unlikely discovery this past week-end . . . and i don't think it would have happened without 'a little help from some guests'!

it all began with i was preparing for a visit from some out-of-town guests; clean the house (well, more than just spot clean which is my usual way of weekly cleaning), and tidy up the yard.  so, the day of the visit arrived; i made lemon bars (just in case they wanted a little treat!), turned on my renewing fountain in the back yard, and cooled down the tea.  i was ready; everything was neat and tidy -- even the closets looked presentable!


so one of my visitors noticed my bell, and admired it . . .

this particular bell is made from half an oxygen tank; pretty niffy, no?  and it is very heavy, but it has the best sound; kind of sounds like a ship's bell, and on a windy winter's evening, when the wind has risen in merced,  i can hear the sound of this bell inside the house.

it's a great sound; very comforting.  and occasionally, when i have my fountain going in the back, i ring that bell -- really a gong -- and i am carried away to the coast!  on a summer's evening, it is magical.  but i hadn't done that in a long time, august being so hot, it was all i could do to water my potted plants!

and so when my visitor was interested, i of course, went over to demonstrate the lovely sound of the gong . . . .and nothing happened!  no sound at all!  'how strange!' thought i.  and so, being the normally impatient person that i am when it comes to having something happened that is suppose to happen without another thought, i tried to chime it again -- only a little harder this time because, of course, if it doesn't work the first time, try it harder the second time!

well, guess what?!  in the meantime, over the summer, without my being aware, i discovered that a wasps nest was built in there...i hadn't a clue; no indication what-so-ever!  usually i have wasps nesting on my roof; i see them, and i let them be because they don't bother me.  and i try not to bother them.  but, this time, i think i might have bothered them...and, to say the least, i'm a little bothered too!

needless to say, sometimes we make an unlikely discovery.  right under our own noses!  while we've unaware, something happens in our daily lives that end up taking us unexpectedly.  i've watered and enjoyed my yard all summer, and never had any indication that my bell had become the home of a nest.

i'll have to work out a plan for removal...i suppose an eviction notice just won't do, eh?

meanwhile, when all else fails, leave well enough alone ... i wasn't in the mood to be stung, and they had been disturbed enough for one day, and besides all that, we had been getting along fine in ignorant bliss all these months, what's a few more weeks; soon the weather will change, and they will move out for the winter; my perfect opportunity to divest my bell of that temporary home!

so, off to fresno i went to attend the film festival.  let me offer you a movingly-delightful treat.  when you get a chance, search out 'cloudburst', the 2011 film staring olivia dukakis, brenda fricker, and someone new to me, ryan doucette.  forget any trouble you may have, and be taken away for a couple of hours into the lives of this lesbian couple who escape from a nursing home and travel to canada to be married.  on the way they pick up a (young) male hitchhiker, and all three work together to make justice happen in their living situation.  you'll laugh; you'll cry; you'll be moved!  and, no doubt, you'll ponder the significance of this story in your own life.

but what i can guarantee you is, you won't get stung!  both events were an (unlikely) discovery over the week-end.  when was the last time you had such an experience?

my experience of having another birthday . . . .

my experience of having another birthday . . . . may not be like your experience; it may be similar, but probably not identical.  so use my experience to think about your latest birthday; let it serve as an opportunity to reminisce-- to maybe (re)experience something that will make you smile or wonder or be horrified (hopefully not!), or just simply let this be a moment of respite.

each of us has experiences; it doesn't make them right or wrong or the only way to have an experience.  isn't that the way of life as well?  no two people do the same thing in the same way, nor "should" we believe that it "should be" done or experienced in the same way.

however we experience an event, it is the way "we experience it" in that moment.  and even if we have several people participating at that moment, we might and probably will experience that moment in our own unique way.

case in point.  i turned 54 yesterday.  that day became just an average day, as it turned out that my birthday fell on my usual day off; a monday.  i celebrated, however, in different ways over the week-end; and spent much of monday hearing from well-wishers via facebook (so what a unique experience that is!)

