Lasting Impressions

For the concluding blog in this series,  i will interview myself so to speak with an inventory of "best ofs" and other superlatives

What was your most uncomfortable moment with best results

    That would be last week's boat ride  back 6 miles from shore in a noreast wind on Lake Erie in 3 footers in a 16 foot semi v bass tracker....as my friend Jon, the skipper said...."I wouldn't want to have to do that again.' But the good news... the resulting fish grill was out of this world...Ask Jeff and Kathy Bost


Most painful experience..
    That would be in the Atlantic aboard the Lady Stuart in 8 foot swells, being thrown against the bulk head wall repeatedly trying to land fish....my body the next day looked like Poseidon had a "bounty" out on me...

Most amusing experience...
ok here it is , the tease from last week.  At a church in Florida at the time of the "our father" ( no eucharist, so this was the climactic moment of the liturgy) the congregation held hands....a bit awkward, but I can roll with it no problem, until we began to sing the Melotte Lord's prayer solo as community song...I staggered like I was getting rocked on the Lady Stuart...( see above reference) trying to sing and not laugh....most weren't singing very loud, if at all ( typical Lutheran folk) so I figured what the heck...and I belted out "FOR THINE IS THE KINGDOM, AND THE POWER, AND THE GLORY FOR EVER....AMEN. I wonder why no one talked to me after church?

Cutest kid ever
   That would be Zachary from Saskatoon, who was on the cruise ship and a fellow snorkler...My kind of kid
( except when he found out I was a Penquins' fan and declared: "Sydney Crosby is a baby!"  Excuse me Zach?  Do you want to be relegated from cutest kid to most obnoxious kid in the same blog" Honestly, this little guy was a highlight of the whole 2 months.

Favorite fish species on the reefs....
I actually spent 20 minutes one day following one of these Stoplight Parrotfishes watching it feed....I say " "it" because one of the unique features of this species is that it can change genders... in Grand Turk...absolutely fantastic...

Best overall moment

 outside of  some cruise moments with Sue Ann...mmmm.... ok I'm back
I would have to say it was meeting my new friends from Crookston Mn. who invited me into their world of Daddies-at-their-son's- hockey tourny in Warroad Mn...One thing this sabbatical affirmed for me is that I still treasure relationships above every thing else. And making new friends, well, I believe friendship is at the heart of our faith and knowledge of God.

Most surprising revelation
    That country music can keep you company when you are all alone living in an ice shanty for the better part of a week...favorite song ...Luke Bryan's  "I Don't Want This Night to End"....Who new?

Best novel read ( actually listened to)
   Nelson DeMille's "The Lion"
Best Non-Fiction
   Eldredge's "Wild at Heart"

I would do it again if I had a chance
   Crash Minnie's funeral...loved Mt. Carmel church and the kitchen ladies

A how cool is that ? moment
   Listening to Garrison Keillor while traversing the back roads of Minnesota...I have been a fan for 30 years, but never listened while tooling around "Lake Wobegon"

Best Meal
Kathy Garner's seafood quiche...made with swordfish...ok real men don't eat quiche,...but how can you resist something like that?

Most awe inspiring sight

    The night sky on Lake of the Woods...the clearest I have ever seen the heavens....unfortunately no aurora and it was 0 degrees while I was looking north at the dippers, but it was breathtaking to be all alone on the ice at midnight staring into the most beautiful of light shows possible

Most inspiring worship
closing Eucharist at Luther Seminary' winter convo...why?, because I accepted an invitation to sing in the choir that was formed for the occasion.  Again, a reminder that the liturgy's music when invested by  participation ( I was born to praise the living God) carries one's faith

Enough, I may include some postscripts, as " I don't want this sabbatical to end" ...but its purpose and my mission to "relax, renew, and recreate will forever change how the "rest" of ministry will play-out....
I have nothing but gratitude in my heart for having had the experience

