I have seen my future and I don't like it. One of my parishioners was moved to a rehab (physical not addiction) facility. It's a rehab, not a nursing home, so I was surprised by the smell in the hall way as I tried to find the room. The smell was sort of like slightly used cat liter. A bit of urine, a bit of moldy, a bit of musty. Not very pleasant.
So, here the hospitals are all single patient rooms, but the rehab facility rooms are two person. Folks are in rehab longer than they are in the hospital. Here the room was tiny. Tiny. Tiny. It barely had room for two beds. They were not separated by space, but by a curtain.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Will It Never End?
Left church early to visit parishioner in hospital. Got home. Took dog for a walk (am dogsitting). Got a phone call from church. Message to call elderly, elderly parishioner between two hours tomorrow. Have no idea when message was left. Called. Parishioner's niece answered. Parishioner had surgery yesterday. I think I am going to have to start retrieving messages from voice mail rather than relying on office volunteers. Now the question is, how do I manage to squeeze in a hospital call either tonight or tomorrow. I have a funeral on Friday. I am going to hear Borg and Crossan on Saturday.
I did manage a jog this afternoon. I think maybe I feel better.
I did manage a jog this afternoon. I think maybe I feel better.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
I'm tired. And I don't feel good. My sinuses have taken over. I slept about two hours this afternoon. Gave up swimming. Visited bereaved family today to plan funeral. So, I have a funeral on Friday, I'm going to see Borg and Crossan all day Sat. Oh, tonight the clergywomen are coming over here. I still have to do some picking up. I want to get my PIF off. I've got the PIF (mostly the same one from three years ago--the beauty of frequent moves), but I want to write a good cover letter. The CIF (not a church) has been up for a month, so I want to get my PIF in before they decide they've had enough.
And very sick parishioner in hospital that I visited today and will visit tomorrow.
I've given up swimming today for a nap. Hope to get a swim in on Thursday but probably won't. I will jog though.
You ever notice how most guys don't blog this sort of stuff? The utter minutia of daily life? Do you think they even think about it?
And very sick parishioner in hospital that I visited today and will visit tomorrow.
I've given up swimming today for a nap. Hope to get a swim in on Thursday but probably won't. I will jog though.
You ever notice how most guys don't blog this sort of stuff? The utter minutia of daily life? Do you think they even think about it?
Change
Rev Anne posted a great sermon on change and I have a quick thought. Yesterday I was with a parishioner just after she died. My friends know that the church I pastor is dying and that they are so afraid of change that they have chosen to die. When we stop changing we die. That's it. Every breath we take brings change: new molecules entering our bodies. Every time our hearts beat we change: blood bringing that new oxygen to cells which are dying and are reproducing. The world changes from second to second. So, why are we humans so terrified of change? I know that as we age change brings lessened abilities. I hear that the elderly in our congregation are facing so many changes that they MUST have the same thing they have always had in worship, including the same people. (This from folks near my age: an excuse I am sure for things I do not yet understand) Isn't the answer to accept change, accept that we cannot do what we could when we were 30, that this diminishment is a preparation for the death that is in the future for each of us?
Why chose death for the institution that they profess that they love so much?
Why chose death for the institution that they profess that they love so much?
Monday, February 23, 2009
Hope
I have always known that our denomination would eventually permit ordination of gays and lesbians. The question has always been when? Now that I live in Memphis, I better understand what folks in conservative presbyteries are up against. Up to now, I have been privileged to be part of really great presbyteries. I was an elder in Western Reserve and a minister in Lake Michigan. Both are loving supportive presbyteries.
Back to hope. The number of flipping presbyteries this year is amazing. And some of the ones that have switched is also amazing. I read on one blog that there seems to be no coorelation (at least that's they way I read the blog) between churches leaving presbyteries and the switch in votes.
Maybe not this year, but next time I think it will happen. Praise God!
Back to hope. The number of flipping presbyteries this year is amazing. And some of the ones that have switched is also amazing. I read on one blog that there seems to be no coorelation (at least that's they way I read the blog) between churches leaving presbyteries and the switch in votes.