my celebrating all began on thursday, when i got a text message that some friends i knew from graduate school, all the way in chicago-land, were visiting the area; 'would you like to meet for dinner?'  "boy howdy, would i!"  the designated place to meet was 'the dead fish' restaurant in crocket; i could hardly wait for friday!

perhaps for many of you, there might be irony in going to eat at 'the dead fish' on your birthday!  it is a great place; good enough for me to be willing to drive three hours in bay area traffic on a friday night to get there...the story on their menu tells of a grandchild growing up asking his grandmother the endless 'what's for dinner' question.  she responds to this often asked question, 'oh, just some dead fish'; this phrase stuck, and became a family run business!

we finally all made it to the restaurant, 3 carloads of people coming from different locations; and, of course, it wasn't really about a birthday celebration, but rather bonding again after so many years -- we hadn't seen each other for over 20 years!

truth be told, 'the guys were in graduate school (law and divinity--not the candy!) and the gals worked'.  and the oddity of the preacher and the attorney getting along together -- i'd marry 'em, he'd divorce 'em, i'd bury 'em, he'd probate 'em -- actually, a perfect match.  so we gathered at this beautiful location overlooking the carcinus bridge, spending the evening together as if we did this every friday night after work.  some friendships are just like that . . . .  this picture shows the ceiling of the dead fish -- i know, who would take a picture of a ceiling?!  but, just go with it!

the next day was spent at an extended family birthday celebration; very relaxed and unusual again, because i hardly ever spend time socializing on a saturday, especially outside merced.  there's work to be done, after all!  but i returned to merced, refreshed and renewed -- inspired, really.  that ought to be worth turning 54 to learn about, don't you think...it took me long enough to figure this out!

but really, the best treat of all happened on thursday morning.  as we age, periodically we get notices in the mail; social security, aarp, insurance companies . . . . and yes, even dmv!  after two 'good drivers renewal cycles', dmv said i had to come in for this renewal, to check my vision and update my information with a new picture.  ah, the dreaded drivers licence renewal.

i had made an appointment via the internet, which took no time at all, and was actually very simple, once i figured out i had to have a dmv account!  so i go with document and checkbook in hand, and arrive at my local dmv office 15 minutes early.  and then i experienced the strangest thing!  it was as if the dmv went to the same training on hospitality that i went to!  (i began to hear 'wonder of wonders, miracles of miracles' from fiddler on the roof dancing through my head!). 

i was greeted by a friendly man who took my paperwork and then congratulated me on achieving my birthday renewal, and gave me my number, indicating the location to stand and wait for my number to be called.  less than five minutes later (no kidding!) my number was called, and a woman greeted me, asking for my materials; she chatted me up about coming in, having achieved another birthday (by this time i was looking for the hidden camera, with a clown who would have balloons, a cake and throw confetti!).  once completed, i was directed to another line where i would stand to await 'the dreaded picture taking'.  again, within five minutes, i was greeted by another woman who actually said "look directly into the camera and smile" -- really???  i get to smile???  and then she said, "have a nice day", and i was through!  but, and i know you'll find this next piece UNBELIEVABLE, but as god is my witness (!) it is true!!  the man who greeted me when i first arrived, greeted me by my name as i was leaving, wishing me once again a 'happy birthday'. 

i'd turn 54 all over again just to experience my 15 minutes of fame at the dmv!  now, i have to say, i haven't seen the picture on my licence yet, but, how bad could it be?  i got to smile!  and then i got to eat a dead fish with some long-lost friends!  isn't this worth turning 54 all over again?

anyone else care to share their latest birthday experience?

not such a normal day, but a day in the life . . . .

this is not such a normal day, "this" being september 11th, or 9-11, as we will forever remember its significance.  tragedy always has a way of making its mark in our lives, much like the mark left 30 years ago this year when my father died of a massive heart attack on the day before i was to return home for vacation from graduate school; today we remember the events of 11 years ago.  even as i sit at my keyboard, the hairs on my arms are standing up.  eerie, impossible; unbelievable.  still we grieve, and still we struggle to come to terms with how to treat one another in peaceable ways.

