i made it to tampa -- & general conference

i made it to tampa!  flights went well, but i think i lost a day traveling...the big question is, will i get it back when i return to california?  as i walked from my inn to the convention center this morning, the main drive i went on has these united methodist information banners; many different ones; the picture isn't so great, but you get the idea; very inviting and informative of what we are doing locally and globally.  what do you think about including these around merced?  beware (or be aware), united methodists are in the community; come serve with us; come grow with us; come and get to know the jesus we know . . . what do you think? 

as i was walking, i saw this community garden, directly across the street from where people board their ships for a delightful vacation on the seas.  i've always thought that our 'back 40' grass area could be a wonderful neighborhood garden; useful for our neighbors and a reminder that we are a working church; a place of action; food for physical and spiritual growth.  what do you think?  is this worth an effort worth exploring?  the wesley club recently applied for a peace with justice grant, and ended up offering a food demonstration that paralleled the groceries we offer from our monthly food pantry, with supplemental fresh organically grown produce...awesome, don't you think?!  i love the thought that we could do something like this on an on-going basis . . . . 

and so, what would a trip to florida without seeing a cruise ship?  interestingly enough, i received a text from someone visiting family in west virginia, where it is snowing!  today it is beautiful in the south-east; my first visit to florida.  it is growing on me...they have a streetcar that travels from the neighborhood where i am staying (ybor city--pronounced ibor) to the downtown area.  what a great way to travel back after my leisurely 50,590 walk downtown.  ybor city is a great little neighborhood; the former cigar rolling section of the city that actually had its own name, and has a number of warehouses, and is in re-development; and, as it turns out, a growing artistic section, a fun nightlife (well, i went to see 'the lucky one'  -- bring tissues!), and the location for the lgbt community; but i didn't see a church community here, besides scientology...the umc of merced would fit in great here ... hum; ok, i'll come home -- but promise me we will think seriously about a community garden...

now that you know i am safely here, i'm off to be trained as a page...someday, i'll become a volume!  thank you for your prayers as the united methodist church makes decisions that will effect us for the next four years ... with my hope for a more inclusive offering of love!

what spring looks like . . . .

what does spring look like . . . . this year, after easter sunday?  easter just keeps happening!

easter looks like a weather report.  we have had an odd occurrence in april, generally california's start to the post rain season; instead of the beginning our non-rainy season, we've had rain; storms; and as a result, as the above picture shows, a double rainbow.  i took this picture on my day off last week, as i was heading into the grocery store.  our prayers continue for those throughout the country who have experienced devastating weather conditions that did not look so uniquely beautiful.

easter looks like the usual meeting but with a unique twist.  today i have arrived in west sacramento at our conference center where a group of about 40 of us have gathered as the board of ordained ministry, to receive reports and recommendations that relate to those who are entering, participating, and completing their journey in 'professional' ministry.  there are many ways we are in ministry together; this committee focuses on those who are in particular leadership according to our annual conference and our general church.  these are exciting times....

one  person for whom we are receiving a recommendation for ordination as a full member in our annual conference began her journey toward pastoral ministry in the merced church.  we are very excited about kris marshall!  we celebrate her gifts and the years she will serve and move us as a church into the unfolding ways of god.  the risen jesus must surely be celebrating!

easter looks like the movement of the spirit and a plane trip.  following this long meeting, i depart to attend general conference, which meets every four years, to review where we've been as a world church, and to envision where our ministry is headed in the next four years.  i have been to general conference before; this year we will meet in tampa, fl.  i am excited to be serving as a page this time -- basically, i get to run around doing errands that (hopefully) help the process of decision making.  on top of that, i will be adding a lot of steps to my pedometer. 

i'll spend a little time with micky and minnie as well.  this will be my first visit to the orlando area, where, i understand, one can "experience the world" through the presence of the epcot center!!

so, before i return back to my attentive nature at the meeting, i wanted to share my appreciation to the united methodist church of merced for their support of my participation at this conference.  i will try and share highlights over the next two weeks...so stay tuned.  blessings to you in this time...and your prayers will be most appreciated!  easter just continues -- thanks be to god!

easter . . . and so it goes . . .

 we walk to easter, in a journey that begins with one step . . . one foot in front of the other; in the light of day or the dead of night, we simply begin that reflective walk, one step in front of the other; called to find in our search for the spirit, a still small voice of god's hope.  in the midst of our walking, we are surprised by what happens.  god is on the journey with us.  and when we walk with god, jesus is our partner. 