A time apart's setting sun

From Manitoba's border to 30 miles from South America
..6000 miles driven , 6 novels listened to, 4 books read,  6 congregation's visited for worship,fishing in ontario, minnesota, florida, and ohio,..making new friends, hanging out with old friends,...
5 sites snorkled, and the chance to be with Sue for our 35th anniversary cruise and a quick stop to be with Marta in Atlanta, I write this penultimate post with some satisfaction and great gratitude for the time away.
The valentine cruise was completed as we disembarked on Ash Wednesday, an interesting swing of indulgence to the beginning of my annual fast. Today is the eve of my return to the office of word and sacrament. How does one measure the significance of being away an extended period when ones identity has been associated with the continuity of day to day life as a parish pastor?  Like most things, to be determined after a while back in the saddle...My last blog in this journey will be a  list of  best of/most memorable experiences.  Here's a tease...
Most amusing experience worshiping in another Lutheran church...any guesses, ?  I still laugh when I think about it! Then I feel bad, because for those good folks it was the climax of their worship!  But my God, it was classic..Want to know?
You have to tune in next week for the finale
Until then this is sabbatical short-timer William, with a very grateful heart! Renewed, relaxed, and recreated.

My Sabbatical Valentine

As my 8 weeks of a time apart enter the concluding quarter, what I have been looking forward to the most is about to begin. Yesterday, I picked Sue Ann up at the Fort Lauderdale airport and this morning we will board "The Miracle" for 8 days in the Southern Caribbean. The theory behind these kind of leaves is to spend significant time with your family. It seems good then that at least these two weeks I get to spend with the love of my life.  I have enjoyed portions of solitude, but was really designed for community.  And, the center of my community is my bride! This year we celebrate 35 years of marriage. I will be the first to admit that I am not the most romantic guy in the world, but it is pretty cool that today, on valentine's day we get to board a cruise ship. Our first valentine's day of marriage in seminary, I got Sue a set of white enamel pots...not my finest moment as a gifting husband, but you can understand why it might be memorable.

Here are my thoughts anticipating the community of a cruise. On other cruises, acquaintances/new friends have helped make the experiences joyful. I wonder who our table mates will be this time?  What songs will I sing at the karaoke bar? Oh yes, we will rock! And, will there be "smooth sailing?"

I will not pop for the exorbitant costs of wi-fi, so I will not be blogging until Ash Wednesday, the day we disembark, ( ironic huh?) Until then.. let's all sing together...."THE LOOOOOVE BOAT"

Getting one's imagination turpentined

A reading in my daily breviary "For all the Saints" for today is from James Weldon Johnson, a favorite poet who wrote a collection called "God's Trombones. I was just going to include a portion of today's reading but it's too good to abridge. Enjoy;and, if you like this poem, then look up "Creation" and " Crucifixion" also from the collection "God's Trombones"
And now, O Lord, this man of God
Who breaks the bread of life this morning-
Shadow him in the hollow of thy hand.
And keep him out of the gunshot of the deviol
Take him Lord-this morning-
Wash him up and drain him dry of sin.
Pin his ear to the wisdom-post,
And make his words sledge hammers of truth-
Beating on the iron heart of sin

Lord God, this morning-
Put his eye to the telescope of eternity,
And let him look upon the paper walls of time.
Lord, turpentine his imagination,
Put perpetual motion in his arms,
Fill him full of the dynamite of thy power,
Anoint him all over with the oil of thy salvation,
And set his tongue on fire.
And now, O Lord-
When I've done drunk my last cup of sorrow-
When I've been called everything but a child of God-
When I'm done traveling up the rough side of the mountain-
O- Mary's Baby
When I start down the steep and slippery steps of death-
When this old world begins to rock beneath my feet-
Lower me to my dusty grave in peace
To wait for that great gittin' up morning
Amen

This time apart, and Johnson's writings about a "man of God" and his need for renewal, stikes a chord with me as I march forward a day closer to "that great gittin' up day" ...In the meantime my hope is that you and I may be "drained of sin" and may have our ears "pinned to the wisdom post,"
And Dear God, my imagination could use stipped, cleaned, and ready to dream again...
Let it be so.

