Posts Tagged ‘personal’

Enjoying the life of a lioness on the Serengeti

May 4, 2010

There are some pretty disappointed critters in our backyard today, I cut the grass. It has only been four weeks, but there was a lot of moisture, rain/storms, while we were gone.

Mother rabbit was hanging around most of each day with her ears visible in the tall grass. I’m thinking she was enjoying the life of a lioness on the Serengeti. Perhaps she wasn’t aware of an occasional coyote, nor did she look up much to be aware of the red tails in the neighborhood. Anyway, without the cover she’ll feel more vulnerable and go back to her predawn hours.

My many friends in the mole family have had their shenanigans revealed. Is there a four-wheel drive hand mower for those soft spots? It’s time to put out my I HAVE TRAPS! sign.

A treat of treats has been the baby chipmunks. In all these years, I had never seen a baby chipmunk. We have four! They are obviously honing their skills, exploring and doing some low-level climbing. One found a hole along the edge of a brick walk. It would disappear, come back out, disappear again. They found maple seeds interesting.

I remember when I saw my first chipmunk in Minneapolis. They always were in the north woods of Minnesota, but I didn’t see one in Minneapolis before the 70s. Now, seeing them in Saint Louis really seems odd to me.

Our late Schnauzer, Katie,  did a pretty good job of critter control, dragging a squealing mole out of the ground cover, finding baby rabbits fun to catch and kill. When she barfed up an entire mole on the family room floor, we found her willingness to share her spoils a little much.

The spot on the carpet is still there twenty years later. Oh, we clean at it and render it invisible. But it comes back,

Disoriented in time

December 7, 2009

On the Friday following Thanksgiving, we went to a small gathering in the neighborhood where our first house is located. We moved from there more than 32 years ago. It’s a small street of story and a half Cape Cod homes. At one point during the afternoon, as dusk was setting in, I found myself looking out the front window. Across the street, and two houses down, stood our old house. For a brief moment I was disoriented, certainly disoriented in time.

My wife later reported experiencing a similar feeling as she sat talking between two of our old neighbors. A little light-headed and momentarily lost.

An hour or two later we were back in our home eating pulled-pork sandwiches with our grown children and all three grandchildren. All was well.

A blessing beyond measure

May 7, 2009

Last Saturday marked the eighth anniversary of my work as a volunteer chaplain at a maximum security prison. Eight years which have transformed my life.

How did all this unfold?

I retired at end of ’96 from a career of engineering, manufacturing, and executive management.

Having retired, I went back to school to study theology.

Studying theology, I wanted a means to express what I learned.

To express what I learned, I majored in preaching.

Majoring in preaching required a venue for my internship

A venue for internship came to be a jail/prison environment

Working in a prison environment led to the lay chaplain role I am now in.

So, eight years of ministering to those in solitary confinement have given me the confidence to minster to those awaiting execution, have led to more impactful preaching at prison prayer services, have made me a more patient listener to those who struggle, have prepared me for a whole spectrum of emerging spiritualities, have been a blessing beyond measure.

A weekend of great diversity

January 17, 2009

This is turning out to be a weekend of great diversity. Last evening we attended a concert by the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra. Today was time spent in the basement working on a wall cabinet for a 72-bottle wine rack. Tonight bridge with friends we’ve known for44 years. Tomorrow, a internet broadcast of the Minnesota at Northwestern basketball game plus the Eagles at the Cardinals NFC Championship game on TV.

Oh, and getting a load of sweetgum balls off the front yard while we have a break in the weather. It’s really qute a lot of fun.

I’m just a guest anywhere on this planet

June 22, 2008

Time to reflect in an environment constantly reminding me of its dominance, its unpredictability, and that I am really just a guest in nature, is a gift. Actually, I’m just a guest anywhere on this planet, but in modern cities there is an illusion of being insulated from the overwhelming power of natural forces.

Being on the shore of a large lake in the north woods brings an exposure to nature from several aspects. Power is easily interrupted on a day of severe winds when power lines run for miles through the woods. No electricity quickly means no water for a waterwell-supported dwelling. Temperature in the main cabin begins to drop as the electric baseboard heaters cool.

We had never seen a steady 30-40 mph wind straight off of the lake before. Waves were crashing over the entire dock. Some nearby docks were dismantled and floated by in sections. A large panel of wood decking would not be good jammed up against any object, and we cheered each panel as it went under and between the legs and structure of our dock.

Everything gathered further down the shore, and a couple of days later, on a calm and sunny day, a young man was seen towing the dock pieces back to where they came from.

The power was off from 2:30 in the afternoon until midnight. Going to bed early under four blankets was a good idea. I awoke briefly after midnight  to see a table lamp on. We called the power company the next morning to voice our appreciation for the line crews. The rest of the morning was spent picking up twigs, limbs and leaves from the driveway and the yard. Leaf fragments were plastered everywhere and needed to be brushed away before they were glued to whatever surface they landed on.

A whole day with no wind was a relief and very, very restful.

A significant emotional event

May 25, 2008

Reprogramming the body, mind, and spirit doesn’t seem to take very long. A significant emotional event such as our family’s heart episode two weeks ago will usually do it.

This morning in church, a woman two pews in front of me began having difficulty of some kind. I couldn’t tell if she was dizzy, short of breath, having chest or abdominal pains. A few parishioners began tending to her. I assumed they were doctors and/or nurses.

Before long she was stretched out on the pew; sirens could be heard outside; a police woman followed by two EMTs came down the aisle.  Our pastor came to anoint her.

By the time she was taken away, my entire upper body was drenched in perspiration. All I did was observe, but the impact on me physically and emotionally was pretty intense. I do hope she is OK, and that she found the help she needed.