Percy Jackson and Valentine's Day

We enjoyed both movies this week even if we liked LOVE ACTUALLY more than Valentine's Day. Haven't read the Percy Jackson books? We saw the movie anyway and thought it was clever.

St.Casserole, it's a long month isn't it?

The Saints

Down here, we rejoice about the Saint's Super Bowl win.


Several local obituaries include, " he/she was glad to live long enough to see the Saint's win the Super Bowl."



Not kidding. We are THAT happy.


Hope all is well with you,

St.Casserole

Let them Talk

Pastors learn from listening to their people.
When we listen, we learn the issues, the interests and hurts of those we offer ministry. Make listening a goal this year.

Yours,

St. Casserole

My Flubby Week

Google's motto is : Do No Evil.
Medical People say: Do No Harm.
I say: Try Not to Hurt Feelings

This week I listened to pastors one-upping each other on the purity of their Session members. As in: "no one on my Session is divorced or has committed adultery."

Further pastoral conversation debated the use of the New King James' Bible versus the NIV in worship.

I heard Mr. C's hilarious riff on clients who do not listen to their attorney's advice while being willing to be charged for counsel. I see parallels to talk between pastors and church members. Without the billing.

LLS is off to chaperone a ski trip with her church youth. Paint me happy I'm not on that trip. LLS will be great but I'm finished with youth trips. Dues paid. Lack of sleep not appreciated.

One plum for consideration is changing the church school materials in the adult class to C.S.Lewis materials so participants stop talking politics throughout the class. These discussions criticize "other people" without realizing where we feed into the same problems. Who knew that Christ against Culture was a hot bed in church school.

We've had amazingly cold weather for DAYS down heah in the Deep South. I've filled three big bird feeders everyday for almost two weeks.

I 'bout gave up preaching last week over the Gospel lectionary text. Just couldn't move to cohesion or rhythm in the sermon. I told Mr. C. I'd be picking a trade school to get new work skills late Saturday night. He called after worship Sunday to see how the sermon went and when I reported that I got a good response and very good questions afterwards about the sermon, he laughed. It doesn't matter how long you've written sermons, you can get "stuck" still.

Cartoon strip is by my favorite cartoonist.

St.Casserole

Year in Review

Dear Friends,

In a few days, 2009 will end and I left these resolutions undone:
write a letter to the Christian Century
make diligent effort to change lifestyle*
be attentive to what is in front of my face

I did accomplish these things:
remove large grass area in front yard to decrease water use
change laundry habits by hanging out wash to dry outdoors
try several different ways of sermon prep
increase activity in Presbytery without moaning
cook more meals at home
complain ferociously about the Mississippi heat
heave out stuff I don't need
watch 220 episodes of "McCleod's Daughters", an Australian TV program

I fought with Year B lectionary texts weekly and learned to like Paul again while pining for the Lukan texts. I found great beauty in reading prayers whether in the Book of Common Prayer, Book of Common Worship, Karl Barth's prayers and the Oxford Book of Prayer. I read books about the emergent church and church history along with
pastoral care books on weddings and older congregations.

I did not blog much in 2009. I spent more time working on my crafts and projects, more time reading and staring out the windows. I feel I had less to say this year than any other.

I traveled to Arizona for the RevGalBlogPals BE.2, to the Festival of Homiletics in Atlanta, to see my lovely little sister and lovely sister-in-law and to Cursillo. I drove to the School of the Arts many times to fetch LD and to watch her perform scenes. I drove the 93 mile round trip to Little Church over and over again. That's a lovely drive!

I spent time considering the implications of post-denominationalism in a small Southern town where mainliners are the tiny minority. I wondered why hatred of clergywomen in leadership is increasing world-wide. I despaired over the continuing problem of homophobia everywhere. I noted the lack of civility in public. I measured my idealism against the reality of a cynical world and voted again to be idealistic regardless.

One of my cats learned to sit in my lap. Another cat fell in love with me again and is nicknamed "Shadow" because I appear to be his only comfort. My dog growled at me when I suggested she be bathed and I had to re-double my efforts to win her trust again.

Our LS entered his senior year of college. Our LD began her senior year of high school. Both showed lovely gains in maturity and both held on to childhood ways so that I was surprised by them everyday. Mr. C. and I learned to enjoy our empty nest for this second year.

