Daughters and Dahlias and Days in LA

Posted on May 16, 2012 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Dahlias outside our lunch restaurant

Good Day, God!

I noticed that in this photo the flowers are out of focus but the leaf in the lower right with the hole in it is sharp.

How like our Human Focus, that is, God! It is all too easy to focus on small imperfections and not on the glorious and delightful “flowers” in our lives.

I am here with daughter Suzanne. I think Suzanne is derived from the word for Lily in Hebrew. In any case, God, Suzanne is a Delightful Flower — not just loved but also admired and enjoyed by me.

So, I here I am, On The Road Again! After Eleven days at home to “recover” from London’s 11 Time Zones I am traveling toward Grandson Ian’s high school graduation. First a stop with daughter Suzanne in LA and then on to Tucson and Sandy and family. How VERY fortunate I am to be doing this, God! I even got upgraded to first class on the way over. I really enjoyed First Class.

And, although I bemoan the One Percents incredible gains in wealth over the last few decades — I have to face the fact that I (and a large percentage of Americans) are in the World’s Top One Percent.

This is a sobering thought, God. From out of my Childhood as an Episcopalian comes the verse “Those to whom much is given, from them much is required.” Hmm. The verse goes on to say basically that those given even more — will have even more required of them.

Yikes! I feel “nudged” by You, God. But I feel so overwhelmed. Well, yes, of course I do. Feeling overwhelmed is a lot better than grabbing a simple answer. I suspect it might involve combining at least ten different responses. Ah, but now, God, I am going to go on a short jog. I shall do what I CAN!

Tagged with: Daughters, responsibility, Sobering Thoughts, The One Percent
Posted in complexity, daughters, responsibility

The Voice of the Poor and our Hoping Machine

Posted on May 15, 2012 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Woody Guthrie

Good Day, God!

I was surprised to find an article about Woody Guthrie in Christianity Today! Woody Guthrie? But, having the author, Jeremy V. Jones, compare Woody to a prophet made a certain amount of sense — once I thought about it.

Much as we’d like to forget it, God, Your Prophets came down pretty hard on the Rich and Powerful. And Woody wasn’t too happy with them either.

He wrote a lot of his songs during the Great Depression. He wrote about the poor — about the jobless and those working for very little money. And, as Jones pointed out, here we are in the worst economic times since the Great Depression. We still have the jobless. We still have the “working poor.”

How DO we bring Capital and Labor together, God? How can we avoid economic BUBBLES that are fed by greed and folks who just want to “game the system?” How can entrepreneurs be encouraged and workers be invited to participate together in our economy? How can we work hard at working together?

These are useful questions, God. But not easy ones. I confess that I’d rather turn aside and not think about them. Maybe that was why I was so happy to read the article in Christianity Today. I know that I need to listen to the prophetic voices who caution us to care deeply about our fellow humans.

The article in Christianity Today ended with a marvelous quote from one of Woody’s songs, The Hoping Machine: “Don’t lose your grip on life and that means / Don’t let any earthly calamity knock your dreamer and your hoping machine / Out of order.”

Please, God, fill us with HOPE. And help us keep on hoping — so we can keep on working together for better solutions.

Tagged with: hope, our Dreamer, our Hoping Machine, prophetic voices, Woody Guthrie
Posted in Possibilities, Prophetic Voices, The poor and underemployed, Work

Circles of Friends

Posted on May 14, 2012 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Morning Swim — a pastel by Ann Peters

Good Morning, God!

Yesterday was Mother’s Day. Kit and I took Mom down to a big lunch in her dining hall and then we went back to her apartment for Scrabble. Tomorrow I take off to see our grandson Ian graduate from high school — visiting both daughters as part of the trip. I am blessed with Family.

I am also blessed with Friends. And, God, mostly they are Long Time Friends. LTFs. How good it is, God, to have extended histories with people. After the symphony last night we had dinner with an LTF who used to go to childhood birthday parties with Kit. Still, although the passage of Time helps to deepen friendships, it isn’t essential. Sometimes we meet people with whom we instantly “click.”

