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Monday, February 2nd 2009

2:46 PM

Sunday's Invitation to Communion

Faith, hope and love are invisible traits.  We cannot see them. We cannot touch them.  We cannot taste them.

 

Many of the most important values in life are intangible like that. 

We cannot take the size of compassion.

We cannot gauge courage.

We cannot evaluate ecstasy.

We cannot frame friendliness.

We cannot weigh grace.

We cannot take the dimensions of happiness.

We cannot survey honesty.

We cannot quantify innocence.

We cannot figure joy.

We cannot calculate maturity.

We cannot compute passion.

We cannot value serenity.

We cannot assess thankfulness.

We cannot quantify understanding.

We cannot appraise unselfishness

We cannot measure wisdom.

 

Even God is invisible.  Jesus has long ago left this earth for his reign in heaven.

 

But Jesus left us something that we can touch, that we can taste.  This cup and this crust are tangible reminders of God's great love, of Jesus' sacrificial death and resurrection, of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

 

Touch.  Taste.  Remember. 

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Wednesday, January 21st 2009

6:08 AM

Are You Serious?

Our theme at church this year is "Are You Serious?"  We begin with, "Are you serious about faith?"  Here is a video we made to promote the theme in church.
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Monday, January 19th 2009

9:22 AM

Sunday's Sermon

Here is last Sunday's sermon in a new Adobe format.  Click the upper right hand arrow to see a larger version.

 


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Friday, January 16th 2009

7:29 AM

Inspiring Story

I was listening to NPR yesterday and heard this wonderfully inspiring story:

President-elect Barack Obama will be the first black president to live in the White House — but not the first black person.

Slaves helped construct the building. Black men and women worked in the White House as servers, cooks and maids, sometimes as property of U.S. presidents.  Until recently, almost all the White House butlers were black. Lynwood Westray, who spent 32 years as a part-time butler in the White House, was part of that tradition.

He served eight presidents, starting with John F. Kennedy, before leaving the White House in 1994.

When reflecting on his fondest memory, Westray talks about a time in 1979 when Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip visited the White House. After dinner, Prince Philip went into the Red Room, next to the state dining room. Westray and his buddy were serving liquor. Westray says he was carrying the tray and glasses.

"The prince was in there by himself, which was odd, because everybody else had gone down to the other end of the building," Westray says. "I said, 'Your Majesty, would you care for a cordial?' He says, 'I'll take one if you let me serve it.' What do you do? I didn't do all that because I had the stuff in my hand. And he says, 'If you let me pour it, I'll have one with you.'

"... So he poured it, the one he wanted, and we took the same thing that he had. And we had our drink there together and had a little talk while we were there. He told us if we were ever over there in London to stop at Buckingham Palace and see him. Can you imagine the prince serving you? I enjoyed it. You know, we're not supposed to drink and carry on at that time. We're not guests. It was just the three of us in the room, so nobody knew what happened. And I drank my little cordial, we all drank, and had a little conversation. But that was one thing I'll never forget, having been served by royalty." (All Things Considered, January 15, 2009)

 

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Tuesday, December 30th 2008

2:14 PM

Fortune Cookie

Here it is December 30, and the temperature rose to 59 degrees!  That meant it was time for a winter bike ride!  I took my favorite road - Old Franfort Pike - which is a scenic highway because of the lovely horse farms on both sides.  Even in winter, they were breath-taking.  Stopped in Frankfort and ate lunch at a strip mall Chinese place.  The buffet was reasonable and good.  Then I got my fortune cookie, which said, "Stop searching for happiness.  It's right next to you."

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Friday, December 12th 2008

2:55 PM

Good Quote

I am reading Jupiter's Travels just now and found this lovely quote on page176:

"I am learning, as I make my way through my first continent, that it is remarkably easy to do things, and much more frightening to contemplate them."

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Friday, December 12th 2008

6:43 AM

Great Comic Event

Preparations for Christmas are fraught with danger.  Our minister of music has a wonderful Christmas drama planned for Sunday, December 21.  Fortunately, I prevented disaster when I caught this line printed in the script for the day:

"Can this be a sign, a glimmer of hope, a portent of some great comic event, that will bring comfort to a despairing people?"

Yes, the best way to cheer up despairing people is to plan a "great comic event!"  Or maybe a great cosmic one.

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Thursday, August 28th 2008

6:35 PM

Maine Day Seven

Thursday, August 28
Today we got a late start, leaving about 10 for sight-seeing in nearby Portland - lighthouses, rocky coasts, stunning views of the bay.

Well, we had the best of intentions anyway.  But on the way to the lighthouse, we passed a Dunkin Donuts!  What were we to do?

And after Dunkin Donuts there was a Goodwill Store in the same shopping center.  What were we to do?

Two hours later, we finally headed toward the Portland Head Lighthouse.  It really is a spectacular place, and the rocky shores look just like Maine coasts!  Amazing.  We looked and looked, took lots of pictures, then decided to go find food.  (I know we had just done Dunkin Donuts, but it was noon.  What were we to do?)

