Not Really A Sizzling Topic Here

Dear World,

What's with Episcopalian and Anglican white guy eyebrows?
Giant wild eyebrows distract.
Do the men think the untended eyebrows show status?
I see the eyebrows first, then hear the words through the eyebrows.
Rather than looking cool or more-concerned-about-holiness-than-grooming, wild eyebrows look affected.
I'm not posting pics of the offenders. You may search for the new head of a new group of Episcopalians (are they "real" episcopals if they ignore the Bishop?) and at our Anglican leader across the Sea.

St.Casserole

Hot Summer, Did I Mention it's Hot?

Hot and dry here on the Coast. If I'm not outside watering plants I'm inside cooling off from watering plants.

E. says hot dry weather heats up the Gulf for a GREAT hurricane season. Fabulous!

Yesterday, the temps "felt like", as they say in weather reports, 107 degrees.

I scramble to get my errands and scavenging done before 10am. in the morning.

Can I get another complaint in this post? It's hot.


Crabbily yours,

St.Casserole

Opossums and O People!

Early this morning, I heard an opossum scream in a neighbor's yard. Opossums are good pals because they eat pests. Unfortunately, they make a miserable scream noise when frightened. The sound reminds me of a human scream for a microsecond until I recall I'm listening to a prehistoric marsupial who does not want to harm me. "Leave ME Alone!" is the subtext of the scream.

Good neighbors in the yard. Loud screaming when disturbed. Reminds me of O People in congregations who respond to fear by screaming.

If the squeaky wheel gets the grease, then Opossums are the wheels who get attention. Same with O People who raise their voices when feeling uneasy.

I leave opossums alone. I move closer to O People to determine what is upsetting them and to reassure them.

Screamers aren't attractive. Look at the opossum picture. I walked out to my driveway in Biloxi years ago and almost fell over an opossum. Yuk! I ran in one direction, Ms. Opossum sped off in the other.

O People screaming attracts attention but doesn't do the o person much good. Go find out what is going on and begin to deal with the problem. If O people feel heard, they scream less. If O people get appropriate (not fearful) attention from you, they may learn how to express their fears without screaming.

St.Casserole, still learning

Why do I go to Estate Sales? See video. From Apron Thrift Girl and Retro Renovation.



St.Casserole, surrounded by treasures

Ze Laziness

I'm afraid I've caught a serious case of Ze Laziness. It's not my fault.
It's early Summer here with breezes catching the gardenia bushes' heavy scent.
The sky is soft blue with tiny puffy clouds.

I'd better sit on the back porch with a book. All. Day.

Yours,
St.Casserole

Festival of Homies!

I'm driving towards Atlanta this morning. Going to see my Cheesehead and others at the Festival of Homies! Happy about this.

If you are a RevGal going to the Festival, give me a shout out! Shout "RevGals Yooo Hooo" when you can so I can find you.

I have red hair and carry a sewing bag. Look for me. I'll be confused and following Cheese around. She's taller than I am and wears good shoes.

Traveling mercies to all going to the Fest,

Love in God who loved us first,

St.Casserole

Why I Live Where I Live

Pelicans fly over my house.


St.Casserole
Wondering How God Does So Many Beautiful Things

Verbena, the V.A.T., is Back!

That's the news here. Verbena is in the courtyard.

St.C.
Watching for Signs of Spring/Summer

State Holiday

Today is Confederate Memorial Day in Mississippi.

That's right, State offices, the Courts and Banks are closed as we recall those who died in the Confederate Army.

What year is this?

I have people who fought in the Confederacy which seemed to them, like a good idea even a noble idea.

That was then. This is now.

I do not believe in slavery, breaking up the Union or mint juleps (nasty! way too sweet!)

We cannot re-write history but it makes no sense to celebrate being on the losing end of a War for the right to own human beings.

We are the poorest State in the Union but we shut down the State for this holiday.

I'd like us to put this holiday aside.

St.Casserole

Oh, Hey!

Anyone still there?

The BE 2.0 was fabulous. I loved seeing all of you and missed those who couldn't come to Arizona.

We've received five new members in the past six months at Little Church. I'm enjoying the new members enjoying the congregation.

We had ten people at Sunday School this morning. I recall when attendance was 2-3 including me.

LD and LS finish up the school year in a few weeks. Both have long papers to write before end of term.

Mr.C. and I married 28 years ago today. We married during the regular Sunday worship service. I've never heard of anyone doing this. Have you?

The hydrangeas are blooming. The cats are fat and happy. We describe Sister the Dog's breed as "A/C Lab" because she prefers being indoors with us during hot weather.

You doing OK?

Glad to be back,
St.Casserole


(Pic is Bidden or unbidden, God is present, looks like from Wild Goose Studio.)

A Few Thoughts

Wouldn't it be great if we could count on our Government to act better than the citizenry? I'm thinking of the Feds not allowing prisoner Paul Minor time out to go be with his dying wife. Mrs. Minor died Monday. What was the point of making sure he couldn't be with her?

For a happy Holy Week, listen to Home to Holly Springs by Jan Karon on audio CDs.
Lovely to hear Father Tim and his childhood friends speak. Scripture, beautiful quotes and Grace on a 10 CD set.

In the book, Karon writes about Father Tim, "He liked being in a place where everything from forgetfulness to homicide could be blamed on the heat." Holly Springs is a real town in north Mississippi.

From Mr.C, often quotable, "The difference between art and crafts is art makes a statement, crafts do not."

And from Suz, the Garage Sale Genius, about a poorly told story, " the E.O.H. is missing." (E.O.H. = element of humor).

I'll be AZ tomorrow looking at an unfamiliar desert world and seeing many of you. To those who won't be there, I'll miss you. Next year? Please say yes.

