Friday Five – Salvaged Faith

Friday Five: Blogging of yesteryears

Posted on July 1, 20113 Comments

I… like quite a few other folks who read the prompt this morning on RevGalBlogPals.blogspot.com have decided to get back into the game. here are the questions, and here are my responses…

1) Have your blogging (writing/reading) habits shifted since the days of yore?

Photo By: Kriss Szkurlatowski

Absolutely. There were days that I was posting something every single day. I’d get home from work and the thoughts would be reeling and I’d hop on my computer and post something. Or I’d wake up in the middle of the night and run to my computer and post something. They were sometimes funny, sometimes simple, sometimes deep, but I was doing it regularly. My reading was definately more sporadic… usually whatever popped up at the top of my google reader page… so the more you posted, the more I read you.

Lately, my blogging has NOT been a habit at all. It’s something I do when I have nothing else to do and it’s still “work time.” At home, I have to cook, clean, garden, and sometimes I’m just exhausted. I miss the processing time that more regular blogging gave me.

2) Do you have some favorites that you miss?

The bloggers I miss most are my food bloggers… Bread and Honey was an absolute favorite for me and the posts are more sporadic. I also haven’t done the best at staying in touch with others that aren’t listed here.

3) Are there some blogs you still put in the ‘must read’ category?

I think most of my favorite theology/ecclesiology writers are still regular bloggers. John Munier @ An Arrow Through the Air, Jay Voorhees @ Only Wonder Understands, Dan Dick @ United Methodeviations, Jessica Kelley @ the Parsonage Family, Matthew Kelley @ The Truth as Best I Know It, Kristin @ Halfway to Normal

4) If we gathered at your knee, what would you tell us about those early days of blogging?

I started with things like livejournal, and I’m not sure that I ever cared very much about comments. But then I began to see that blogging can be a conversation and a relationship with other people over the things that we write about. And I have been a very bad friend lately.

5) Do you have a clip or a remembrance of a previous post of yours or someone else’s that you remember, you know an oldie but goodie?

for your perusing pleasure, a link to an early post, and the first post after my introduction to RevGals… I think I chose this one because it brings up the kinds of questions that I try to ask on my blog, and also because it was one of those moments when I knew I had found something special with the community at RevGals… It is also a reminder for me that I really do need to start doing this more regularly.

Baby Showers?

Posted on September 17, 20103 Comments

This week’s Friday Five from RevGals almost has me down in the dumps. You see, my husband and I are undecided about whether or not to have kids. Or rather, we are each decided, just in different directions. And it seems like EVERYONE I know is having a baby or has just had a baby and it’s making me a little bit crazy. I see pregnant people everywhere and I keep having dreams about pregnancy and babies and I’m not quite sure what to do about it, except to sit back and wait.

So, while I’m waiting, I’m going to do the Friday Five…

I hope you’ll participate in telling about your likes and dislikes about baby showers for you and for others.

1. What were baby showers like for you and your friends in the past?

None of my best friends have had babies yet! Which is kind of interesting. All six of us graduated high school in 2000 and none of us have kids. Although many of us want them and are secretly dying inside. I have however been to many baby showers for family members. They usually consist of cute little games, cute little things to eat, lots of pastel colors everywhere, and gifts – lots of gifts.

2. Did you play games? What kinds?

Most of them consist of guessing the date and time of birth, guessing the weight, giving advice to moms, etc. I have thrown a baby shower – and we played this awesome game where we melted candy bars inside of diapers and then you had to go around and taste each one and guess what kind of treat it was. It was really gross – and a lot of fun. We had a co-ed party for that one and the guys kind of liked the game.

We also played a version of “apples to apples” where we used only the adjective cards. We wrote down things you have around babies, like cribs, spit-up, diapers, crying and then everyone had to put in an adjective card. The new mom got to pick the best one each time. Which worked really well – except you might want to sort through your adjectives first… some of them are NOT appropriate when thinking about healthy little bundles of joy.

