Guest Speaker Peace, LLVL

When you’re living where you are, it’s important to embrace those who come to visit bring wisdom and a different point of view.

It’s easy to love everything here and it’s important. We have fetishized the other side of the fence and its great superiority. There’s much that’s here that’s wonderful. But there’s much that isn’t and outsiders can sometimes shed not only a little light but give a couple clues about how to address the problems.

They can also remind us that there’s life outside our bubble and that problems outside need our attention, or that we’re contributing to the problems outside by our inattention.

The good thing is, pretty much wherever your vida local is, there’s a place for added insight. (and when all else fails, there are books, magazines, blogs and videos.) It’s sometimes hard to balance where you direct your attention, but this isn’t about getting it right, it’s about getting it.

Went to hear Tim Wise talk about White Privilege. I’ve been reading so much and in so many places, i guess it’s time to preach it. I’ve got a couple weeks, so it’ll have to stew.

Whether it’s wisdom or beauty, it’s not a bad idea to see what’s on offer and indulge! Peace comes from within and from without. Let’s open up and be present to the Possibilities.

Patience and Peace, LLVL

If there’s anything Winter’s got to teach us, it’s Patience. Slow down. You’re going to anyway, you might as well accept it and go with the flow.

This “things take more time than I’m willing to admit” thing is a good lesson for me. I’m not altogether sure I can allow Winter to leak this into my brain, but it’s helpful. Things take more time in the winter.

You’ve got to dress more warmly and figuring out what’s going to keep you warm takes time. Your car is going to need attention, a bit of time to warm up and more time to scrape off the ice barnacles.

If you’re not prepared you’re going to be late. (or in ann’s case, later… sigh). Living in la vida local also means living in the moment, being self-reflective enough to understand what happens and how long it takes, and then planning for it.

Peace isn’t a hurried process, and you don’t know what important detail you will rush by when you’re slamming about trying to accomplish your end goals with no passing thoughts to the steps that get you there. not gonna work. Peace be with you, and the Patience to enjoy the journey. If your life is to be a prayer, then you’ll want to pay some attention to each part of it, won’t you…

Gather ’round Peace Sabbath, LLVL

There’s something about people gathered round a table. Friday night it was old friends and some new. People who live here, people who don’t. Listening to great music. Laughing. Catching up. Singing along. Hugs on the break. It was fuel for the day and the tables ahead of me.

Yesterday we said goodbye to a lovely woman. Her sister and her kids were funny and clear, lost and, oh, so very proud of their sister/mother. People sang. People wept. People laughed. People paid tribute. It’s what you’d want to know people would do for you. It’s what you want to do for people we love.

And then we sat around tables again. She was loved, this woman. People cooked because she cooked. Her brother in law, lives in California, comes from India, also cooks. He made potatoes in California, packed them in their suitcase and flew to be here. Fed us. Love people, said her bumper sticker, feed them tasty food.

Today is a day of reflection. My Sabbath. After church, I’ll gather at a table with new friends. A quiet opening, so needed after the big closings of the past two weeks. We’ll laugh, get to know one another a little. And later, my usual Sunday night date with a friend.

Gather ’round. It’s where community is born, ideas are conceived, stories are shared and laughter grows. Sometimes the seeds of Peace are sown there. And sometimes, if you’re very lucky, some wonderful people will have pulled together great music to listen to. La vida local: Here’s to living it. Oh, right, first, i’ll go brush the fluffy white stuff off my car.

Rhythmic, Orderly Peace, LLVL

It feels as life is a bit out of control right now. Too much illness. Too much death. My heart is bruised and other hearts need to be tended.

I’ve been working at the swimming. Because water does it for Evans girls. I’ve written and written about that… Although, sigh, if I’m not consistent enough, and I’m really just getting back, my body’s a little whiny. Move? ha! Oilcan! Oilcan!

