vacation thoughts 5

revgals vacation *thoughts* (hopefully to bring to life before long) 5

from Sally, who says in her introduction:

It is a holiday weekend here in the UK, and the weather forecast for much of the country is not good!!! But we can still dream and so with that in mind I bring you this Friday Five.

1. Getting ready for summer, do you use the gradual tanning moisturisers (yes gentlemen you too can answer this!!!), or are you happy to show your winter skin to the world?

(This also is a major holiday weekend here, often referred to as the unofficial start of summer.) A few years ago I tried just a single tube of a gradual tan product, but found the results blotchy because it was impossible to apply evenly, though the color itself was fine. My complexion is light olive and I tan easily, so typically I wear sunscreen in the 35-50 range and during the days prior to achieving a reasonable real glow use a translucent bronzer, usually Bonne Bell's can't remember the name right now.

2. Beach, mountains or chilling by the pool, what/ where is your favourite getaway?

I love oceans, rivers, streams, rivulets (glaciers, waterfall, etc.) and any sand, restaurant or resting-place that's shoreside, but this is such a tourist destination and paradise in real life beaches here get way way far too crowded during the summer months, so I'll take conversation and food by the pool, ideally a friend's (municipal is okay, but not the YM/WCA) with ready access to a comfortable bathroom and real indoors shade.

3. Are you a summer lover or does the long break become wearing?

Summer! Summer! Summer! Endless, eternal summer, please!

4. Active holidays; hiking swimming sailing, or lazy days?

Active! Whether a vacation-length holiday, or just the long weekend we're anticipating here across the pond from the UK, I gotta keep moving, doing and showing results for my time.

5. Now to the important subject of food, if you are abroad do you try the local cuisine, or do you prefer to play it safe?

Oh, at least some local! In these here parts our local vernacular is mainly burgers and fries and Mexican, but ethnically our population is extremely diverse so you easily can get every kind of Asian and Amerasian fast food and slow food. When I'm home I eat a burrito a day, though in Mexico it's almost always a higher-end sit-down restaurant. Oh, you said "abroad!" I've only traveled abroad of home port to the aforementioned Mexico (San Ysidro/Tijuana is the busiest land border in the world, though I've also spent time in Mexico City), Peru and Guatemala plus a fair swath of central and northern Europe. So I eat whatever, usually allowing myself an occasional really sumptuous meal. But I realize especially in what one might refer to as 3rd and 4th world countries you really do need to have at least a little caution regarding local tap water and also take care since veggies and fruits may have been washed in contaminated water.

too long a time

This is how I've been feeling for too, too long...I found this in the "First Person" series on page 67 of the February 2000 print version of Life magazine; John Trotter is the author.

I struggle each day to find that once familiar person, me, closest companion. I've lost so much precious time. It's been rolling over me like a river in a nightmare, having neither length nor brevity. The waters...tangled me in a dark eddy of lonely struggle, apart from the world, where time hardly seemed to exist at all, even as it flowed past me. But as my awareness has gradually risen...I see that my loved ones, my friends, the rest of the world, have gone a long way down that river without me.

grand tour 5

revgals grand tour 5

songbird outlines today's 5--to name places in the categories:

1. though i realize "fave" implies uniqueness i have lots of favorites, but for now i'll pick albuquerque.

2. no real unfavorite, but there are too many places that send mixed signals to my total being; for this friday morning list it'll be cape cod. my grandparents who'd lived many places had a mid-cape house they remodeled, etc.; growing up i never could be sure what encounters and exchanges would happen on my next visit, and then as an adult it pretty much remained the same...

3. without considerations of cost and time i'll spend 6 or 8 weeks traveling through the indian sub-continent.

4. because i don't read or watch nearly enough fiction or fantasy, the only one i can think of would be avonlea(?) in prince edward island, where anne of green gables lived. in real life i far prefer energized urban or healing desert locations, but i loved the yesteryear setting and especially the clothes anne wore in that series.