My favorite read of 2009 is Stig Larssen's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and his second book, The Girl Who Played with Fire. I wish the publishers of the third book in the series would hurry up and make it available in the States.
You are surprised I enjoyed these two violent novels but the characters and setting charmed me. I winced and grimaced at the violence finding myself praying for anyone who experiences torture or lives with dramatically mental ill family members.

I'm ending the year reading "The Help" about maids in Jackson, Mississippi during the early Civil Rights years. I cannot stand this book. I lived through those years although I was a child and lived up on the East Coast. But, I knew the racial codes and I witnessed second-class (or worse) treatment of Blacks. I'm about 3/4 through the book and if there is not a GIANT redemptive ending, I will be huffy and crabby.
I suppose the book is better for those who are clueless about Jim Crow laws, White Citizen's Councils and the like but the stories of "The Help" leave me feeling drained. Like the stain of racism will never be removed from this state which may be how it goes. If you ask me the reasonable question, "why don't you put the book down and quit reading it?" I'd answer, "I'm such a Calvinist I can't let alone the things that trouble me until I work out why and I don't like 'wasting' books.

In the Garden, I had good luck with planting flowering vines from seed, learning about miniature roses and just how wonderfully Gerber Daisy's work in our courtyard clay pots. I pruned, weeded and planted to my heart's content this year.

I went through the most through medical physical of my adult life and survived. If I can figure out why the hospital pathologists are insisting my insurance company isn't responsible for paying for biopsy results, I will be finished with the months long extravaganza of doctor's visits. I'm doing great, thanks and am grateful.

My friends took on new jobs, moved away from stinky jobs, took on new projects and showed how brave and smart they are everyday. I'm proud of them. They made me laugh,
get teary and feel that I could not find greater companions than I have now.

I end this year waiting for the birth of Jesus tomorrow, planning my sermon for Sunday and looking forward to more time with both our children next week. I wait for my favorite bird to visit in a few days so we can go look at improvements on the Coast since Katrina, eat sandwiches, admire cats and the dog and sew/knit on the sofa while watching movies.

Blessings to you all,

St. Casserole

*of course this is the weight question but isn't interesting except to me

Comforting the Goat

The Methodist's put on a show for their children Sunday night. Sheep, a calf, goats and the Camel stood across the street from my house ready for the children. No person was near the tents as I cooked supper. I heard the bleating of the little goat. All alone in the big tent with UPS trucks and neighborhood traffic speeding by, the little goat cried loud enough for me to hear him above the din of cooking and NPR on the radio.

I gave up. A lonesome and fearful lil' goat sounds like a child in trouble. I left the house, crossed the street to comfort the goat. He jumped down from his perch on a hay bale and leaned against my knee. His heart was beating fast as he quieted down. I stayed with him until a Methodist appeared.

For a City gal, helping a goat is a rare pleasure.

Love,
St.Casserole

Reading

My Presbyterian Outlook subscription expired sometime in 2009.

I can't recall exactly when. I have a pile of subscription notices asking me to renew. Each notice was placed in my "get to sometime" stack in my filing system without engendering any desire to write a check for another year. Sorry, but the Outlook's lifeless black and white covers of odd pictures, along with editorials I found tiresome, never-used International Bible Study lessons and a back page of pastoral ending and beginnings of people I don't know just wore me out.

My first subscription to the Outlook began as a freebie for seminarians. In the late 70's I was interested in the magazine. Over the years, and especially in the last five or so years, I read fewer articles. I began throwing away copies after glancing through the pages. I should have known what this meant.

Loving magazines is part of my DNA. Throwing away copies is not a good sign. As the child of a father who kept stacks of Life, Saturday Evening Post and National Geographic on bookcases in his workshop, I value the printed page. National Geographic's from the 1920's survived past his death in the 1980's and were thrown out, mostly intact in the mid-1990's when my parent's home was sold.

All magazines are troubled these days. I'm sorry about the hard times of magazine publishing. I doubt many will return when the economy improves because we've learned to get our content from the internet. I think I kept up my subscription to the Outlook because I want places for people to start conversations and discuss ideas about the Church. The Christian Century fits my needs in this arena.