St.Casserole, looking for my phone charger and Mom Jeans

Fear: It's Everywhere

This NYTimes article makes me feel ill. Not because I don't believe the article, but because I know it is true.

If all we have to fear is fear itself, then I'm getting afraid of the level of fear and anxiety I see around me.

We need strength to be available to those who need us. To offer companionship through these times.

Lord, help us not smite those who put odd apocalyptic spin on current events. Amen.

Hope, trust and humor help us. So does a listening ear.

Holy Week, it lasts a month,

St.Casserole

Garden Report

The Southern way of gardening says, "don't put your seedlings and young plants out until Good Friday." I put out a few plants mid-March because the weather turned warm.

It's chilly here at 42 degrees this morning.

The azaleas are finished blooming although I have a few still showing flower. The Bradford pear bloomed several weeks ago. The magnolia trees are full and ready to bloom, but not yet.

In my courtyard, the wisteria from the grounds of the College of Preachers at the National Cathedral survived the winter and is leafing out mightily. Mr.C. can't stand wisteria because of the invasive tendencies but enjoys I brought home as seed Summer before last and planted it in a large clay pot.

My hydrangea are coming out with leaves. Gerberra daisies bloomed through the Winter with 7 blooming right now. The purple mandivilla survived Winter with some freeze damage and is blooming again. The bridal wreath is going strong, too.

A pot of tiny purple flowers with yellow centers emerged from Winter sleep.

My soil is improving with added topsoil and fertilizer making a great day for all the weeds. My weeds changed with the new topsoil and the blow around of Katrina. I wish I knew all of their names! One weed looks like a giant heather with a pod crown and must be part of the Scottish heather family. My version isgrand but it's a weed.

I'll try to wait until Friday to put out the seedlings and small plants but Holy Week isn't a great time for gardeners who are preachers.

How's it growing at your home?

St.Casserole, delighted with dirt

If your mind and heart are full of concerns about people, and you've prayed your early morning prayers, the best thing to do is pick up A Wrinkle In Time to read.

Really.

Here and There,

St.Casserole

Slow Blogging

Felder Rushing, our native Gardener and teacher, touts "slow gardening" as the way to go. "Put some lettuce in a pot", he says, and watch it grow.

I'm into slow blogging during Lent. Not that I didn't slow down in the pre-Lent weeks, too.

I'm busy with Little Church, children and home. I'm reading more. Seems like sermon prep is part of every day.

I am moving into new terrain this season.

Yours,

St.Casserole

Oh No! Not Again!

A barge hit one of our important bridges.
Go to the Gallery to see the pictures.

What a mess! Hurricane season begins AGAIN in June.

Arghhh,

St.Casserole

I'm blogging less and less. I'm busy with many activities.


And, I don't have a verger.




If I had a verger, I'd blog more.

Where is my verger? I need one. I'm serious.


St.Casserole, working under difficult circumstances without a verger

Invention Needed

I live among oak leaves, pulled weeds, grass clippings and pruning debris. I am determined to have the best yard mulch possible to cover my plantings to conserve water.

Here's what I need: a chipper shredder machine.

I wish our neighborhood would buy a machine to loan out to neighbors.

These machines are gas powered.

Even better, I want someone to make a stair-stepper exerciser to power the chipper shredder.

If Dr. Joe Stirt of Charlottesville, Va. can use his treadmill to work on his blog, why can't my feets power a chipper shredder so I can recycle plant material into lovely, lovely mulch?

It takes oatmeal to power my imagination,

St.Casserole

The Language of Ministry

I'm concerned about a colleague who is missing ques from his congregation.

He's got a vision of where the church should go and a plan for getting there.

Too bad the congregation cannot hear his vision. It's bad for the colleague who finds the congregation frustrating and confusing. He is critical of them and not happy. The congregation sees him as friendly one day and aloof the next day.

If he speaks to me about the situation, I suggest he pivot to another direction to share the vision. Push less and listen more, I suggest to him.

When I hear complaints about his ministry from his congregation, I remind them that he needs to hear from them about the issues. Talk to him, I suggest. He wants to do well in your church as much as you want the church to do well.

I think I know what is going on. The pastor wants to prove something. Maybe he wants to prove his competency or brilliance as a leader. He came with a mission. But did he listen to understand the congregation's understanding of mission? Does he know the language of this congregation or has he been busy teaching them his ideas?

Balance. Discernment. Listening. Trust. We need all of these gifts in ministry.

I can speak to this issue because years ago, I went to a family type church run by one family who called me only because no one else would go there as pastor. I saw the church as a great white field ready for harvest. I saw the growth potential and the mission possibilities. I saw a new heaven and a new earth.

Great for me! No one else wanted growth. Growth meant accommodating people outside the accepted "family" of the congregation. No one wanted mission. Mission would mean giving to others when the congregation's needs were greater than anyone else according to them.

I became frustrated. They became hateful. It was a PAR-TAY of bad communication.

I did not listen to them. They did not listen to me. I had too much energy for a maintenance congregation. They had too much unease with my gender to accept me. I was not blue collar in their eyes. It was a mess.

My colleague is in a similar situation without the class issues. He has cultural dis-connect with them as a non-Southerner. He doesn't listen. They can't hear him.

This is on my mind,

St.Casserole Photo from I Can Haz A Cheeseburger/lol cats

Being Civil in an Uncivil World

I'm adding to the "why pay attention to a blowhard" conversation going around about Rush Limbo by commenting here. Not sure if this is a good idea. I like the days when it was clear to everyone that Rush was just a voice selling ad time.

It is kind of the RNC Chair to apologize for remarks, however true the remarks are, to Limbo.

To quote Thumper, "if you can't say anything nice, say nothing at all."


St.Casserole