5. funniest name--pass on this one, but i can't wait to see what everyone else dredges up!

thanks so much, songbird!

poetry party 18

invitation to poetry: and a donkey shall lead them

I love Christine's intro to this very Pauline, extremely Jesus-y topic:

The image was taken at a sheep farm in Arlington, WA, about an hour from Seattle. ... I was most moved however by the donkey they keep in the pasture with the sheep. Apparently he provides some extra protection for them from coyotes because he bonds with the sheep and then his size scares away some of the predators. At one point the dogs had herded the sheep behind the donkey and the image made me smile. I was reminded of the Isaiah 11:6 quote "and a little child shall lead them." ... Where do you go when you choose to relinquish your own ego and follow a path that might seem foolish?

This time I'll be prosaic rather than poetic and begin by admitting maybe particularly since I'm woman, that ego-not ego brings such a constant, often bewildering, seemingly insolvable push-pull. I love the earthy roots of the word "humility" connecting us, binding us to the soil - hummus - safely (I'd hope!) securing us into the ground. One of the greatest compliments I've ever received was from a woman who attended a church I served; she told me she was amazed I got the call because she had some awareness of their pretentious history and aspirations, and during my interviews I was "so real!" That's akin to being in the earth, the physical place where resurrection to new life of necessity must begin; being "real" (in Spanish the word spelled r-e-a-l means "royal"--Daughter of Heaven!) relates to letting go of the unnecessary layers of your self, freely allowing yourself to be seared by the fires of the Spirit of Pentecost, purified by the heat and born again from the ashes. Several places I've quoted "Endless Love," sung by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie; the recurrent phrase in the song, "and love, I'll be a fool for you," is exactly what God becomes for us in Jesus Christ. Both within and without the Church, foolish frequently is many people's perception of life in Christ. The Heidelberg Catechism explains how salvation history (and the liturgical year) moves from Christmas, with the mystery of Spirit in flesh, to Ascension, with the mystery of flesh in Spirit! May the example of Jesus Christ become our experience, as well!

Thanks for another wonderful opportunity, Christine!

pentecostal musical musings

I got to host this month's second Monday Musical Musings on the RevGals blog; check it out!

freedom & fire for pentecost 2008

5 for pentecost

with the festival day of pentecost right on time's horizon, hosting her first F5 ever, presbyterian gal offers today's Holy Spirit pre-pentecost 5; because it would take almost forever to do this justice, i'm taking a few pauline liberties with her questions.

RevGals Gifts of the Spirit 5

Have you or anyone you know

1. ...ever experienced a prophesy (vision or dream) that came true?

déjà vu that turns around into vujà dé--lots of times, but actually can't remember enough to write details right now. for the past few years i've become intentional about remembering dreams and often write them down; someone told me to pay attention to the symbols in a dream rather than the story line.

2. ...dreamed of a stranger, then actually met them later?

only in the sense 'this person and this situation both are so very familiar, i *almost* already know their behaviors and the outcome of this scenario.' as i wrote in #1, déjà vu that turns around into vujà dé and wraps around itself all over again.

3. ...seen a wonder in heaven? (including UFO's)

almost any natural phenomenon visible in the sky gives me a sense in my body, mind and emotions this may be a reassuring life- or world-transforming portent; typically i interpret these in a very positive manner. whenever i fly into tucson into the late afternoon/early evening southwestern sunset rather than on a later flight, it reminds me God is still speaking, still sovereign and endlessly lovingly concerned and providing for creation. tucson being an astronomical dark sky area makes it a perfect place for savoring these (right here and now) and those (in the past) experiences.

4. ...seen a "sign" on the earth?

a couple weeks ago i finished reading Quaker pastor Brent Bill's most recent book, Sacred Compass, and i'm currently trying hard to organize and blog my notes. In his book and in the podcast i listened to, Brent talked about learning to notice and read signs, and as both a visual artist and a reader-interpreter of scripture i routinely read high meaning into almost everything, natural, circumstantial and/or otherwise.