3. In your job, especially if you are a pastor, do you get invited to a lot of baby showers? What do you do about them?

Haven’t been invited to any yet =( I think that is a hard thing to say yes to, because often they are on weekends – which is sabbath and family time for me. I might send a card or something.

4. Are baby showers different for our daughters (or younger friends) than they were for us?

Not quite there yet… I think something that has changed a little bit, however, is that showers get thrown for second and third kids now, too. My sister-in-law just had her third and we threw her a big party. In part, it was because for her first two kids, they were far away and so we just didn’t do anything from the family. There was also a bit of a gap between her other kids and this one and there are so many new and exciting products out there now. They needed some new things that they just hadn’t kept from the first round of kids. I heard that for the first baby, you can throw a “shower” and that for the other ones you can have a “sprinkle” – but we just had fun and went all out.

5. Do you like hosting baby showers or do you avoid that responsibility?

I think that it is a lot of fun to host baby showers. We did a frog theme for the last shower I hosted and it was kind of cute and fun. I can’t wait for my siblings and my friends to start having kids =)

Bonus: Any silliness about baby showers you wish to contribute.

What? The dirty diaper game wasn’t enough? =)

Sleeping Habits

Posted on September 10, 20105 Comments

It has been a LONG time since I have played the RevGals Friday Five, but here goes!

…our Friday Five today will focus on sleep, or the lack there of.

1. Are you prone to sleep challenges? Insomnia, snoring, allergies? Other sleep challenges?

hmm… my husband claims I snore – but I am about 10,000x quieter than other members of my family. After spending a weekend with our inlaws, I think my husband was actually grateful for how quiet I am.

2. When you can’t sleep what do you do? Toss and turn? Get up and read? Play computer games?

I usually just lay there. I’m still pretty young and I haven’t quite experienced sleepless nights yet. Although the worst is when you don’t feel good and can’t sleep. I just roll over and pray that I drift off. Mostly I let my mind wander and think of all the things I need to do (I get a lot of sermons revised during these moments… as long as I remember my thoughts when I get up the next morning)

3. When you do sleep do you remember your dreams? Or just snipets of them?

There are some dreams I remember vividly… and if I was smart I’d write them down and write them into short stories. I’ve come up with some amazing dramatic little tales in my dreams.

4. Can you share a funny or confusing dream you’ve had? Or a dream you have over and over?

I used to have this dream that I was at the Living History Farms in Des Moines, IA and we were wandering through various centuries of farm life and there was a tornado. We had to run away from this monstrosity that was coming towards us. I think I’ve had that dream at least five or six times. Tornados are supposed to be symbols of change and warning in our dreams, so I wish that I had paid more attention to what was going on in my life when I have had those dreams.

5. When you don’t sleep how do you get through the day? Lots of coffee? or a nap later in the day?

Coffee tends to give me a headache when I’ve had too much. I try to nap, but mostly I just push through it and crash at the end of the day. As a person who pulled all-nighters in school, it was a badge of honor to push through it without any kind of stimulant help. The NEXT day was always hell – but there isn’t much besides sleep that can help me.

FF: Give Thanks

Posted on November 20, 2009Leave a comment

The Cure

Lying around all day

with some strange new deep blue

weekend funk, I’m not really asleep

when my sister calls

to say she’s just hung up

from talking with Aunt Bertha

who is 89 and ill but managing

to take care of Uncle Frank

who is completely bed ridden.

Aunt Bert says

it’s snowing there in Arkansas,

on Catfish Lane, and she hasn’t been

able to walk out to their mailbox.

She’s been suffering

from a bad case of the mulleygrubs.

The cure for the mulleygrubs,

she tells my sister,

is to get up and bake a cake.

If that doesn’t do it, put on a red dress.