But, I feel odd about putting an old friend out to pasture.

Yours,
St. Casserole

Gift Giving Ideas for 2009

Go to your Home Depot and order the Tubby Tabby yard decoration.

Love from The Cats

How About This?

Saw this on Metafilter today. Quite the discussion for a PC(USA) pastor to read before cooking a Thanksgiving meal.

Your thoughts?

St.Casserole

Home Again

I'm home! The 2009 NYC Eat&See ended Monday with safe travel home. No worries with travel from NO to Newark this year. The City surprised us with temperate weather in the '50's unlike last year when we felt like Artic explorers.

We saw "Shrek" (ok, but wind and burp noises made me sorry for the parents who took lil kids), "Next to Normal" (Sunday matinee and I'm sitting through a MUSICAL about suicide, depression and mental illness?)and "New Moon" (ok, I had to force my travel buddy to go to this movie). "Shrek" is a Disney production with bright sets, imaginative costumes and lots of LOUD music. "Next to Normal" was extraordinary because the sad themes really do work with good music, lyrics and acting. Going on a Sunday afternoon felt like a bus man's holiday for me. I understand why the play won awards. The set looked like other metal staging I've seen but functioned more gracefully.

The busy streets of the Theater District didn't sound as loud as we remembered. Then, we saw all the signs warning drivers to limit horn use and we realized this program worked. Not much blasting of horns until the weekend when visiting drivers came into the City.

We ate steaks at Uncle Jack's, Chinese Fusion at Shanghai Moon, split a corned beef sandwich at the Carnegie Deli, went to Sarabeth's and I searched for the red velvet cake cupcake at Macy's ( the store changed cupcake bakers so the cupcake I bought wasn't much). I had a lovely omelet at Le Bonne Soupe and five (count 'em) gingerbread men from Au Bon Pan (not at one time, calm down!) Travel Buddy loved the cheesecake at Juniors.

As for shopping: there was a bit of that. We went to the Greenflea at Columbus and 77th, the Garage and the nearby outdoor flea market. We went to Macy's, Bergdorf's, and Henri Bendel's, Lee's Art. Barney's windows weren't ready but we loved seeing Macy's Christmas windows.

What did I come home thinking? How glad I am to see the City and then return home to the silence and clear night skies of home. And seeing my people again.

Things OK with you?
St Casserole

Older People Sour-age

Pastoral issue here, Gals.
Personal experience tells us that older folks often think the world is going to hell in a hand basket. Everything is getting worse. Kids are horrible. Food doesn't taste as it did. Violence reigns...
Not all older people are sour about the future but many are. Like the ladies at the bridge table yesterday who asked,"do you know anything good?" I started naming good things like sweet parenting I observed, lovely cool weather, people being kind to each other. No matter what I offered the ladies retorted with negative words.
I took a deep breath then said, "I hear people over 40 often think the world is going to hell in a hand basket." No one smiled.
I suppose I'd be crabby about the future too if I depended on Fox news for my worldview, picked friends who were fearful and negative, read the mailers from the insurance industry about health care and looked at my stock portfolio everyday.
Yep, the world is in trouble. This is not new. Every generation sees the world as a troubled place.
Can we bring the theological idea of grace to the table?
In the midst of a confusing world, grace offers acceptance, welcome and a view of the kindness of God to each of us. Grace allows us to savor the blessings, cope with the difficulties and remember what is important.

Love from St.C.

I Forgot

to tell you: I shopped IKEA! In Charlotte! I saw the pieces teh internet IKEA hacker's use!

And, Target opened a store within 20 miles of my home!

Retail Joy!

I shopped Talbot's Petites*! Clothes fit and are beautiful!

While traveling to IKEA, I heard my seminary classmate, Lib McGregor Simmons, preach on Joshua 6 on the radio. Lib is pastor of the Davidson College Presbyterian Church in Davidson. She did a great job on a passage I was glad to leave to my betters.

St.Casserole, Herself

*LLS commented Petites in my size resemble a square shape but did so in a manner that implied she was just sayin'.

Here I Am

Took a week to drive to and from NC to see LLS and LSiL. Wonderful visit with lots of talk. Gorgeous cats to admire, too. We ate NC barbeque, heard Annonymous 4 at Duke Chapel, went to a Goat Farm for rescue cats and LLS suggested going to garage sales! She loves me.

