Party! Party!

The professional photographer took over 900 photographs at V&M's wedding! There are a couple of them of me which are not bad. (Predictably, I dislike more than I like!)  But of the 950 photographs of the bride,  948 of them are rather gorgeous!  From the earliest part of the day, and getting dressed,  to dancing well into the night,  Yo was just beaming and happy and beautiful.

I want some of those pictures for sure!  She told me to wait until they gave me some, so I am trying to wait!  Meanwhile,  I find many interesting ones posted on Facebook by their friends who were in attendance.

The volume of the music was a bit loud for my taste,  but the band was targeted toward the 20 something generation.  Clearly, many of them had a great time partying and dancing.  At one point, all the Cornell grads were invited to gather on the dance floor for a picture.  There were probably forty of them there!   And looking at our children and their spouses, and adding it all up,  I discovered much to my surprise that we have seven of them in our own family!  Four are engineers---not to imply that this is somehow better than other areas of study....it's just that they think so!

It's interesting....looking at the photographs.   I got to see many details of things that I had missed that day, being pre-occupied with my own responsibilities and concerns.  For one thing,  the bridal bouquets were so unique and colorful and lovely.  Some of the things I remember seeing in the bouquets---artichoke, rosemary, thyme, white flowers, greenery.  

The bride chose "go green" gifts;  and used apples and moss and branches for centerpieces.  It was an event, for sure!

The Joy of Home

We have been traveling and had a wonderful time visiting friends.  But no matter where we have been, nor for how long,  I'm always so so glad to be home.  Home has endless possibilities and many comforts.  My favorite chair.  My pile of books to read.  My computer. I will say, though, that this time when we traveled, we took laptops and used wireless connections wherever we were.  It was comical to see three out of the four of us at our hosts' house sitting at the kitchen table with our laptops!

I've only been up a few minutes and two people have reminded me that this is the first day of my "new retirement". (Retirement means not having to set the alarm clock!   I much prefer to get up by my biological clock, whenever possible.)

What new adventures shall I pursue?  We had our first freeze the night before we got  home, so there is dead vegetation that needs to be removed.  I could do that, I suppose.  I could grocery shop for food, which we desperately need.  I may do those things and more.  I think I shall just live in the moment, as it unfolds, and not have a plan for today. I shall move slowly into the day. That's the joy of retirement.

I'll admit that I am still in the process of learning how to be retired. This time around, I think I shall be better at it.  Of course, we are all, always in process, evolving, both spiritually and physically.  I recently read a book by Deepak Chopra, which had a huge impact on me.  He writes this about the process of life:   At this moment your body is a river that never stays the same, a continuous stream merging hundreds of thousands of chemical changes at the cellular level.  Those changes move life forward.  

Last night I saw some pictures of me from the wedding.   I don't feel as old as I looked.  But alas, I suppose that too, is a part of the life moving forward process.

My theory for the day is,  if I slow down, I can slow down that process!   Right?

The New South

We are visiting friends in Rock Hill, South Carolina.  Yesterday we took a lovely ride on Wylie Lake on a pontoon boat.  Riding around a lake, one sees the many mansions that millionaires have built.  There were dozens and dozens of them (and it wasn't a huge lake).  One wonders where so much wealth comes from!  Some of the homes would easily rival castles in Europe.  And many are only occupied on the weekends!  The owner of the boat recalled hearing that one of the homes had a million dollars worth of plumbing hardware. 

This is not the old south of my childhood, by any means.   Rock Hill is not far from Charlotte, NC and clearly the whole area is fully developed, economically vital, and progressive.  In our travels, we did see some cotton that was ripe and ready to be harvested, though cotton is no longer king in the south.  One thing in abundance in both the old and new south----churches!  Churches are central to life here, the source of most schools (as opposed to public education);  as the source of most sports;  as the source of worship, fellowship, relationships.   That is one thing that seems to be the same as I remember.

Another difference---lots of sunshine!   It is good to see other parts of the world, from time to time.  This part is new to me, but also reminds me in many ways of my childhood.   Especially the vegetation, and the red clay soil,  the sandy lawn.   It smells like my childhood!  

It is definitely true that smells and memory go together!

So Much Love

By my count,  this is the fifth congregation to whom I have said farewell in the last two and a half years.  The first was the congregation from which I retired in 2008.  The next two were to two churches I served as Interim in the fall of 2008. The fourth was to a congregation I served as interim in the Spring of 2009.  And today,  to this congregation I have served as Interim Associate Pastor for the past nine months.  Nine months is enough time to form a very strong bond.

I feel like no one deserves the kind of love that gets bestowed on me as pastor (especially not me)!  There were so many many expressions of gratitude for my ministry today, in the form of prayers, gifts, cards, flowers, hugs, words.  To tell you the truth, I'm always a little embarrassed by the love which people express toward me.   I do hope I am able to accept it graciously, because I am truly and deeply honored.   It has always been hard for me to grasp---- that there is something that I am able to do, offer, give, generate, embody, say, share---as pastor--which is deeply meaningful to others,  which evokes a love response.

I received so much love today!  Words like:  "I am going to miss you more than you can ever imagine."  "You have brought so much joy to our church and especially to me personally."  "You will be greatly missed."  "I love you."

I can't say what it is exactly that causes people to love me as pastor.....but I am humbled, amazed, and greatly appreciative!

I made a decision to do Interim ministry when I retired.  Whether I will continue to do so or not, I don't know at this point.  Perhaps I'll just have to follow where my heart (spirit) leads.  That has always served me well.   I trust that will continue.

Life is full of glorious surprises. And I thank God for that!