Friends are incredibly important to me. Perhaps that’s why when I saw this pastel I called it a Circle of Friends. I am so fortunate to have Circles of Friends. Kit and I have a Circle meet in our kitchen every Monday for breakfast. Then I have the Women’s Wednesday Morning Prayer (and Comedy) Group at church. Everyone is welcomed to that circle, God. It is such fun to discover a New Friend as we are joined!

And, God, just last week a friend showed me how to use the Facebook app on my iPhone. Oh?, I said. It can do THAT? So, who knows, God, maybe I will be able to extend my definition of friends. After all, what could be better for our physical and emotional health than investing in friends!

Tagged with: Circles of Friends, investing in friends, Long Time Friends
Posted in connections, friends, health, interactions

Happy Mother’s Day!

Posted on May 13, 2012 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

A Home-Grown anthurium

Good Morning, God!

It’s Mother’s Day and my wonderful husband Kit has already called our daughters to Thank them for their part in my being a Mother and in his being a Father.

Ah God, surely we come closest to empathizing with You when we become parents! You as our Heavenly Parent are accessible to us in ways that are profoundly comforting. I like that.

I’m remembering my grandfather, Harry Carr. He was a Christian Scientist and when I was a child he often talked to me about Our Mother /Father God. I am thankful for that Inclusive Spirit, God! And I am also grateful for being able to anthropomorphize You.

St. Anne the mother of Mary

You are, of course, AWESOMELY MORE! But, as a human I can’t imagine MORE. Human is as high as I can go. I dimly sense there are many more dimensions involved in all of this. But, I like Job can only cling to the fact that I know that my Redeemer Liveth!

So, God, Thank You! Thank You for Life. Thank You that I am living on this Lovely Little Planet. Thank You for my mother. Thank You for our Daughters . . . and our Grandsons. Thank You for my Being a Mother. As my dear friend Joyce Watson said so long ago, “Being a Mother is a whole lot better, and a whole lot worse, than anyone ever tells you.”

Truly, To Love is to become vulnerable. To have children is to put our heart in their hands. And to hold their hearts in our hands. Ah, God. We humans are clumsy creatures and we often drop and bobble the hearts entrusted to us. I have done that far too many times.

Yet, still You Love me. You Love us all. And Your Loving Kindness renews my Heart — keeps it mostly a Heart of Flesh. So, on this Mother’s Day, THANK YOU, God!

Tagged with: an accessible side to God, God as Mother, Love, Mother's Day, vulnerability
Posted in Abundant Life, Families, LOVE, Mothers and Fathers

Walking around my Block — Content

Posted on May 12, 2012 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Plants in Sun Light

Good Day, God!

OOPS! I hit the wrong key and this published without a word typed. How like Life! So easy to do and say things that cannot be taken back. How very dependent I am on the Gift of Forgiveness!

How very important to offer the Gift of Forgiveness to Myself. Hmm. Perhaps aging is mostly that? An exercise in forgiving. Forgiving myself for mistakes made and for opportunities missed. Forgiving others. Forgiving You, too, God, for our being “not quite” perfect.

Sigh. Yes. That feels right. But, it misses the fact that we have Choices of Background as it were!

This photo called to me because the plants are so ordinary and so ordinarily unseen. They were planted years ago as part of the strip of land owned by our townhouse association. I think we may have deeded it to the City. But, no matter. That strip of land remains untended.

These plants don’t seem to have noticed that fact. They are growing — seemingly content and happy — on their own. Roots in the soil. Leaves in the Light. To me, God, they are an example of living with a Background of Contentment with What Is!

Strange that Contentment has not featured in my List of Virtues. Gratitude for what is — PRAISE for what is — those have loomed as Virtues. But, “contentment” is right down there with “surrender” as virtues I have never considered valuing.

Now, God, You might think that after traveling to Paris — seeing the Louvre — seeing the Eiffel Tower — seeing Versailles — that I might arrive home, discontent. But, it seems to be just exactly the opposite. I am home. And I am Deliciously Content!

Thank You, God!

