A change of seasons

So, I've been reflecting on the rhythms of my life and kind of a Benedictine way of life- where everything is oriented around set parts of the day- there' s a time for working, some for praying/spiritual growth, time for recreation/exercise, and a time for rest. At least I think I have those right- there may be another, like a time to study I think- yes, that is so. Anyway, I was reflecting on the coming of Fall, and September in general. It is a short month to begin with (30 days hath September...) and then with eveything that goes on, it always seems to fly by. October doesn't seem so fast, because I'm waiting for my birthday. (I neither delight nor dread its coming anymore, its just a fixed date and I can mark the rest of the month by it). I was thinking of how everyone goes back to school in the fall, new classes, new shoes, new pencils and textbooks, new teachers, new year. It struck me how we like to make each new season a new beginning.

For me, though, it has always meant an end of summer, and a beginning of work. Studies were never that hard for me, so school work was just that, mostly work- deadlines, things to create, important dates of tests, etc. It also happens that my first day of "real" employment- my first real job as a youth minister, was 9-9-90. It was a Sunday, and an easily memorized date. Eight years later, that date would take on different connotations concerning the labor force, as it is the birthdate of my oldest child, 9-9-98. September is also always Labor Day- the day celebrating all those employed (and oppressed by the 'man', but we'll save that for another day). So fall becomes my season of work- time to get down to business, to knuckle down and get in there and get the hands dirty- work.

Then I go backwards and think about the beginning of summer- not a June 1st goes by without me remembering the start of summer camp. It has been a part of my life in one form or another for 17 of the last 23 summers. Some of those meant intense work for me, but there is always an element of being at summer camp that is just flat out fun. Even though as a director especially, and in other capacities too, I have worked my tail off for the summer, it is by-in-large fun work. There are always moments to act silly, sing songs, be in skits, laugh with friends, watch a sunset and enjoy a special corner of God's kingdom known as camp. So, for me, summer is the recreation/exercise/play season.

Then there's spring. Spring isn't spring until Easter for me. Easter (and Lent somewhat) represents a major spiritual growing season. It is both a time of reflection and great joy- Easter is the center of my faith, and it does bring new life and birth. There is something that reverberates in the depths of me- my spirit awakens with the warm weather. (I also find I am tied to a seasonal calendar in my temperature preferences- I hate being cold and do much better in warmer climes). So, Spring becomes my season of prayer, reflection, and spiritual growth and depth. I usually awaken from spiritual lethargy, and aspire to greater devotion- it is a return, a rebirth and new life in my spirit.

That leaves winter. Most people have new beginnings in the winter- the new calendar year, resolutions, etc. Not me so much. Holidays are OK- but are sometimes loaded with family dynamic landmines and negotiating the pleasing game becomes overshadowed with the materialism/ greed of my kids and then January and February just get lost in a desire for warmer weather. I would have to say that if I could have it any way I wanted it, Winter would be my season of rest- in particular sleep. I could seriously hibernate. It makes getting stuff ready for Christmas kinda hard- all that hustle and bustle- getting presents, wrapping them, getting a tree, decorating- and really I'd just like to curl up in bed and snooze. There's the whole S.A.D. and lack of sunlight and all that- plus my body doesn't tolerate the cold so well. So, even though I can't always have it that way for the whole season, let's call winter the resting season.

That leaves study. I'd like to think I am a student all the time. That's partially true and mostly a load of manure. I have very little free time for reading and true study. I do reflect, think, ponder, feed myself snippets of ideas and chew on morsels of information- but the true meaty work of studying doesn't happen much. And so, I am way excited that I am about to start a Bible study- and maybe be leading parts of it- since in preparing for leading Bible studies has almost always led to my greatest studying (albeit narrowly focused on the lesson for the day). While I don't see myself as a PhD candidate at any point in my life, I do feel as if I'll be moving a little closer to fulfilling the study piece of my Benedictine life. There's some joke around here at the moment about a monastery and me and my husband- but I'm not finding it. Substitute your own here now.

emergent community

I was going really well and got sidetracked by some deck steps and a lego birthday party. On the plus side, I now have new steps coming off my deck downstairs, preparing for my eventual installation of a patio….when $5,000 can be better spent. I will probably come out of this for a total of about $1500- I should give 3500 away somewhere. Goodness knows it’s needed. I have this thing about spending so much money on houses etc. I mean, almost noone inherits their parents’ houses and lives in them…they sell them because they live in another time zone and don’t want to live in their parents’ house. So I guess we spend all this money upgrading so we can eventually sell it…sad really. Anyway, when 47% of the world lives on a dollar a day, I can skimp on the patio.

Not really where I started with this blog, but oh well. I have about 3 ideas running around in my head. One is for a blog about the Emergent/pomo church movement. One is on wal-mart, capitalism, my part in it, Ecuador, world poverty etc. And then there’s the one about the charismatic movement and where did that go? But, for tonight I think I’ll go with my topic on generations and the differentiation between individual and group.