But my other go to is order and structure. I’m not an orderly person by nature. And when there are consistent time constraints, order is even more elusive. I’ve sought help. In the past with therapists… tell me, doctor, how do I put and keep structure in my life? Those conversations helped some. It’s actually not that i don’t have a good organizational sense, it’s just not my go to. Far greater help was a person who helps me clean and sort. Oh, sweet Sarajane, what a treasure you are. I revel in the order you bring, I search for more and then… miracle of miracles, you come back. And when other things aren’t working easily, there’s space in my life. So yesterday, when things were spiraling, a quick dose of dump, sort and fold reorganized my closet shelves and made my bedroom welcoming.

That helps.

And then I went to church where a group of people were preparing for today’s memorial potluck. Sweet companionship. Setting up tables. Pulling out my wedding table cloths (almost 6 years old, still giving pleasure). Folding the hymn sheets to go in the programs. Chatting. About Jean. About the church. About nothing in particular. Laughing. And just being company when everyone’s hearts are a tad sore. A place for me to be comforted as well as to comfort. Mourning has a rhythm all its own. You sometimes have to sit down and listen very closely to find it.

And then to end the day, the arrival of sweet friends and the opportunity to sit in community and listen to great music. Darling Drummer was in another town playing for dancing, so the comfort of knowing he was happy and making others happy. And the joy that there are plenty of other people around to keep the music going. And this, my friends, is how you fill up, how you strengthen yourself for the work to be done.

Peace is often in the community. Living la vida local helps you be a part of the community. You know your neighbors. And they know you. Yesterday, there was a simple showing up, stepping up. Today, there’s a service and a potluck. Tomorrow, there’s a place to heal, watched over by friends.

Snapshots of Local Peace, LLVL

I know it’s not enough. There are much bigger issues to work on. but sometimes the Peace you work on has to be tailored to where your heart is. You also have to trust that your friends will do the big work while you’re doing the heart work.

What startles me into pleasure about the village is how caring and concerned it is. Caveats? you betcha. You’ve got to work your way into this village. But I’m here right now and it feels damned good.

Soon enough I’ll turn my face to the Peace and Justice trail. Right now, there are broken hearts, my own among them, as we mourn a woman who laughed and stitched and fed a community of people and of cats. Jean Weston, we’ll miss you. Saturday, we’re going to do our best to celebrate the joy you brought into our lives. In the meantime. we’ll be seeing you in all those old familiar places… and take up the task of creating family and creating community on your behalf.

And just a note, we were all confused at exactly how MANY cats were going to be meeting you at the rainbow bridge!

Fields & Streets of Peace, LLVL

Right here, right now, outside your door (and inside too!) life is astonishing.

Too often in the cold and grey we fail to notice nature’s Beauty. Winter has its own Beauty, it’s different from any other season. And we wish it away.

I lived in the Bay Area long enough to appreciate the subtlety of its seasons. and they’re gorgeous. Except for the riot of Spring green, they’re softer. Spring comes one by one and not in a blaze of glory. Fall has muted but beautiful color. I always had to work for the sweetness of the summer browns.

But back here I love the slowly marching progression of seasons. Moving toward the deep of winter and slowly backing away. The patchwork fields are glorious. The river is alternately icy and misty. The pavement shines. Is it dangerous. Yes the weather has dangers in it. And here they’re obvious. Walk carefully. Wear enough clothes. Be part of weather. And take a drive out into the country where the winter wheat is starting.

And if you can’t do that, take a walk around the block or simply stand still and be present to the moment. Weather. it is what it is, and it’s glorious, right here where you live la vida local.

Clouds for Peace, LLVL

Today’s clouds are more cotton batting and last night’s fog is today’s ice slick, so please be careful. That’ll teach us to be so disdainful of dry, frigid weather!

But clouds… wonderful, wonderful clouds. Mystery, grandeur, fun… they have it all going on. I live in a river valley, so there are hills (we call them mountains, they’re very old mountains, so let’s not hurt their feelings by pointing out that their majesty does not come from their height.) that the clouds can amass against. Our climate is right for thunderstorms so clouds can build and build and build. And some days it’s so clear that the contrails of planes are all you see, as they turn the sky into a windowpane print.