Tagged with: a Background of Contentment, Contentment with what is, seeing the ordinary things of life
Posted in appreciation, beauty, Forgiving, Uncategorized

On Being Back

Posted on May 11, 2012 by a moment with god — 2 Comments

A Diamond Jubilee plate in my mother’s china cabinet

Good Morning, God!

I’m back. After doing this blog every day for a couple of years, interruption was difficult. Mostly, the interruption was caused by the “technical difficulties” of having a poor wifi connection on our river boat in France.

But, off and on during this time I was mad at You, God. Mad at You and mad at myself. Unhappy with both of us . . . blaming You for the trials of being human. Well, Who Else to blame?

I didn’t want to talk about it then or think about it — both of which I would have to do if I blogged. So not being able to blog suited me just fine.

But, now I am starting to get back in touch with You and I am accepting that it is permissible, in fact, to weep. Permissible? Well, yes. That does say a lot about my dominant mindset, doesn’t it, God!

It is some sort of “warrior” mindset. Warrior women don’t snivel. They don’t complain. They do their duty. So, when faced with Emotional Pain, God, I try really hard to ignore it. That is what I have done about watching my beloved mother age. I have relentlessly focused on the positive.

But, Thank You, God, that at some point there was ENOUGH PAIN to force me to recognize it — open the door to it — accept it as part of being human. I cannot stop Time. I cannot fix all the ills of the world, or of my family, or of myself.

That does not mean I have failed — even though it sometimes FEELS as if I have failed. It is just part of being human –and not superhuman. Accepting that fact is part of forgiving You and of forgiving myself — an ongoing process!

And now a more upbeat word: I gave my mom this Diamond Jubilee plate commemorating Queen Elizabeth’s 60 years on the throne. My mom admired it and then said, “Oh I remember her when she was just a little girl!”

What a wonderful comment! What a wonderful life!

Tagged with: being human, not being superhuman, opening to pain
Posted in Failing, Sorrows of the Deep, time, Transitions

foie gras, fatty livers, failure and me

Posted on May 5, 2012 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

a French farmer force-feeding his geese

Good Morning, God!

I’m sitting here, thinking of the French geese that are force-fed to turn their normal 1/2 pound liver into a two pound liver — liver for fois gras!

Poor geese. Even if they are raised in the old French way, having a fatty liver can’t be fun.

As for me, after two weeks in France, I am sitting here with my liver much fattier than it was before our trip down the Seine. Sigh. I was not force-fed. I did it to myself.

I am NOT alone, God, in Voluntarily Force Feeding myself! That is a Societal and Cultural Problem that compounds my Personal Problem. Yes, God. It compounds, but does not excuse, my behavior. So, now after wining and dining (and lunching) myself to excess on our holiday in France, I am returning to a saner lifestyle. There is nothing more sobering — and useful –than failure!

The Power of Habit

How long will it take to undo the damage I have done to myself? I am estimating it takes ten times as long to undo force-feeding as it does to DO it. That’s sobering!

But, really, God, after listening to most of Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, I understand that it isn’t just what I eat. The problem is what I label as REWARDS. That’s what needs changing.

So, how do I “reward” myself, God? Can I change what tastes like “love” to me? Can I step out of my Cultural Context and establish my very own Set of Rewards?

Not simple questions, God! I will need to keep coming back for Your Help!

Tagged with: Cruising the Seine, foie gras, force-feeding, over-eating, Paris to Normandy
Posted in asking for help for myself, Failing, food questions, Perspective, responsibility

Rejoicing AFTER the Marathon

Posted on April 17, 2012 by a moment with god — 1 Comment

Kit at our Celebratory Dinner after the Marathon with college friends

Good Day, God!

Thank YOU! Kit is Alive and Well. I confess, that yesterday, fearing for my beloved husband’s well-being, I offered all sorts of DEALS to You.

Kit was one of 47 runners in the Boston Marathon over 75. And he ended up number 5 among those runners. Indeed, for a while he was jockeying for second or third place in his age group.

Ah, but the infamous Heartbreak Hill late in the race, plus the high temperatures, conspired to make the last few miles difficult — for Kit and for everyone else.

Kit ended up in the medical tent — woozy — and they kept him there long enough to reduce me to tears. Well, not so much that I was worried — as he called ONCE to say he was in section 3 of the medical tent and fine. But, that I then lost contact with him.