Maybe not this year, but next time I think it will happen. Praise God!
Friday, February 20, 2009
Help!
I did a funeral today and visited an elderly parishioner in the hospital. It's my day off. And I have a parishioner whose mother in law is now on hospice and is close to death. I have to go out there tomorrow. I'm afraid I'll havec anothecr funecral tomorrow and now my keyboard is doing really funny things with es. I keep getting ecs randomly.
I am going to take time off particularly if I have to do another funeral.
I am going to take time off particularly if I have to do another funeral.
Friday Five
From RevGalBlogPals
n that spirit, I offer this Taking a Break Friday Five. Tell us how you would spend:
1. a 15 minute break
2. an afternoon off
3. an unexpected free day
4. a week's vacation
5. a sabbatical
1. In all honesty, I'd waste the 15 minute break.
2. An afternoon off. In all honesty, I'd probably waste that too, surfing the web. Now, I'll tell you what I'd like to say that I'd do. If the weather was nice, I'd take my camera out to Shelby Farms and look for the heron and try to take some pictures.
3. An unexpected free day. Again, probably just waste the time. But, I'd like to get up early and drive down to the Delta and take some pictures. I've gone to Clarksdale and there are cotton farms and tumbledown buildings I'd like to get in nice light.
4. A week's vacation (on top of my 6 weeks I take now?) I think if I could persuade my dive buddy, I'd take off for Bonaire. I more and more look back on my week there in January as a spiritual retreat. I didn't do as much as I'd wanted (see answers to #1,2 and 3), but I did dive everyday and ran or walked in the mornings. It was just wonderful. We'd planned to rent bikes and bike everyday but just never got around to it. I wanted to kayak the last day (can't dive 24 hours before flying), but we never got around to it. I did read a lot.
5. A sabbatical. If I were pastoring an healthy, living congregation, I'd love to take some time to go to Europe. I'd like to visit Taize and see the worship there and go back to Iona. I'd also like to track down some churches that are doing the St. Thomas mass (I think that's the right name). I'd like to visit Greece and the places Paul went. And go back to see the Berninis in Rome at the Villa Borghesa and the mosaics in Ravenna. Or, I might go to Ghana and see the work that Living Waters is doing there and work a while on one of their projects.
n that spirit, I offer this Taking a Break Friday Five. Tell us how you would spend:
1. a 15 minute break
2. an afternoon off
3. an unexpected free day
4. a week's vacation
5. a sabbatical
1. In all honesty, I'd waste the 15 minute break.
2. An afternoon off. In all honesty, I'd probably waste that too, surfing the web. Now, I'll tell you what I'd like to say that I'd do. If the weather was nice, I'd take my camera out to Shelby Farms and look for the heron and try to take some pictures.
3. An unexpected free day. Again, probably just waste the time. But, I'd like to get up early and drive down to the Delta and take some pictures. I've gone to Clarksdale and there are cotton farms and tumbledown buildings I'd like to get in nice light.
4. A week's vacation (on top of my 6 weeks I take now?) I think if I could persuade my dive buddy, I'd take off for Bonaire. I more and more look back on my week there in January as a spiritual retreat. I didn't do as much as I'd wanted (see answers to #1,2 and 3), but I did dive everyday and ran or walked in the mornings. It was just wonderful. We'd planned to rent bikes and bike everyday but just never got around to it. I wanted to kayak the last day (can't dive 24 hours before flying), but we never got around to it. I did read a lot.
5. A sabbatical. If I were pastoring an healthy, living congregation, I'd love to take some time to go to Europe. I'd like to visit Taize and see the worship there and go back to Iona. I'd also like to track down some churches that are doing the St. Thomas mass (I think that's the right name). I'd like to visit Greece and the places Paul went. And go back to see the Berninis in Rome at the Villa Borghesa and the mosaics in Ravenna. Or, I might go to Ghana and see the work that Living Waters is doing there and work a while on one of their projects.
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