on the labyrinth, we do not get lost; in the midst of holy week, we are safe, and when we feel lost and alone and in need, we are found by the one who can only make us truly found.  and so we continue to journey because we have no other way to go . . . one step at a time . . . through the uncertainty, and the chaos, and the pain and hurt and despair.  we are not alone.  we do not journey by ourselves; we move toward the longing in our hearts; we move toward the invitation to go deeper, to experience the newness; to live through the hopelessness, the emptiness, the shallowness of times in our life, and the warring nature of our world. 

the sun sets.  the sun rises.  we continue to walk toward the light.  easter is coming . . . easter is here!!!

and so this is easter; the fragrance of new.  the possibilities of beauty even in the midst of a world that is not perfect, and the life and the lives of those whom we love who are lost . . . they are never lost to us, if we hold them in our hearts.

the jesus that lived and taught and was crucified, is newly alive in a way that we can't fully explain.  and so we simply move from our walking to our sharing; remembering and living with the living jesus in our midst.  we can see him in the eyes of the lonely, the dying and grieving; the scared and the abused; the celebrative ones and the ones who don't even seem to care that jesus is in our midst.

our good news is that jesus cares; and because of this gracious gift of new life, we are called to care as well, no matter what!

so let me share the words of hope and remembrance and welcome that josh groban shared with us on sunday ... ok, his cd sang these words of cynthia weil, with music by james horner.  but it was the next best thing to him being here with us ... because if we remember, we live by sharing . . . and if we forget, jesus remembers.  we're covered on this journey of life, one step at a time!

Remember.  I will still be here as long as you hold me in your memory.

Remember.  When your dreams have ended, time can be transcended; just remember me.

I am the one star that keeps burning so brightly it is the last light to fade into the rising sun.
I’m with you whenever you tell my story, for I am all I’ve done
I am that warm voice in the cold wind that whispers, and if you listen you’ll hear me call across the sky --
As long as I still can reach out and touch you, then I will never die.
Remember.  I’ll never leave you, if you will only remember me.
Remember. When your dreams have ended, time can be transcended;
I live forever – remember me, remember me, remember me . . . .

May your steps through this season of easter be filled with the sharing of loving grace.

progressing through holy week . . . .

holy week; traditionally the time christians recognize between palm sunday and easter.  palm sunday begins with the triumphal entry of jesus into jerusalem with people shouting (nice words) like 'hosanna', and waving palm branches and putting blankets on the road before him as jesus rides on a donkey; various activities happen through the week -- one of which is that jesus gets mad about the money changers at the temple and causes a scene that is on the lips of the entire community in no time; this became known as 'church gossip'!

then, on thursday, things begin to heat up; the disciples, jesus' faithful following, has supper together.  jesus washes their feet and gives new meaning to this traditional passover meal celebration.  jesus tells them that this will be an ending of sorts for them; jesus is betrayed and arrested as he prays in the garden.  the church calls this maundy thursday, 'maundy' meaning commandment -- as in 'a new commandment i give you, to love one another'.

on good friday, an oxymoron if ever there was one, jesus is placed on trial, sent for sentensing, mocked and finally hung on a cross to die, known as crucifixion, and is buried before sunset.  all this because the religious authority was scared of his power!  today, we see public mud-slinging by politicians and others in the media; this isn't nearly as painful, but it gets the job done; anything to destroy another person's reputation, and thus 'kill' the public persona.

holy saturday is a time of rest and preparation.  and then on sunday, when the followers -- basically the women -- go to the tomb expecting to take respectful care of jesus' dead body, they discover that jesus is not there, just as he said; he has risen.  sounds too good to be true?  but, the reality is, this IS true!  easter becomes perhaps the biggest church day...even if you don't go to church much, you often find yourself wearing new clothes, dying boiled eggs, and heading out to brunch, where chocolate bunnies abound!

in reality, this is my holy week; i'll go out walking, spend time in my office, participate in centering prayer, read and do preparation for easter and beyond, participate in a presentation on visitation by our care provider, serve communion to a group of retired folks, and do typical office 'stuff', followed by an unusual thursday, friday and saturday. 

unusual, in the sense, that our focus for holy week will be on prayer instead of sitting in worship.  we'll 'walk' -- be it  with our feet, our fingers or on the computer -- in prayers these last days of lent as we did to  began this season, with the labyrinth.  it takes more energy and more physical/emotional/intellectual/spiritual stamina to be in prayer than it does to be in worship.  worship, for the most part, can be passive; non-participatory.  but in prayer, we become entwined with god; we become attentive to what we say and what we hear; we can become one with god at a very deep level.