–Ginger Andrews (from Hurricane Sisters)

–What is your cure for the “mulleygrubs”?–

My first instinct was to respond how I wallow when I have the “mulleygrubs.” I put on pj’s and light some candles and curl up in a blanket in front of the television. Then I wait for them to go away. But the cure… probably putting some upbeat piano and vocals (like the Gabe Dixon Band) or some funky beats (like Black Eyed Peas) and getting my groove on while I clean. There is nothing like getting my house in order to shake me out of the mulleygrubs.

–Where will you be for Thanksgiving?–

Thanksgiving Eve: out to dinner and a friends house. Thanksgiving: hosting hubby’s mom’s side at our house (I don’t even have to do anything in the kitchen!). Thanksgiving Friday: my brother’s house with my side of the family. Thanksgiving Saturday: my father-in-law’s for that side of the family.

–What foods will be served? Which are traditional for your family?–

We do pretty simple traditional things. Turkey, canned cranberry jelly =), stuffing (my mom always makes Rachel Ray’s stuffin’ muffins), mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes with marshmellows, green bean casserole, sweet corn (that was frozen at the end of summer), pumpkin pie. But there are also some not so traditional things: sauerkraut and a wild rice/mushroom dish.

–How do you feel about Thanksgiving as a holiday?–

I think its a terrific holiday. It’s a great chance to get together with your family and celebrate one another and the blessings of another year. My church doesn’t really do a thanksgiving service – although we did move Laity Sunday to last week and our theme was creation and abundance and thanskgiving… we sang lots of great old hymns and it was a nice way to kind of bring Thanksgiving in. I don’t like that all of our secular holidays make it into the church year. So we are sticking with Reign of Christ this Sunday.

–In this season of Thanksgiving, what are you grateful for?–

I’m grateful for my church which has always given me the opportunity to try new things, even if we fail miserably at them. I’m grateful for people across the world who are living out their faith in creative and authentic ways. I’m grateful for my close family and that we are finding new ways to support one another. I’m grateful for my husband and the ways that we keep muddling through this crazy thing called marriage.

–Bonus: What is Aunt Bertha’s Thanksgiving like?–

I’m not entirely sure, but I found that picture of a cake up above and I think that’s the kind of cake pan she would have and the kind of cake she would make. Nothing fancy – just sweet and warm and delicious. I picture her red dress being a little worn and faded, because it’s her favorite and she wears it over and over again. I picture a table heaping full of food from the garden, things that were canned and saved away over the summer and fall. I picture a turkey perfectly cooked – maybe a little overdone – that is far to big for her and Uncle Frank to eat. And I hope that someone shows up at their house to eat with them.

FF: Five Songs

Posted on October 23, 20092 Comments

When I was a very little girl growing up in Virginia, I never missed a Sunday going to Court Street Baptist Church. But there was something else that made Sundays special, and that was “Davey and Goliath.” Every week the opening strains of the theme song would find me lying on the floor, chin on hands, looking up expectantly to watch the adventures of a clay boy and his big dog.

What I didn’t realize was who wrote that music, the hymn “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.”

It was the same Martin Luther who said:

“I have no use for cranks who despise music, because it is a gift of God. Music drives away the Devil and makes people gay; they forget thereby all wrath, unchastity, arrogance, and the like. Next after theology, I give to music the highest place and the greatest honor.”

On this Friday before Reformation Sunday, let’s talk about music. Share with us five pieces of music that draw you closer to the Divine, that elevate your mood or take you to your happy place. They might be sung or instrumental, ancient or modern, sacred or popular…whatever touches you.

1) All Will Be Well – the Gabe Dixon Band… I fell in love with this song in Nashville – it pretty much sums up my theology (and may be the reason I love Moltmann so much)

2) Here I Am Lord – the song that represents my call – I love singing the harmony on the chorus when you get a big group of people together.

3) I Believe in a Thing Called Love – The Darkness – this song gets me up on my feet and moving. at a time when I was taking better care of myself and exercising regularly – this was the number one song on my playlist.

