Be here now...

It hardly seems possible to me, but I've been retired for almost two years! It's been an interesting transition going from full-time to part-time. Sometimes when I wake up, I think what do I have to do today? Of course, there is always plenty to do except that hardly anyone will notice, one way or the other.

When I was the pastor of the Cranbury United Methodist Church, I seldom took a formal day off during the week. I had set office hours from 9 till noon, and then most days, back again after lunch or out making calls. Many times I walked to the office, stopped by Teddy's restaurant and picked up coffee, and chatted with people throughout the morning as they came into the church for one reason or another. 25 years of that in Cranbury.

But now, the world is a different place for me. Chris gets two days a week off, and they're never the same, but because I mostly don't have any place in particular I have to be, we can arrange to spend those days together, whatever they are. The rest of the time is pretty much mine, except for my part-time obligations to the church in Florence.

The thing I wonder about is: How did I get here to this stage of my life? Retirement always seemed like a lifetime away. You know, when you're a kid and you and your friends would spin around in place until you got so dizzy that you just fell down? Well, no, that's not quite it. If you've ever been put under anesthesia for some reason, and then suddenly you're being waked up? Yeah, that's closer to it. It all seems so sudden, and that day that was so far off is suddenly your present tense. The difference, of course, is that under anesthesia you don't know anything about what went on while you were under, but I remember quite well so many of the events and circumstances of my Cranbury years. And still, the time went incredibly fast.

Sorry for the rambling nature of this, but I just wanted to say that in spite of how things seem in the passing of time, it's all really very fast, very fast indeed. If you're a parent, one moment you're holding an infant and changing diapers and reading bedtime stories and all the other things that parents do. Then the next thing you know, your kids are driving and are probably taller than you and have their own opinions about things (which is the way it's supposed to be, by the way.)

The Buddhists have a saying that simply goes: "Be here now." I've thought about that so many times..."be here now." The wisdom in that is invaluable! Be present in all times of your life--good and bad. Learn from the bad, celebrate the good. It's all life. John Lennon said, "Life is what is happening to you while you're making other plans."

I will say quite sincerely and honestly, thank you to all my family, friends, and acquaintances with whom I have been journeying along the way! It is the people of our lives, with whom we spend time and work and play together that makes being here now so rich and wonderful!

These are the times that try men's souls...

Someone once said that patience is a virtue and people have been quoting that ever since. Well, let me say this about that: patience is not only a virtue, it's also equivalent to a four-letter word: hard! I know that to be true for me anyway. Here's my story for those of you who don't know it already. If you have heard it, please feel free to ignore this post; but then again, you have the freedom to ignore any post I put out there, don't you?

On December 22, 2010, I purchased a car. Specifically, I purchased a 1999 Subaru Forester. I fell in love with it, so to speak, because it was just the right price, just the right size, just the right style for the likes of somebody like me. For all intents and purposes, I test drove it and I liked the way it felt on the road. Bingo! The perfect vehicle for a retired guy living in the country--space in the back for the dog, room for buying things at Home Depot, and all wheel drive for those difficult places in which I might otherwise get stuck such as mud or snow.

I got behind the wheel to drive it home and that's when the craziness began. First, as I was joyfully gliding along the road, all of a sudden the locks started going off and on automatically, along with my headlights flashing as if possessed by a vehicular spirit. So I discovered online that there was a way to adjust that system with a reset button. So that's what I did. All seemed well--I was happy again. But the spirit returned with vengeance to the extent that I was at one point locked in the car! (Whoa! Is this where I'll spend the rest of my days?) I did manage to convince the spirit of the locks to let me out, and the next day I took the car back. They said they'd get right on it--which meant by their timing, two to three days. In the meantime, it snowed a really big snow, and I was without my all wheel drive super car to get me off the farm.

When I got it back, they had done away with the alarm system in order to prevent future lock curses from entrapping me in the otherwise friendly surroundings of my old '99. Driving the road, I happily went to my church down in Florence, NJ. On the way home on I-95, I gazed down at the gauges only to see that my car was overheating. I immediately pulled off the road to let it cool down. About a half hour later, I completed my homeward journey and, once again, the next day, I drove up to the dealer's. They'd get right on it--which, of course, meant 3-5 days in this case. It snowed again, just as heftily as before. Once again, where's my all wheel drive perfect vehicle?

You're probably getting bored with the story by this time, so I'll shorten it by saying it overheated two more times, requiring towing on one occasion. Then, pulling out of my parking place at the church one Sunday, the wheel fell off--that's right--fell off. It got towed from Florence to Lambertville. Then when I got it back three days later, I took it to a mechanic that I had had work done by through the years in Cranbury. On the way, it overheated. After looking it over, the mechanic said, "This car needs a new engine." It got towed back to the dealers, where it has been since February 15.

I know that a lot of people would have taken some pretty severe legal action by then. First, the car didn't fall under the so-called Lemon Law. Second, no matter how foolish I appear to many proactive people, I like to pride myself (and there's the problem) as one who is very spiritual. I know, I know...there's a limit, right? Okay, I get it, but that's how I am in my nature. Of course, I'm not always sure whether I'm spiritual or if that's my justification for the way I am. Anyway, I'm supposed to be getting it back today, although I've not heard anything from them.

All I'm asking is that when the day comes that I leave this dimension of life, will you please vote for my sainthood? That will make the whole matter of patience not only a virtue, but purposeful.