This was 1) Due to his cell phone being ON but having a ring tone set to Very Low. 2) Due to my cell phone running out of its battery because I totally forgot about turning off the 20 other apps I had running in the background. And I had been “on the road” since 9:00 that morning — taking photos and listening to The Power of Habit.

Having the stress of Kit’s running in the heat was one thing. But not being able to FIND him to meet up with him — THAT reduced me to copious weeping when back in the hotel room. But, after my iPhone came back to life I found that Kit had been leaving me messages . . . which I retrieved — unlike Kit who didn’t know how to retrieve my messages.

Finally, after a long period of each of us calling at the same time and getting the other’s voice mail, we connected.

Oh! Thank You, God, for the JOY of connecting! The JOY of the Lost Husband, FOUND!

Tagged with: Boston Marathon, Heartbreak Hill, medical tent, out of contact
Posted in Adventures, connecting, connections

The Day Before the Marathon

Posted on April 15, 2012 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

The Blessing of Kit and the Marathoners at Trinity Church

Good Day, God!

It’s The Evening before the Boston Marathon, God! Yikes! I’m still a little anxious, but the Blessing of Kit and the other marathoners this morning at Trinity Episcopal Church has helped.

It was really hard for me to wake up and go off to church this morning. My whole body was kicking its heels and yelling that it wanted to stay home and sleep. Actually, my body didn’t have that much energy. It was more of a snivel and whine. It was only knowing that Kit would not go without me — and the dim sense that it would prove a blessing — that got me going.

I am so thankful I gave Kit that “Love Gift,” God. Because it was a lovely service. Beautiful music! How marvelously rousing was the organ booming out Chariots of Fire at the end.

And the sermon by William Rich, hit the mark, too. He talked about how the celebration of Easter continues for a full 7 weeks. He explained that it takes TIME to absorb the reality of a man being raised from the dead — a long time for many of us.

Aah, God, do we ever truly absorb What That Means? As for me, God, it feels as if I catch glimpses. But, we have been Set Free and we are called to Stand as Free People. Hmm. Please help me to Stand Up, God — and Stand Free of the Invisible Fears that quietly entangle me.

Tagged with: Blessing of the runners, Boston Marathon, Chariots of Fire, Easter, love gifts, Trinity Episcopal Church
Posted in Faith, fears, freedom, small hidden fears

At the Expo — A Women’s Rights Reminder

Posted on April 14, 2012 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

The first women (then illegal) to complete the Boston Marathon

Good Day, God!

Kit and I pushed and jostled our way through the Boston Marathon Expo this afternoon. A BIG CROWD! And with over 25,000 runners that’s no surprise.

What WAS a SURPRISE was seeing this booth with Katherine Switzer signing books and posing for photographs. She was the first woman to run Boston with a bib number — which she got because she signed up with her initials. It was 1967 and it was a FOR MEN ONLY race.

Bobbi Gibb had run it the year before — also “illegally,” or do they refer to it as “unofficially” now days? No, I just looked and they refer to it as “unsanctioned.”

I knew about marathons not “allowing” women runners, God. In fact, we know Jacqueline Hansen, who brought a lawsuit against the Olympic committee to get them to allow women to run the marathon — which they did in 1984.

Still, it was a SURPRISE for me — because I had forgotten. I had not erased it from my memory, God. I had just sort of lost sight of it. We “forget” a lot of things like that — at least I do.

Katherine Switzer’s case got more publicity because a race official tried to pull her off the course and her running companion shoved the official — all captured on camera and widely published. Of course, the result of all that publicity wasn’t to let women run! The result was that the AAU banned women from running in meets with men or they would lose the right to compete. The longest run the AAU had for women was 1.5 miles.

I guess women were not considered physically able to run — shades of women as the weaker sex! All of this is laughable now, God. But, gender inequities are no laughing matter. Especially in other parts of the world that are busy “protecting” women.

Well, we could certainly do a better job protecting children, God — all over the world. Meanwhile, Thank You, God, for the reminder of how far we women have come — and how much further we have to go.