Clouds are great for metaphor, and they’re lovely just as is, without any import at all. Clouds, with or without meaning sauce. My mom painted clouds a lot. She also painted their shadows. I think, I’ve said, it took her paintings to teach me about cloud shadows. And, of course, my father the scientist would be explaining about the cold air meeting the warm air as he was exclaiming about the beauty and the bounty!

But there’s something about the grandeur of the sky that captures our attention and soothes our souls. Each locale has their own clouds as true to the area as our terrain. Local beauties!

But these particular clouds, drifting across a Pennsylvania field remind me of Love peeping out and Peace overflowing. I like the science of clouds and I’m happy to have it exist right alongside their lovely metaphors. Let’s hear it for Mother Nature! Watch where you’re walking, but don’t neglect to look up, the Divine might be smiling at you… Here’s looking at you, kid!

Waiting in Peace, LLVL

I’m sitting in another waiting room, grabbing another hospital’s wi-fi, since there’s none at home. Brought a friend in to the doc. Turns out this is the waiting room where I waited with my sister so many times. So weird, used to sitting here waiting for her, find myself turning to look…

One more place where people wait separately together. “What’s your story?” is the question on everyone’s lips. Everyone wondering if someone has a story of hope to share or a tip on curing nausea.

It’s easy to shut down here. You want so much for the answers to be the ones you wanted. Sometimes they are. Sometimes they’re not. But here you all are. And you’re really not alone.

Nothing more immediate and real then this place, that’s for damn sure. Even though my friend’s here for something else, this is Cancerland for me. That’s a locale where I lived a lot of life last year. This is a place where I bore witness and tried to keep my hands and heart open. I have tears to offer. I hope I have smiles as well. for the hardworking staff, for the hopeful waiters. I can be present, to my own sadness and to others’ hopes. I can pray for the wellbeing of the sojourners and the companions.

We’re all just looking for Peace (big and small p) in waiting rooms like this…

Peace Weather, LLVL

What is it about the weather that causes us to shake our heads and wax eloquent? Nothing like a long-term forecast to really get the head-wagging going.

If you’re going to live around here (my here and wherever your here is), you’re going to have to dress for it And then go on about your day.

It’s a good idea to stop the tire-burners and not to saw down a forest. So sign your petitions, donate, act respectfully. Those are long term support you can offer the weather and the people needing to live in Peace in their here. You can lobby for food for families and for some fuel oil relief as well. We have work to do on weather’s behalf, that’s for sure.

But pretty much on a day-to-day basis, you just have to dress for it. It’s Winter. There’s a whole category of appropriate clothing in the catalogs and stores.

I’m not sure why it makes me so grumpy, but, really, people spend a lot of time grumbling about a daily given. It’s just weather. Wear your raincoat. Or your boot and mittens. Winter cold serves a purpose. So does summer heat. (oh, and springing flowers and falling leaves.) You live here. Enjoy it. Weather’s fine. C’mon out and live la vida local. Feelin’ darn Peaceful out here. Have a lovely day.

Balancing Sabbath Peace, LLVL

Another mysterious Sabbath morning. Foggy. Here in the Valley, we’ve gone from bitter cold to flood warnings. Winter is harsh, even when beautiful.

I’m working once again with balance. A friend wrote last week after one of my musings about the difficulty of being perceived as capable, the curse of the competent as someone has said. Here, you’re competent do it all.

But doing it all doesn’t nurture community. It makes a martyr out of you and it’s hubris to think you can or should do it all. So those who are competent need to speak up. We also need to lower the bar on what people do. If someone else does something they don’t need to do it to our standards, they need to do it to their own. Part of being an elder (OMG, ME????? sigh, yes.) is handing over the wisdom, so you can concentrate on those things you’re good at. It’s not about doing everything, it’s about being you.

Those who are willing to let others shoulder the work. sorry. Your turn. Your community. Your turn. and your benefit as things become yours…

Balance. on a sweet Sabbath. Figuring it out. Getting it right. Getting it wrong. Trying again. All for the sake of community, Love and Peace.

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