Cursillo last weekend. Lovely. Fun. Laughing and talking.

Now, I have ear ache and sniffy nose. Rats!

Haven't blogged since 9/28. Still not sure I have anything to say this season.

St.Casserole

P.S. I think this Pearls Before Swine cartoon panel is hilarious!

Just Today

I learned that my ridge potato chips are "a healthy snack" and "good for me". I ate the rest of the bag because I am a good American consumer. The chips are regular grocery store brand of non-health food type.

Even better:

The lady at the quick stop told me she couldn't worry anymore about Obama's health plan. "It is in God's hands", she said with frustration. "I'm 62 now and when I turn 65 the Government will make me go see a hospice counselor to discuss my suicide."

What?

"It's in Obama's plan" said Quick Stop Lady.

I told her, "I've read most of the plan and that's not in it."

"Oh, Yes it is! These Christian lawyers came to my Church and told us all about it."

I'm curious. What did the Christian lawyers say?

St.Casserole, wondering why minimum wage/no benefits people are terrified of Health Care Reform

This Week in My Heart

I'm home today while the Air Conditioning Guys install a new unit for the kitchen/family room part of our home. The weather is hot, steamy and miserable from days of rain followed with this morning's scorching heat. We've struggled through two days of "too hot to use the kitchen" and "too hot for good humor". By this afternoon, we'll be cool again for family room life.

I ran errands this morning to be home for the AC Guys. I arrived home to find the mailbox overflowing with college ads (for LD, the High School Senior), two bills and THE CHRISTIAN CENTURY.

I sorted the mail, threw another load into the wash and wandered off to read the new mag.

I turned to Gordon Atkinson's When Members Leave. He's got that right.

The next article, Life Expectancy: On Not Praying for a Miracle by Dayna Olson-Getty blew me away. She writes about her pregnancy with a baby with acrania, a birth difference where the skull does not form. She writes, "We can expect that if he makes it through birth, our little one will live for just a few minutes or hours".

With real honest words, Olson-Getty describes the planning she and her husband are making for their baby.

This article is part of the picture of why I am a Christian. To live our lives, with honesty and realism, to be faithful to God while enduring what makes no sense to many while living into a future with God, this is what is beautiful and weepy about faith.

If you got your September 22 issue of the CENTURY, read this article. If you don't subscribe, consider ordering a subscription.

Thank you, God, for people of faith. God bless the Olson-Gettys,

St.Casserole

Labor Day It's Time!

Happy Labor Day!

May all of us have work to do, do it well, and find meaning in our work.


It's time to put up your Summer whites. Put away your white sandals, white purses,
white belts and all white accessories.

Put away your white linen slipcovers, sisal rugs used indoors for Summer and clean your ceiling fans.

Here in the Deep Hot South, Fall begins with Labor Day even if the expected high today is 88.

We do Fall fashion by switching from white linen clothing to dark colored linen clothing.

No more wearing of seersucker suits and white bucks, as of today.

Roll out the wool carpets, put up the Summer rugs and try to decide how you can wear a ladies suit, in a dark color, to a football game without melting in the stands.

No more Cajun Shrimp OPI nailpolish (or other Summer colors) at the Pedicure Parlor until Spring 2010.

Tough rules.

"Winter Whites" aren't believable until January and remain suspicious even then.


Must go fold up the linen slipcovers. Later, Tater,

St.Casserole

Update September

*The City finished the front yard drainage repairs this week. We are pleased the chunk of driveway damaged by the two pine trees falling matches our original driveway. The brick work and new drainage form are beautifully formed.

*Little Church is in an excitement spurt with Fall plans. I'm loving seeing the congregation working on projects, looking beyond our restoration repairs and thinking of mission.

*I could use a break. I love preaching but have been hitting it week after week for weeks. Ordinary Time does this to me each Summer. No surprise that I'm looking forward to my visit with LLS/LSiL, a Cursillo retreat and my NYC Pilgrimage this Fall.

*From what I read about H1N1, you either have it if you have the flu this time of year or you don't have it unless you are sick enough to go to the hospital/ER. What do you think? Mr.C.'s been home this week on Tamiflu and is much, much better today.
LD may have it but may just have a cold from exhaustion at Art School. I'm doing fine and BETTER stay well.