4) Hey Ya – Outkast – my dad and I danced to this song at my wedding – not for our father/daughter dance… but because he liked the song and we requested it. It still makes me giggle thinking about us out there busting a move

5) Shelter – Ray Lamontagne – another artist I fell in love with during seminary. If my husband hadn’t had a song already – I would have lobbied hard for this one for our first dance.

FF: Recharging

Posted on September 4, 2009Leave a comment

A few weeks ago my lap-top battery died, suddenly I found myself looking at a blank screen and was rather relieved to find that it was only the battery and not the whole computer that had failed. This morning a new battery arrived in the post, and suddenly I am mobile again!

After a week with what feels like wall to wall meetings, and Synod looming on the horizon for tomorrow I find myself pondering my own need to recharge my batteries. This afternoon Tim and I are setting off to explore the countryside around our new home, I always find that walking in the fresh air away from phones and e-mails recharges me. But that is not the only thing that restores my soul, so do some people, books, pieces of music etc….

So I wonder what/ who gives you energy?

1. Is there a person who encourages and uplifts you, whose company you seek when you are feeling low? I think family does this for me – especially my husband’s family. I can go there without having to be “on” or really do anything, and I know I’ll find good food and conversation and I can let it all out.

2. How about a piece of music that either invigorates or relaxes you? “I believe in a thing called love” by the Darkness – it gets me moving and pumped up

3. Which book of the Bible do you most readily turn to for refreshment and encouragement? Is there a particular story that brings you hope? I’ve always liked the story of Jeremiah planting a tree even though he was going into exile – it’s that symbol of hope in the midst of whatever we are going through and its a reminder that we will be back where we are supposed to be eventually.

4. A bracing walk or a cosy fireside? Hard choice!!!! I think a strong walk lets me work off some of my frustrations, however the fireside just melts them away!!! I’m trying to convince my husband to build a firepit in our backyard – because currently the walking is my only option. I could sit in front of a fire every single night.

5. Are you feeling refreshed and restored at the moment or in need of recharging, write a prayer or a prayer request to finish this weeks Friday Five….

Gracious God, on mornings when we don’t seem to want to get moving, help us to see the sun rising. Help us to hear the birds. Help us to know that your creation is alive and awaiting. May the wind gently push us. May the rays of light gently awaken us. May the colors of your creation open our eyes to the possibilities that this day holds. Remind us to sit – even for just a minute – to rejoice in the splendor of the morning. Help us to find even just five minutes of Sabbath with a cup of coffee, or tea, or juice, or a cat curled up on our lap, or a newspaper, or a blog entry and help us to listen for your Word in the midst of it all. Help us to be still and then send us forth to your task. Amen.

FF: Ritual

Posted on May 1, 20094 Comments

From Rev Gals: I believe that we live in a ritually impoverished culture, where
we have few reasons for real celebration, and marking the passages of life.
So…

1. Are ritual markings of birth marriage and death important to you?

Absolutely! They are how we make meaning out of these very difficult and beautiful transitions in our lifes. Even when we think that we are bypassing rituals, we are usually creating our own practices for coping and celebrating what has happened. Even something as simple as placing your baby into the crib for the first time is filled with significance and meaning and how you do it that first time will shape how you do it from then on. As a pastor, I see my role as to speak to where and how God is present in the rituals that I help a family perform.

2. Share a favourite liturgy/ practice.

In my wedding ceremony, we wanted to acknowledge that we had already been on a long journey together. We got married on our seven and a half year anniversary. So this was one more step in a relationship that we committed to long ago. I found this piece of liturgy and we used it at the beginning of the service:

President: We have come together in the presence of God to witness the marriage of Brandon and Katie, to celebrate their love for each other, and to ask God’s blessing upon them.

2nd Voice: Through the ages, people on great journeys have stopped at important places, and at decisive moments, to build cairns at the roadside – to make the spot, to measure progress, and to leave reminders of their arrivals and leavings to which they and others can always return.