holy week is not the time to be passive! this is the time to really begin to give our all in faithful service to god who has been actively involved on this journey of life with us, in the one known as jesus. 

think of holy week as the 'dancing with the stars' event of a lifetime; for those who watch that show, there is nothing more intimate, publicly at least, as dancing; you're vulnerable, passionate, in tune with the other (your partner), and the best dancers loose themselves in those dancing moments.  everyone else disappears.

so it is with deep spiritual praying.  when we are able to loose ourselves to god, and fully open up to the great possibility that we are one with the jesus in our midst -- WOW!  how powerful is that!  there isn't anything that we can't achieve (ok, i'll never be on 'dancing with the stars', but you get the idea!) with such intimacy.  we can become renewed, refreshed, revived -- receive new life (the resurrection message of easter) and, like mary, share this good news.  we become empowered to serve god and one another, helping to make life for others, and the world, just a little bit better.

so, come join us in prayer; walk the labyrinth thursday and friday; 11:30-2 and 5-7; check out our website for further information http://www.umcmerced.org/ and make this holy week a journey toward easter that you will never forget!  and why not join us in celebration on sunday at 9:30 -- welcome coffee at 9; come comfortable, or wear your new duds!  just come and join the celebration!

walking in the rain . . . .

i've begun rising at 5 am in order to get my walk in each day.  one is suppose to have 8 1/2 hours of sleep per day as well . . . ain't gonna happen!

so tuesday morning i had to leave the house by 7 -- therefore, no blog that day, and the same for yesterday and today.  so, now, i am able to post this blog which has been on my mind since monday!

on monday, at 5 am, i could not detect a cloud in the sky ... but re-thinking this position, i should have realized that there was also no moon nor stars either ... hum; mental note:  check the sky for clouds clearly before walking!

1/2 way through my walk -- the heavens blessed me with a downpour.  walking in the rain . . . .

three thoughts came to mind as the rain began to soak my sweatshirt;
thought #1:  do i stop and walk home (ok, i get the idea here -- i would have had to walk home anyway, so why cut my walk short, as i was already soaked!) 
thought # 2:  this thought thanks to a recurring image of my mother when she saw people out in the rain . . . "doesn't have enough sense to come in out of the rain" . . . (ok, i get that too, but honestly, where would i have gone?  under someone's porch, under a tree, or run for my life -- that was absolutely NOT going to happen!)
thought #3:  "remember your baptism, and be thankful".  i knew deep down, spiritually speaking, that this was 'the third time was a charm' to my thinking, anyway.  i'm already wet, i'm doing something healthy and i'm  not splashing in any puddles -- i did checked for nearby pubbles, however; several times!  and i needed to get home in order to leave by 7.  keep walking!

so, away i went, remembering my baptism and being thankful.  what does that mean, anyway? 

well, to me, it is a reminder that i am blessed, loved, and graced with an opportunity to share the love of god with others.  there are times, believe me, when that message is easily forgotten.  what was this storm reminding me?  in united methodist circles, we 'sprinkle' rather than pour or dunk.  that morning, i was experiencing the effects of episcopalian baptism; they pour, as do some others.  but the episcopalians need my support and i need theirs, so, that's what i thought about.  i'm sopping wet, and listening to music, and walking; happy as a clam.  what could be better than this?! 

safely home, with a hot bath and a healthy breakfast (do I detect a 'healthy trend' here?), and i was ready to start my day.

reflection.  had i not experienced the 'remember your baptism, and be thankful' thought that morning, i might have experienced a different kind of day.  i have no idea what the day might have been like but i know what the day was like, and it was a wholesome day.  no matter what; grace.

my suggestion next time there is a storm . . . go walking in the rain!  be renewed, be reminded . . . and use an umbrella if you do not want a grace-filled day!  me?  i'm looking for another storm . . . .

spring has sprung . . . .

spring has sprung -- part of a little jingle i learned in my scouting days.  so i thought of that today, of course, because it is the first day of spring; a beautiful day.

i took these three pictures on saturday, when we finally have had a very nice winter storm, at least in merced.  i've managed to walk in between downpours, so i've kept to my goal, and have reached my 2000 health miles prior to march 30.

we're told to keep walking anyway, even though we've reached our goal; we get $25 for achieving that goal, only no one has shared where that funding source is from!  i guess i could just say 'thank you' and leave it at that!

so a little bit about these spring pictures. . . .

prior to my mother's plan to move -- i believe she sensed that she would need to leave her home, and enter a retirement center where she could not keep everything she had -- including plants.  so, on one of my visits, she 'encouraged me' -- mom is very persuasive in her encouragements -- to take back the cymbidium i had given her when she moved to walnut creek in 1993 after retirement.