5. ...experienced knowledge of another language without ever having studied it?

a woman i met in one of my former cities of residence told me she'd learned Hebrew with very little effort whatsoever, convincing her she must have previously known it.

Bonus Question: What would a modern day news coverage of the first Pentecost have sounded like?

Today in the Holy City Jerusalem at the annual celebration of the Mount Sinai Covenant, known to the faithful as the Day of Pentecost, while an estimated several hundred followers of Jesus of Nazareth were gathered together a wild wind came into their midst and some reported a flame of fire appeared over the head of each individual. According to selected commentators and observers, many believe the renegade itinerant tekton or carpenter Jesus actually has brought a New Covenant of Grace to all creation and some consider the Man of Nazareth also to be the Christ of God. We'll bring you more video and an exclusive eyewitness report on our late evening newscast.

thanks, PG, and congrats on this 1st!

wait, pray friday 5

RevGals link--wait and pray friday 5

from Sally, here's todays 5:

1. These day I pray best (or at least better with more trust and less anxiety) with others, either one other person or in a group of almost any size.

2. About that discipline of waiting...a pastor I served with told me I love "the thrill of the chase," and he was so right, but lately (make that about 4 years' worth of latedness) I've been far far too anxious, though in general I'm usually more into anticipation's excitement. Nonetheless, I still know God has wonderful future surprises for me and for the world.

3. At least thus far, I've never waited upon God for a specific promise, but cannot wait until a time comes that I trust completely enough to claim one.

4. I hugely prefer action to stillness...I'm very restless and virtually never lack enough physical energy. Despite that fact, I try regularly to practice centering prayer and to consciously discern with all my senses the presence and movement of the Spirit throughout the day, whatever I'm doing, however I'm engaged.

5. For one gift, spiritual or otherwise I'd love to receive, I'll choose the ability to be alone by myself and with myself without excessive anxiety and fear of abandonment.

poetry party 17

abbey of the arts party 17: inner compass

What serendipity! At this very time I'm trying to write a blog about Brent Bill's book, Sacred Compass, for this week's poetry party Christine posted a group of four marvelous weathervanes from the state of Maine! I chose just one because shake shingles, black whale and all, it reminds me exactly of the outbuilding on my grandmother's acreage, though she hailed from Michigan and literally boasted hints of Nebraska and a touch of North Carolina. So I'll talk about it some.

In a seafaring town on the Atlantic Ocean coast, clapboard dwellings painted white and silvering shake shingles equally prevail. Tides, sand, rocks and dune grass being common concerns, so is the weather. You need to know where the winds are blowing, cuz what you don't know you can't say "yes" to and you certainly cannot ever intentionally change anything you don't know nothing about. Discerning breezes, spirited winds and directions in general is where weathervanes can be very handy, in addition to symbolizing past glories of way bygone whaling times. But regarding change, when I commented to my grandmother how raw and unfinished freshly new shingles seem to be, standing out in a too conspicuous way like a person of any age whose manners haven't been put on quite right politely, Nana pointed out to me how quickly, how naturally with no effort on their part the shingles just happen to acquire a shimmering patina of silver. You might even call it graceful! In spite of that fact, still I'm wondering if I wouldn't rather be brazenly conspicuous and freshly spoken, because that's how I've naturally become as winds and rains have breezed through my life and world and days. That's how my manner has become, polite or not much so, and to learn where the wind of the Spirit currently blows, Bob Dylan has words for what's going to be happening soon; you can read it all on his site at When the Ship Comes In and listen to it here. Here's a sample:

Oh the time will come up
When the winds will stop
And the breeze will cease to be breathin'.
Like the stillness in the wind
'Fore the hurricane begins,
The hour when the ship comes in.

Oh the seas will split
And the ship will hit
And the sands on the shoreline will be shaking.
Then the tide will sound
And the wind will pound
And the morning will be breaking.

Oh the fishes will laugh
As they swim out of the path
And the seagulls they'll be smiling.
And the rocks on the sand
Will proudly stand,
The hour that the ship comes in.