*Why do people think prayer doesn't work when they don't get immediate results of what they've asked for? Prayer is part of a relationship with God. God isn't Santy Claus handing out treats whenever you ask.

*Preaching on the Book of James is aging me. Really. Forget Song of Solomon. It's not happening.


Wandering off for Another Cup of Coffee,

St.Casserole

Sickness

Poor Mr.C. woke up Monday morning feeling rotten. He went off to work but returned home feeling full of achy pains, feverish and giant coughs. Now he's on tamiflu and sports drinks. His fever is gone but the aches (relieved by Tylenol etc.) remain. He is being a good patient but is restless to return to the office. Dr. says, "No". He's got to stay away from the general population for at least another day.

I wouldn't mind prayers for him and for me. I feel fine but sure don't want to go through flu.

Thanks,
St.Casserole

Camille, Forty Years Later

The local paper chronicles Hurricane Camille's 40th anniversary today. Go here and look for the gallery of pics.

Hurricane Camille touched me as a teen. I was miles away, up East, but my mom was away visiting my older sister in New Orleans. Early Sunday morning I answered the phone to hear Mama breathlessly telling me that she was o.k. and not to worry. I didn't know New Orleans was threatened by Camille nor did I have a clue about hurricanes. I thought hurricanes happened to other people, not us.

90 miles away from Mama, my future husband started out of his broken neighborhood to walk 2 miles toward the beach to see his Aunt Deedee and make sure she was OK. He climbed over downed trees and power lines to her home. Her house was gone. She made it to safety but her property was rubble. Mr.C. heard a voice calling him and looked up to a surviving tree where a man called out for cigarettes. The man tied himself to the tree to keep from being swept away by the storm surge. Hours later, thirsty and exhausted, he wanted smokes.

Later, Mr. C. realized his Beatles albums were destroyed. I love this story because it shows the proportion of loss perspective.

Years later, my Garden Club held the annual memorial for Faith, Hope and Charity, the three women found after the storm (172 people died) and never claimed. Look at the pictures to see these graves. 40 years later, no one has stepped forward to identify these women as kin. Look for the pictures of Wade and Julia Guice.

The Civil Defense Head Wade Guice was our neighbor in Biloxi. The real estate listing should have mentioned our proximity to the Guices because we got early warning of storms if we drove by the Guice home and saw their porch chairs turned to the house wall or (gasp!) taken indoors.

For thirty-five years, Camille was the worst storm for the Gulf Coast.

St.Casserole

John Wesley's Feline Fan

"Mr.C., whatever you do, don't let Sister (the Dog)out! The Methodists are having a funeral and there is a wedding at the Presbyterians!"

Living across the street from a Methodist Church and catty-corner from a Presbyterian congregation, some discretion is advised. For example: don't sit in your lawnchair popping ice cubes at passing cars when the Methodists are having a function. Don't cut the grass or play lawn croquet while the UMC's get together for a funeral.

Mr.C. said, "Where is Andy?"

Ah, the rub. Our cat Andy panders after the Methodists. We are a Calvinist household a beacon of Reformed constraint amidst the Baptist majority of our neighborhood. Except for Andy the Cat. Andy loves the Methodist Church.

He crosses the street to sit in their church yard. He's gone into the sanctuary several times, most memorably during a wedding as the wedding director held the door open for the Bride to enter for the processional. Minutes later, a well dressed woman in very high heels shooed Andy out waving her program.

Who knows if Andy is over at the funeral right now? Maybe he knew the decedent or her people. Maybe he's just visiting with the funeral director, a poplular man who knows everyone in town.

I presented Calvin's view of scripture, the Church, and governance to Andy. He turned away and began a lengthy cat bath. I read several of Calvin's prayers to Andy. He closed his eyes. Great! He's moved by Calvin's piety. Nope, Andy took a nap.

No matter how passionately I plead Calvin's case, Andy pays no attention.

Andy loves John Wesley. Andy loves listening to the Methodist choir practice. He loves the Methodist church children.

I question my effectiveness as a leader and teacher when my own cat eschews John Calvin to warm his heart (and paws) at the Methodist Church.

St.Casserole