walnut creek is much milder than merced, and so i had to place the plant on the north side, where i never really see it; yes you guessed it, i hardly take care of it.  but by golly, after two winters, this plant still yields such grace!  i wonder if it thrives on neglect?!

this year yielded three spikes of orchards.  i clipped one on saturday because i finally noticed as i was finished my walk, that it was blooming!  i cut one spike and put it into the vase above; that was a vase that had not sell at mom's estate sale, so i thought it was an appropriate container.

i had another vase from a prior estate sale; this from a parishioner.  many members of our church will purchase a little something from a church member's estate sale to honor and remember them; i did the same.  so, here is this third picture. 

honestly, i never really understood orchards, so i'm not a great expert on them, but it amazes me that a plant you put in bark and water on occasion can yield such delicate blooms that piggy-back on one another and stay in bloom for long periods of time!

other plants don't do that.  case in point.  i wondered why my hanging baskets in the backyard were in such sorry state -- not that i give them much encouragement during the winter, but, still, i wouldn't call myself abusive!  anyway, as i was washing dishes yesterday, on the last day of winter, i began to understand why! 



those hanging baskets, of which i replaced the straw lining last summer, were being ceremoniously robbed by starlings and blue jays ... actually, there was a fight in the yard, that drew my attention; such a disturbance in my small little yard.  spring had sprung, and it was time to re-nest for the season, and evidently,the straw from MY baskets make a fine cosy nest.  i really should have invested my retirement in the hardware store industry, as it seems that i will be purchasing new straw liners again this season.

all of this is a reminder, of course, that spring has sprung ... the realization that after the winter season, when the cycle of life goes dormant, these signs of new life -- shoots of orchards and birds in search of nesting materials -- remind us that the cycle begins again with spring.  we need a period of rest and renewal so that the mystery of beautiful life can again emerge and we can begin again.

easter is not far off; the signs of life are all around us -- spring cleaning, showers that clean our systems and replenish our supplies, and shedding our sweat clothes for lighter ware.  literally, spring calls us to lighten up.  not a bad message to behold!  how will you spend your 'spring has sprung' day?

a little squeak when i walk

now that i am walking more...daily, pretty much over 7,000 steps, i have been able to accomplish at least two things related to my hearing.  one:  i am re-connecting with my walk(person) again, that has over 773 selections of music from my home library of cd's.  this actually helps motivate me to walk, since i hardly ever get to listen to my cd's at home -- and my car isn't equipped with a cd player (darn!  my cassette player is on the fritz, so that won't work in the car, either...does anyone use cassettes anymore, anyway?!)

but the real discovery to my hearing is a squeak.  i can hear that above the music that i play.  imagine my surprise when i thought people looked at me strangely because i was breathing heavily...not to be confused with being a heavy breather!  i even romanticized that people noticed that i was exercising, and were giving me support -- a thumbs up kind of look.  but, alas, no.  they heard my squeaking too.

i've never worn a pair of tennis shoes/walking shoes/athletic shoes or any other kind of shoes for that matter, that squeaked -- in this case, loudly!  i ended up laughing this morning because there was a very quiet piece of classical music being played, and all i could hear was the squeak; i wanted to turn around and shush the person making all that racket -- kind of like you do when a cell phone goes off in a movie and someone answers it, or someone unwraps their candy during a performance....

i laughed because, of course, i would have to have had to shush myself...in the quiet of the morning (i've started walking at 5:30ish -- in the dark once again, now that daylight savings time (ended?) (began?) (take your pick!)

i've heard of squeaking tennis on a basketball court, but not on a sidewalk.  do they make oil for tennis shoes?  i hate to get rid of them...they are in such great shape.  what to do...what to do.

no wonder jesus wore sandals.  a dirty/dusty road is filled with all kinds of noises; perhaps no one noticed if jesus sandals squeaked.  honestly, i can't imagine jesus squeaking....although he did make noise about issue such as injustice and being too tied to the law for our own good.  maybe that is where people got the concept of responding to the 'squeeky wheele'?!

no matter.  i hit the pavement running when i came into the office this morning.  no squeaking.  only the tap, tap, tap of my fingers punching the keyboard.  do fingers punch at keyboards, i wonder?  well, that will have to be some other day's topic.  i've have another appointment with the pavement!

and sense some of you asked...although i don't always get your comments to me unless you share them by email or facebook....i've accumulated 1800 health miles toward my goal of 2000 by march 30.  i'm pretty stoked, maybe that squeak is really a joyful noise?!