3rd Voice: Katie and Brandon’s relationship is a great journey that, in different ways, we have traveled and will continue to travel with them. Nothing will ever be the same: for Brandon and Katie; for us who know them; or for the community in which they will live and move. They are to be married.

President: God’s Word reveals to us that the very nature of God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, along with all human experience, for we are made in the image of God, is to be understood as relationship. In the great stories of God’s people and in the coming of Jesus we are shown how God binds himself to us, in a relationship that we can only call love. Jesus himself gave us a new commandment, “that you love one another as I have loved you.”

2nd Voice: We grow through relationships, for they give human life its purpose and direction. This is why we reach out to others. Our live consists not only in being but in becoming. Loving relationships are always on the move. They cannot stand still. They are a journey.

3rd Voice: Let us mark this decisive moment in Katie and Brandon’s journey now, adding to the cairn the stones of our love, our support and our prayers for them as they make their promises.

President: Creating and Redeeming God,
It is your love which draws us together.
Through the love which we have for one another,
May we also grow in love for you.
Walking with Christ as our companion on the way,
May we come to share the joy
Which you have prepared for all who love you;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.
[New Zealand, p. 802, adapted]

The two other voices besides our pastor were members of each of our families. The only thing that I wish we had done that we didn’t have the foresight to think about was to actually have family members bring a stone and to build a cairn… then we could have taken those stones with us to our new home.

3. If you could invent ( or have invented) a ritual what is it for?

wow, I guess see above! Something else that we kind of invented was at my grandpa’s funeral. He was a farmer and was always outside in the fields or in his gardens. He died in October and we couldn’t not make the fall harvest part of his funeral. We brought it tall stalks of corn from the field and placed it around the casket. And each of the grandchildren picked a pumpkin and we placed them at the base of the casket – one for each of us. We also had a number of significant others among us grandchildren – three of us were engaged… and the “SO’s” picked out squashes to represent themselves. We created meaning and remembrance out of that moment… we still call our “so’s” squashes. And everytime we do so, we remember Deda’s funeral.

4. What do you think of making connections with neo-pagan / ancient festivals? Have you done this and how?

I haven’t really thought to do it explicitly, but I’m also very aware that Easter and Christmas fall when they do, in large part because of pagan/ancient festivals.

I think that there is a very fine line to balance when incorporating those traditions and rituals into your life. You don’t want to impose your own values on beliefs on something you don’t completely understand and in doing so possibly undo the meaning of the original ritual. There was an awful lot of imperialism and conquest involved in our original appropriation of some rituals.

But at the same time, we always bring to any rituals we encounter our own meaning. We adapt the rituals we encounter to fit our lives and our circumstances. And so if we encounter a new ritual, I think the best thing is to learn as much as you can about it and practice it with (if you feel that is appropriate and not denying the God you follow) others who know it well, and then make it your own.

5. Celebrating is important, what and where would your ideal celebration be?

In my back yard with good friends and family… with a roaring fire =) Conversation, laughter, music, some wine and some good food off of the grill.

FF: Bucket List

Posted on April 24, 20092 Comments

From Rev Gals: Do you have a “Bucket List”? In other words, from the movie of
the same name, five things you want to see, do, accomplish, etc. before you kick
the bucket?

I actually don’t have a “bucket list”! I have a friend who I know has all of these lists of things that she wants to accomplish in her lifetime, but I have never ever sat down to make a list of those kind of hopes and dreams. I am actually having a really hard time coming up with a list, but here goes (these things are subject to change!)

visit the Czech Republic with my Babi.
Visit NYC and see a show on Broadway.
learn to play guitar ( I know… this is one I’m working on already – but it’s going to take me a while!) and lead worship at my church with the guitar.
plant and grow all of my fruits and veggies for a year in my own garden.
be a mom. (we are hoping to have two kids, but right now my hubby’s totally not ready for them)