New lines on the road..........

We left the meeting
into a breeze
from a mausoleum..
A death wind.

I gave so much.
Reached out my soul
to wrestle with another’s.

My spirit feels bruised.
Lumpy.
But mostly empty.
Running on empty.

Sitting, laying, silent in the back seat
car slicing the darkness.

Feeling myself come alive
in the darkness.

I am a fetus,
Rolling,
An astronaut
space walking in amniotic fluid
Landing and bouncing on elastic muscle.
I’ve arrived from a place
I know not where.

Past free-stall barns we ride.
Full of growth
inside slowly munching Holsteins.

The lights catch the highway.
Shiny, black asphalt.
New lines glow bright yellow in our headlights.
A new path perhaps?
Not sure.
Not sure of much, now.
How can a fetus be sure of what it does not know?
Has never experienced?

Later
we stop for gas
under crabby fluorescent lights of a convenience gas station.
The smell is stale soap, tobacco and a tinge of urine.
Has anything really changed this evening?

Quaker Eldering?

I used to think that to “elder” in the Quaker sense, meant you had to be old, an elder. Often, that’s true. But to think in that way, can cut us off from the wisdom of the young, who elder us as well.

It can mean admonishment, maybe, but not usually. Admonishment can be given with love, with guidance from the Spirit. Or it can be given in a hurtful way. We all have our prejudices. But pushing them on others is not useful or fair, to the Meeting community nor the person in question.

Case in point is the Friend in our Meeting who has made it clear that she feels reading in Meeting is not appropriate. That it blocks our ability to connect with God. She even went so far as to confront another Friend at the front door when she saw him bringing a book into Meeting.

There are many ways to connect with God. We have to be open to the way that feels “right” for us. I read a devotional passage or something from Faith and Practice at the start of the silence, which draws me in. I may start out with that passage, and then see where it takes me. Some folks journal. Others meditate. Others pray. Many people sit quietly listening for God.

I won’t tell this Friend that I sometimes let my son read a bit of Harry Potter for part of the Meeting. What canst though say?

Quaker Authority?

I’ve been wondering a lot about authority in my Quaker Meeting. Does anyone have the authority other than God? Yes, there are “seasoned” Quakers, but they are not anuthorities. Or are they? Reminds me of a story I heard about a long-time and wonderful member of our Meeting who possessed a great deal of wisdom from his long, rich years of life and from his hard spiritual work of connecting with the Divine. I heard he felt isolated somewhat in his later years because many people in the Meeting were treating him as if he were a saint, or an authority. He understood that he was a human being, with our many frailties, and he mentioned to another Friend that he just wanted to have a human connection and felt isolated. He had been made an authority. A lonely place. Not a place for the humble, perhaps. But our culture wants an authority figure to tell them what is what. Maybe that’s different than a guide? I’m just wondering. I don’t want to be an authority. Or a “weighty” Quaker, although I could stand to lose a few pounds!

Bush on Global Warming

It'd be funny, except it's true......he's a moron!

Cubs win again!

The Cubs beat the Pirates today. Arrrrr! Final score was 13-8. The wind was blowing out at Wrigley Field, so there were a lot of home runs hit. Aramis Ramirez hit two of them, and had 6 RBI's. In fact, I know it was windy there because about an hour ago, I heard this rip and a clunk. I found a basebll on my screened porch. It really must be windy! Anyway, the Cubs are now in first by 2 games and if the Brewers lose tonight, it will be 2 and a half games. Cub fans everywhere are beginning to feel the warmth of hope seeping back into their bones.

Sticks and Stones may Break My Bones....

I was thinking of this nonsense about General Betray-Us today. Apparently, the BRAVE Congress, with the help of 21 concerned Democrats, passed a resolution denouncing MoveOn.org for calling the poor General an name. How horrible. General Betray-Us. I'm not a big MoveOn fan, I'll admit it. I think they've become the most public face of the anti-war movement in the US, mostly because they are no real threat, so CNN feels "safe" talking about them. the government generally doesn't worry about them. Unless they call people names. How naughty. But the cowardly Congress can only denounce MoveOn for "words" while gutlessly ignoring "the sticks and stones" flying about in Iraq and Afghanistan. Oh, and the "broken bones" of so many people. While they talk, eat power lunches at our expense, very real sticks and stones are bringing untold horrors to people around the world.

Cubs back alone in first place!

Last night, the Cubs broke a 2-2 tie in the 8th inning and hung on to win 3-2 over the visiting Cincinnati Reds. Meanwhile, the Brewers rallied to tie their game in the 9th in Houston, but Houston won the game in the 10th. Which means, for at least 48 hours, the Cubs will be alone in first place. But, being a Cub fan, I tend to take the Eeyore approach to baseball this late in the season. You know, disaster is just around the corner so don't get your hopes up, only to have them crushed, yet again! I live for this!