And the words that are used
For to get the ship confused
Will not be understood as they're spoken.
For the chains of the sea
Will have busted in the night
And will be buried at the bottom of the ocean.

© 1963; renewed 1991 Special Rider Music

And the morning will be breaking!

old, modern, post, etc. 5

in green, a color of life:

rev gals old, modern, post-modern, whatever friday 5

accorrding to singing owl...

Yesterday I had two separate conversations in which people were musing about how much change is occurring...The WW II generation [and] MY generation and how much change occurred in the last half of the 20th century...and on and on.

As for the questions!

1. I absolutely positively could not live without the ability to digitize my graphic design and of course that means electricity, computers, etc. I also appreciate indoor plumbing, but in this climate...

2. Right now I can't think of a modern convenience/invention that never should (I always say 'should' advisedly) have seen the light of day but probably will think of one as soon as I post this.

3. Older than a CD player? no, because I finally ditched all my cassette tapes after replacing those I couldn't live without, but between my iPod and YouTube, it looks as if most of the CDs are on their way out, too--a few months ago I freecycled about 50 of them! I've kept a couple dozen LP albums for their amazing cover art, and I have one vinyl 'record' that's not out in CD, but nothing to play it on: the Te Deum by Ernst Pepping; I need to get someone to transfer it to CD.

4. I love the way the world is changing at close to the speed of light, but it's consternating to realize how many people never have lived without a computer, don't really know what an LP is or (gasp!) are clueless about 45's...that must sort of be related to how young today's university students look to be to me!

5. Thinking especially of my grandmother, regarding what our forebears had and we maybe haven't lost quite completely but need to work hard to acquire [regain] and retain, an acute awareness of seasonal, natural rhythms of all kinds, including responsiveness to our own moods and the needs of body, mind and spirit. I won't do the bonus about starting that process, but I ponder the question lots.

Malachi 4:2

But to you who fear My name
The Sun of Righteousness shall arise
With healing in His wings;
And you shall go out
And grow fat like stall-fed calves. NKJV

But for you who revere my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. NRSV

24 hour 5

RevGals 24 hours friday 5

RevHRod introduces this great topic by saying:

Yesterday I had the 24 hour flu. I had been told by the people who had it first that it really was a twenty-four hour bug. And so while I dealt with all the blech of the flu, I kept reminding myself that morning would come and I would feel a lot better.

This is certainly a strange way to start out a Friday Five but it made me think about what I might like to do if I knew it would only last for 24 hours. There are no reality boundaries to these imaginings. So here are the five things for you to consider...

1. my chosen appearance change isn't all that dramatic! I'll be about 3 inches taller, about the same weight (meaning I'd look thinner, of course), and about 20 years younger...dreaming on into eternity...

2. for 24 hours I'll live on almost any caribbean island, dressing the part, acting the part and especially feasting on the food in those parts.

3. for someone else's job I'll be head chef for a high-end (maybe the highest-end) restaurant in the above-mentioned isle of the caribbean.

4. my quick spending a day choices are either martin and katie luther or johann sebastian bach.

5. for a magical power I'd definitely choose bilocation, though I'm not sure if that's technically magical or spiritual. on 2nd thought, how does trilocation sound?

Wherever You Go...

although the 60% gray background is literally cool and I like the rest of what I've done, I'm thinking something a little more light and airy, maybe almost casual, might fit the text better. I'm also going to trace and scan the original bulletin cover again--really soon, I hope.

Revelation 11:17

a trio of digital versions of my analog original; here's the magnificent Christus Pantocratur ascription from Revelation 11:17...

poetry party 16

Abbey of the Arts illuminated from within--Christine provided the beautifully unusual photograph!

illuminated from within

glowing subtly from inside to out
grief-laden cloud soaking my days, sorrowing my nights
almost imperceptibly transforms into
another resurrection dawn's
dew of morn reflecting
fresh hopes of
this new day