I had a great convo today about the whole Emergent/pomo church movement, and in the process, the person I was talking to said “I think it’s a fad” to which I responded, yes, but some will fade, and I think some of it is showing us a new direction in church. He started talking generations and typical Gen Xers- and their disdain for absolute truth. He said what do they expect to find when life deals them bad hand and death, disease and discomfort set in- they will have no absolute truth to resort to- (if there are no goods and bads, it makes it hard to argue for justice when there is not standard of what’s just. ) My quick retort was that they are putting their stock in community- counting on relationships with others to carry them through. He responded that even community lets us down…true, I said, but that is what so many of these new communities are striving to do- build authentic community to really be the body of Christ. Something different than a well-wishing group of people connected by locality or common bonds. I think the phone rang and we were interrupted at this point….but it brought to mind lots of thoughts.

So, pomos do really value the relational. I see it everywhere, and the millenials and beyond are following in this way. What else is all this IMing, texting, cell phoning and “My Space” about? Connecting- being on a buddy list, knowing the minutiae of everyone’s life- worthy of blogging or not (mine being case in point). (Pause here to have meaningful discussion with husband as to nature of responses to 9-11- great convo). But will the community they make withstand the trials of life? Is the bond strong enough to walk through colon cancer with someone? Or alzheimers? Repeated drug abuse? A drunk driving homicide wreck? When your friends on My Space find out you were arrested for child pornography, do they stay by your side? Did they challenge you on the behavior beforehand? When they saw the signs? Is virtual e-community anywhere near as strong as physical community? Hard to answer all those. I do think it is possible for a community to walk through any of those scenarios with someone. I am just dubious that all the people who think they are in a community are actually in a community. How many substitutes for community are there? And the problem with E-community is that you are only who you represent yourself to be- and that can even be someone of a different gender, age, hometown, etc.

The other piece is how friends, and by extension community, have taken the place of immediate family. It is easy to see this change between my parents generation and mine. I like to use the example of driving 2 hours one day to visit for a few hours with some friends from high school, and ending up in my sister’s neighborhood. I had a great visit with my friends, but didn’t have time to call my sister or go by and see her. I had to get back for VBS that evening- another community commitment. So, what does that say about family vs. community in my life? And in good pomo fashion- I'll just end it there, for the conversation never really ends, despite the amazing lack of comments on my page.

It must be the mulch…

OK- new blog. So I finished another reunion- this one from camp- and a great time was had by all. It really was fun to see old friends, share memories- deep conversations and fun ones. Always picking up just where we left off- but understanding we’ve changed and grown and not expecting anything more than for us to just be ourselves. There is a little pressure to be as entertaining or outrageous as you used to be, but not usually- just warmth, gladness and a reclamation of a great community.

Otherwise, I got a great chance to get a question answered that’s been bouncing around in my head. I realize I have asked this from a very consumeristic and uneducated viewpoint- but it seems to me to be counterintuitive that organically grown produce (as well as meats) cost more than their ‘regular’ counterparts. I mean, how is it you can put less chemicals, pesticides and steroids in something and have it cost more? I used to think it had to do with the distance to ship it- as there weren’t that many organic farms that close. Another factor I put in was labor- but then a good portion of our food comes from the USA- minus some off season fruits & veggies- maybe some seafood. And, the US is going to have a fairly uniform labor pay scale. I did think though, that those who go to the trouble of being good stewards and grow organically also like to pay more than the bare minimum in wages. Still, I had trouble making it all compute.

My friend Nancy- who is wise beyond wise and shares my penchant for theory making and deep thinking around the dinner table- she enlightened me on a few things concerning organics. Her brother is currently involved in a program to enhance organics in the Eastern Carolina area- to promote sustainable farming initiatives- to get rid of tobacco dependent farming. He (and Nancy) spend a good amount of time trying to broker local crops to grocery stores and doing education about organics. So, first of all, while it is true there are less pesticides and chemicals, it doesn’t mean there are none- there are some approved organic sprays, or in lieu of those you have to pay someone to go pick aphids or the like off the crops by hand. Secondly, organic seed costs more- to ensure no genetic tampering and no radiation or coating with fertilizer- that makes for more expensive seed. Lastly, there is the issue of soil prep. Organics need much more composting, working and conditioning the soil before you even plant. More stuff in the soil, more labor to do it- there you have it. That partially answers my question- still seems like there can be a lowering in price, but then demand is rising and for now I imagine supply is staying put.

So that brings me to one of my favorite rants: Wal-mart- or how one corporation found the scotch-irish cheapskate in all of us. They are poised to go after the organic market- offering organics in their grocery sections. They are promising to keep prices reasonable, and I imagine they will ply their usual tactics on the suppliers to keep it so. Seeing as how they are unlikely to make inroads on an industry that has been set for years, my theory on this one is that they will go a different direction and cause a degradation in what meets the standard of “organically grown”. I mentioned this to George Sunday and the next day in the paper, there is an article about how the gov’t is looking to change the definition of “grass fed” beef- so it can make it broader and easier for farmers to slap that label on the package. Watch what happens when Wally-world gets in on the action- I foresee a whole line of “almost-organic” products coming to aisle 4 at a superstore near you! Makes you want to throw rotten veggies at someone- wonder where we could find some?