James Weldon Johnson 1871-1938

Florida!!

It is still hard for me to believe that last week I was in Minnesota. After a quick turn around including getting to worship at First downtown, My trek continued another 1200 miles, ( interestingly enough almost the identical mileage I went north to Lake of the Woods) I have been experiencing the wonderful hospitality of a dear old friend Jon, and his wife Kathy, at Port St. Lucie.  Let's just say I have been eating very well. Jon and I met at Pymatuning 28 years ago when my boat was incapacitated, he was putting his boat in behind me and invited me in a rather bemused tone to fish with him...We have been fishing together ever since, but the first time in a long time...
The fishing trip today was on the ocean, and it was a bit tough, fishing near the bow of a head boat in 8 foot swells, I can honestly say at the conclusion of the trip, I was ready to come in...not typical of William B.
I will give an atta boy or atta girl to the first person who can identify, these beautiful fish...It must be the exact modifier of the fairly well known species to get the prize.
Lake Okechobee tomorrow ( Kissimee River mouth)...Love Florida, feel very blessed to be on this leg of the journey and received so kindly by old friends

My Two Favorite Hockey Players

I drove to the Twin Cities so I could see my two favorite hockey players. "Wait," you might say, "Crosby and Malkin didn't play the Wild this month." I'm not talking about those hockey players, I'm talking about Matt and Matt. The one, my nephew formerly of the state finalist Oxford Talawanda team of 2004, who is "living social" and "encountering youth" in the St. Paul area; the other Matt, my parishoner recent of the Holy Cross Crusaders NCAA Div. 1 team who is an investment banker in Minneapolis.
It was my privilege to get to experience some of the local color with each of them during my stay at the seminary, and I must say, what makes them so special to me is their genuine desire to spend time with the likes of this sabbatical sojourner. We dined at such places as The Brit Pub, and The Nook and solved some ot the worlds problems, but mostly did what we do best, just enjoyed being for and with each other for a spell in the midst of our mid winter journeys.  I'm proud of these guys for making a life away from the security of what was once a comfort zone as they like so many "20 somethings" take a step toward what is next, realizing this is not the final stop but where God has planted them for now. We who are a generation older are always concerned about the destination, they teach us about the journey.
Well done boys! (hockey speak) You have skated a good shift...now get ready for what's next. We need you to keep putting stick on puck!

To live and die on this day

After getting acclamated to my surroundings here at Luther Seminary in my Stub Hall retreat cell, spending some good "read" time in the periodical stacks ( a custom I revisited from my seminary days) reading worship,liturgy,  and preaching journals.  I decided to take in a movie...So after eliminating choices, ( although "Underworld" in 3d Imax would have been cool) I participated in "The Grey." Now reviews are mixed and many, I won't bore you with my untrained take, other than to say...We who are students/drop-outs/or graduates of the men's movement, made popular 20-25 years ago, recognize all too well that this is a story about men's grief and pain.  It's a good movie for a fella like me who is on his own for a couple of weeks, who gets to face the wolves of aloneness ( not lonely, alone). Doing a "walk-a-bout" even in relatively safe environmnets makes one face mortality, and prioritize the loves of ones life (For me that would be Sue, Gretchen, Stefan and Marta in the very first tier)  Whatever else one may think of the movie, there is a constant theme about such priorities that tugs away at ones heart.
But the clincher, oh the clincher, is the poem:
Once more into the fray.
Into the last good fight I'll ever know.
Live and die on this day.
Live and die on this day.
Granted its not the most profound of all poetry, but like preaching, if it falls to the ears of the hearer "at the right time" (kairos)  then look out, soul work is at work!