Ralph wanted seafood.  Why go to Maine if you don't want to eat seafood every chance you get?  We used the GPS to find a seafood restaurant on the bay.  But when we got there, it had gone out of business.  So we went to the next nearest seafood place.  When we got there, it had become a Mexican place!

So in desperation we stopped at the Buttered Biscuit, which we had passed twice looking for a seafood place.  It was a spot in the road kind of place.  No inside seating.  Only four seats outside.  But they did have crab cakes so we anointed it a "seafood place" and ordered.  In fact, those were the best crab cakes we have eaten on the trip.  It was a fabulous little place.

Then we headed to Spring Point Lighthouse just down the way.  It too was a lovely spot overlooking the bay with lots of sailboats and even some big ships docked.  We walked out on the pier to the lighthouse and back.  We took quite a while taking in this scenery.

Well, with all that activity we were tired and headed back to the campsite for a rest.  Then we went down to Freeport Marina to eat a Harraseeket's Lunch and Lobster again.  Ralph really liked their scallops.  But NO!  I did not order lobster, though Pat did.  In fact, I had a wonderful fish and chips dinner.  Just great.  Easy to get to.  Not messy.  Delicious.  Plenty to eat.  Tasty.  Unlike lobster!

While looking about the docks, we ran into several clam men returning with mesh sacks full of clams.  They all wore thigh high boots and brought their short handled rake.  One of the guys talked to us for some time and even gave us a clamming newsletter.  The newsletter tells about the threat of red tide, about their legislative actions to clean up the tidal flats, and even a clam chatter section in which I read the story of two clammers at work but hungry.  On a bet, the one ate a huge green worm for $10.  Then for $10 more he forced himself to throw it up.  Yummy!  Such a pleasant thing.  Makes you want to eat clams!

Then we went back to the outlet shopping section of downtown Freeport.  First stop was a Rockport store.  Hey!  I love Rockports.  Within five minutes, I had taken advantage of the buy two get one free sale!  That's right, I was the one who walked away with three pair of Rockport shoes for the price that I normally pay for one.

Then we shopped our way down the street, stopping at the Mangy Moose, Cool as a Moose, Books and Maine Gifts, Bass, and Gap.  Once again, I was the shopper finding a bargain book on queen pawn chess openings for only a buck!  What a deal.  Sarah bought some chocolate covered blueberries to take to her boss.  I think she is hoping for a raise soon.  Strategic move there.

Back at the camp site, we are watching football on TV, washing a load of clothes, and waiting for Barack Obama's speech.

So ends day seven.
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Wednesday, August 27th 2008

1:35 PM

Maine Day Six


Today we left by 7 a.m.  Can you believe it?  We got the whole crew up and ready to go for a long day of Maine sight-seeing.  It was 51 degrees, so it was a chilly morning

 
We headed down Highway 1 and quickly passed Bath, where we saw the Bath Iron Works and shipping yard.  All of the little sea towns are really quaint and wonderful.  Of course, I get excited every time I see the ocean or sailboats.
 
Shortly down the road we passed a flea market - The Montsweag Flea Market which is open on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.  Isn't that an odd time for a flea market - Wednesday?  But today was Wednesday and there we were.  It was like they opened on Wednesday just for us.  So we made an unplanned stop and spent about 30 minutes poking about the flea market.  Everyone agreed that it was the most unusual flea market we have ever seen.  Carol says most of them just are re-sellers of cheap stuff they bought somewhere else.  But this one had unique Maine items like snowshoes, lobster pot markers, old tools, quaint little chairs, linens, old dolls, fine baskets and furniture.  I saw a very old Stanley planer, but talked myself out of paying $100 for it.  There were big anchors around as well. Sarah saw tourmaline, whatever that is.
 
When we left there, we came across a Maine favorite - Dunkin Donuts, so we had to stop and eat there.  Check!  And of course, Ralph likes to quote his friend Bob Markel, who has a rule that says, "Never miss an opportunity to go to the bathroom."
Before long we came to Camden, Maine!  What a lovely spot!  In fact, I would say that Camden was my favorite Maine place so far.  It was a very quaint seaport town with a bustling harbor and a main street of shops that look SO Maine.  When we left the car, we agreed to meet back in 30 minutes.  The women headed for the shopping and the men headed for the wharf.  Several of the day cruises on sailboats were leaving at 10 a.m. and we arrived just before that.  So we got to see them leave and wish that we had scheduled more time so that we could go with them.  We watched several vessels coming and going.  There was a group of sea kayaks at the dock waiting for the windjammer to get out of the way so they could go on their journey. That, too, looked cool.
 