as i clicked onto my search engine this morning (i use 'bing' here at the office), that beautiful memorial greeted me; ground zero; that now sacred space, with the flowing water that leaves us reflective of what happened on that day, and what has happened since.  i am renewed by water falls and reflective pools -- water in general, and so this is a very meaningful memorial for me, even though i wish it were unnecessary.

i reflect today about the presence of the spiritual presence that was a part of this event in our history; the chapel of old st. paul reflected in the children's storybook, the little chapel that stood by a.b.curtiss.  a chapel of historical presence where the spirits of george washington and alexander hamilton and others through the ages remain; where new york city grew around; this chapel remaining as a place where sanctuary could be found . . . .a place of grace.

this was not what i was thinking of last night as i went to bed, as i put aside the novel i was reading before i turned out the lights, as i remembered the power music and the moving set of the met's production of wagner's ring cycle now available to be seen by the world.  and this was not what i was thinking of a few minutes after 11 as my neighbor's family decided to have a late evening crisis in their backyard, joined by the neighborhood dogs.  nor was this what i was thinking about at well after two-in-the-morning, when i discovered that i had been joined in bed by well over a dozen-and-a-half of ants that came from somewhere, i'm still just not sure where!

it wasn't until i was reminded of this day that i remembered the significance of this day . . . . not that i would intentionally forget, or even be able to forget.  it just took the collective remembering of a nation and a world that continues to experience the tragedy of struggle.  we can't seem to get away from our own inability to get along.  nor can we get away from the care and kindness of people who respond with their generous hearts, for which i am grateful  on this not such a normal day, but a day in the life . . . .

hostility . . . hospitality . . . hope

from hostility . . . to hospitality . . . to hope

central valley fruits and vegetables are displayed in the picture below;

lovely baskets full of produce that became a love token of peace last wednesday as the central valley curcuit leaders joined our district superintendent mariellen yoshino to livingston to visit and pray with leaders from two gurdwaras (sikh temples).

such gentle offerings; humble from the fruit of our vines from the bakersfield area up through the foothills and all the way to galt and over to the stockton delta area.

we were received with humble thanksgiving, as we offered these tokens and prayers for an ending of all hostility, racism, religious persecution, as well as renewed understanding and education.

you may recall that on sunday, august 5th, the gurdwara in oak creek wisconsin came under gunfire, killing 6, plus the gunman; leaving one in a coma, and countless others traumatized.  throughout the world, people wondered how this could happen.

the sikh faithful stand for justice; there is an estimate of 500,000 sikhs in north america.  hate crimes have been on the rise since 911 -- americans often confusing the turban head coverings worn by the men to be followers of osama bin laden.

in reality the sikhism began in india in 1469, unrelated to hinduism or islam, teaching that there is one god with many paths to the divine; each of the 10 founding gurus  (doers of the master), wore turbans as a sign of respect for the divine.  the sikh faith began as a rebellion against india's caste system, and a profession for the equality of people.  as you enter their holy place, you cover your head as a sign of humility, and take off your shoes. 

no one is an enemy, and no one is a stranger.  and so to show support for our sikh sisters and brothers, the circuit leaders went to be in prayer and solidarity with the sikh leaders, sharing our collective presence of united methodism in the valley, and uniting with them against all hostility and praying for hope for our future.

we were offered such hospitality!  we prayed together in our prospective languages, men and women together, which is unusual in this faith culture, but also a sign of the oneness of god.

and perhaps the most amazing similarity was, following our time of prayer and conversation, we were escorted over to the fellowship hall where we were invited into a time of refreshment!  isn't it comforting to know that spiritual refreshment is part of the world's religious traditions?!

i do not know enough about this faithful tradition, but i invite you to join with me in study and prayer as we seek to move from all religious persecution and hostility into open dialogue, offering one another hospitality and the hope that one day, soon, we will live with 'no fear'.