Weekend Guest of the Canine Variety

So, last weekend Tim came up from D.C. to keep a promise he had made to his mom on her birthday in January. His promise: to make her a birthday dinner of her choice. Her choice: a New Orleans style meal. He fixed an elegant and delicious recipe of shrimp and grits. By the way, I benefited from that as well, as evidenced by one of the pictures on the side (embarrassing, to say the least).

Accompanying Tim was Wolfie--a rather large dog of German Shepherd and Huskie mix. I have to say though, he resembles the wolf from Little Red Riding Hood, if you ask me. But he's quite self-assured and gentle, in spite of the fact that he was rescued from an abusive situation where his owners even ran him over with the car. He and our Faye played and played and played. She's still tired. The picture in this post shows them playing a spontaneous game of tug-of-war.

Now here's your assignment: Look above Wolfie's head and see if you can see the orb (a circle of light). I'm going to get crazy on you now. An orb represents and is the presence of a spirit. (You still there?) We are familiar with them and have other photos with them in as well. And to answer a question you may be pondering--no, the camera lens was not dirty or wet or reflecting light from anything. You might find it interesting to check some of your own photos. You have to look carefully, but you might be surprised that there was the presence of one or more spirits hovering in your life when you least expected it.

When Reality Is Even Better than the Idea

I just got back from a hike on Baldpate Mountain with our dog, Faye. She's quite a trailblazer, and kept me on track when I might have wandered off into a briar patch. Anyway, as we were hiking along, I got to thinking not just about the beauty of the day, but about how glorious of a gift it was to be able to be doing this. I mean, I'm 68 years old as of this past February, but I am still able to get outdoors to do the things that I love. Then, I got to thinking about the fact that the idea of hiking today was a splendid one, but the reality of it was even better.

Are you familiar with the saying "Sometimes an idea is better than the reality"? It's one that I've often quoted myself, and in so doing, convinced myself that that is some kind of natural law. Truth is, it isn't. It's a state of mind that we've bought into so easily that we believe that it is the way things have to be.

I've been thinking about a Lenten series I want to offer at my church in Florence and it suddenly struck me while Faye and I were walking: "When Reality Is Even Better than the Idea." I'm pretty excited about that. It's a definite paradigm shift that I think we all could use, and it's extremely spiritual in nature. Why should we be so conditioned to assume that the realities of our everyday world are always going to be less exciting than our imaginations can conceive of them?

Out of the hike today, I've decided that on Wednesdays April 6, 13, and 20 at 7:30, I will hold a worship/workshop at the church (I'll be putting the congregation to work a little bit) on that theme. I'll use my guitar for the music. I'm sorry if this sounds like an ad, but I'm very inspired about this idea and want the reality of it to be even better. There's no cost involved other than your time. It will approximately be an hour each evening. Let me know if you're interested so that if you plan to attend, I can have enough materials for everyone.

Keeping Your Eyes Open

I frequently look for signs--not Burma Shave signs--SIGNS. I personally believe that divine windows that help us peer into the otherwise unseen spiritual world are around us, perhaps everyday. I realize, of course, that that is potentially a risky thing because we might assign meaning to something that just happens to be coincidental. But, then again, unless it involves something like jumping off a bridge, it may be worth taking that risk.

Last Sunday morning, Chris and I were sitting at the dining room table. She was going through the mail and I was working on thoughts for my sermon (as seen above).

Suddenly Chris said to me, "Hey! Look at that!" And she pointed to one of the candles on the table. Then I saw it too! One of the candles that had been lit for my birthday dinner the previous week had an undeniable image formed in the wax drippings at the top. Take a look for yourself at the picture over to the right.

If you were to ask me what I think it means, I couldn't specifically answer that. It could mean a lot of things. But in general I feel like it's some kind of blessing or affirmation. Signs don't always have to be specific, per se, and frequently aren't. They are just indications that God, angels, spiritual guides, etc. are very much with you and supporting you. They are meant to comfort and encourage.

So keep your eyes and heart open. You might be very surprised what you see on an otherwise quite ordinary day.

This Dragon's Head appeared in our fireplace one night!

Me again...

It's been awhile since I paid any attention to my blog due to a lot of circumstances. I got very preoccupied with other things during the holidays and kind of left this behind. But I now have a renewed interest in doing some writing, and sharing my thoughts with anyone who may care to read them. Nothing profound, I assure you. But I've been working on my spiritual life in some new ways which I have found extremely helpful. I have been particularly interested in an ancient Hawaiian practice called ho'oponopono. It's a kind of clearing exercise that helps get rid of some of the things that have been programmed into our unconscious mind. In a way, it's a mantra, but it's also a prayer. The experience it provides is to deepen your sense of the Divine.

Those of you who are very linear may think of it as hokey. I understand that. It does sound a little bit like a new age concept. But I have found it to be a very meaningful and reassuring practice. I guess it's a matter of to-each-his-own. I would suggest that anyone who is looking for a different and prayerful practice to give it a try. You can read more about it online, particularly regarding a very powerful story of Dr. Hew Len. Using this practice, he has been attributed for the healing of some criminally insane inmates who were institutionalized in a hospital in Hawaii. This he achieved without once seeing the patients themselves. Apparently it's very well documented. There's a lot more behind the concept of ho' oponopono, but for now the practice is simply this:

Repeat the phrases I love you, I'm sorry, Please forgive me, Thank you. And say them over and over either aloud or in your head. You are saying it to God or to your inner self. Also I highly recommend you go to YouTube and listen to a few of what's there under the same name: ho' oponopono.