On the dock, I saw a sign advertising the sailing cruises and there was this quote as well, "Wind is to us what money is to life on shore.- Sterling Hayden"
In the shops, Sarah saw a sign that asked, "How many roads must a man walk down before he admits he is lost?"
At the harbor master's hut, the tides were posted:
Low tide - 12:12 pm
High tide 6:12 pm
Range 9'
Nine feet tides!  I knew they were big because we see tidal flats everywhere and it is obvious from the shoreline that much land is exposed when the tides go out.
Then we drove on to Bar Harbor, arriving about 12:30.  We had to look a bit before finding a parking spot.  Then we ate at Stewtown Restaurant overlooking the harbor.  What a lovely spot!  And the meal was just great.  Every one's food was wonderful.  I had the fish and chips, the best I ever ate.  Sarah & Carol had an Ocean Breeze Salad with crab, salad and fruit.  Ralph ordered scallops.  Darl had clam chowder and potato salad. Pat had a Cobb Salad with lobster.  What a great meal with a great view watching the whale-watching and puffin-watching ships go out.
 
We wished again that we had time to go whale-watching, but not this time.  It takes at least 3 to 4 hours, the sign said.
While waiting for the meal to come, Sarah and I looked over the dockside, amazed at the seaweed exposed in low tide. Then we saw a cormorant swimming along the bottom looking for fish. He would come up occasionally for air and then dive back down looking in every nook and cranny for little fish.
After lunch we decided to split up for two hours before meeting back at the car.
During my two hours, I walked out on the sandbar and then around Bar Harbor Island. I sat for a long time on the rocky shoreline for which Maine is famous and listened to the waves rolling in and felt the sea breeze on my face. 
 
At four, we all met back at the car and started the three-hour drive back to the campsite.  All the way back we saw moose (cows) and puffin (crows) and delighted in every one.  The signs said, "Warning - Moose next ten miles," but we never did see one really.  On the way back, we drove through Bangor - check, and Augusta-check.  Sarah and Carol saw wild blueberries growing along the side of the road.
 
Back at camper we enjoyed pork chops, which Pat had cooked yesterday before we decided to go get lobster.  So the meal came together quickly and deliciously.
So ends day six!
 
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Tuesday, August 26th 2008

1:32 PM

Maine Day Five



Today we made the final jaunt into Maine.  I just want you to know that Sarah has spent the entire trip sitting on the RV couch with a blanket over her feet looking out the window and working cryptograms. She
thinks that is the only way to travel.

We left at 9:20 today bidding Carol and Ralph a sad farewell.  They had to get a replacement tire for the flat they had on the trailer and then they were heading off on their own for awhile.

The roads for the past two days have been limited access roads that have avoided cities, so we have mostly just seen wooded areas by the road.  Not a lot of scenery lately.
Last night the temperature dropped quickly when the sun went down.  It got down to 51 degrees which felt very cold.

We stopped at a rest stop in Massachusetts which has a sign posted that said, "No urinating against the building.  Video surveillance in progress."  So we decided to use the inside toilets instead.

Somewhere along the way we got a phone call from Carol.  She said, "Make reservations for six for dinner tonight."  We are not sure who talked who into what, but they decided they wanted to come on to Maine
after all.  We were all glad.

We drove through Connecticut.  Check.
We drove through Massachusetts.  Check.
We drove through New Hampshire. Check.

And at 12:09 we crossed the bridge over the Piscatagua River into Maine! CHECK!  After 37 years of married life off and on, I finally took Sarah to Maine.  Check.

Everything in Maine looks like Maine.  The trees look like Maine trees. The rocks look like Maine rocks. The flowers look like Maine flowers.  The sky looks like Maine sky.  The water looks like Maine water.

The welcome sign said, "Welcome to Maine.  The way life should be." And I guess it is.  Two miles further down the road we saw another sign that said, "Maine-a good place to visit; a good place to stay."

Around Portland we saw lots of tidal flats at very low tide. Wonderful sights.  I suspect they have a six foot tide here.

We saw a couple of interesting signs on the local roads.  One said, "Caution: Blind child."  The other said, "Frost heave."

We arrived at the Blueberry Pond Campground about 1:30.  Then we settled in, had lunch, napped and waited for Carol and Ralph.

As soon as they arrived we headed off to see Freeport.  The lady who manages the campground recommended a place down by the harbor to get fresh lobster.  They have their own boats.  So we headed for Harraseeket Lunch and Lobster where we had lobster.  Here we were our first day ever in Maine and we were having "Lobster Delight" for dinner.  Darl, Carol and Ralph had fried shrimp and seafood instead.
Pat was the resident expert on how to eat a lobster.

Quite frankly, it was a messy experience!  It reminded me a great deal of trying to eat blue crab at Harris Crab House on my Chesapeake trip.  I have now vowed never to eat crab or lobster ever again.  But hey, I
have had the experience!

Then we headed for downtown Freeport and the L.L. Bean store.  We spent the rest of the evening shopping around downtown.

Back at the camper, it was decided that we will take the car to Bar Harbor tomorrow - a three hour drive.  So we will be leaving at 7, taking the quickest route there and the coast route back.

So ends day five.
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