2009-01-07

As the cold rain fell, and fell, and fell, and the city skies were pearly-white, Mick and I made our Morning Offering. Mick had already gone out, sprinkling calcium chloride at the day care center at St. Luke’s and on the three customers’ walks who have subscribed to that service this winter, while I wrote my Camelot Journal entry for yesterday.

I did a bit of personal e-mail and batted back the junk mail. Then I had my chapel time and asked Holly what the ER experience yesterday was all about. Hollt's answer is worth repeating here. She said,

"Living a life in Christ is a challenge indeed. If you follow all the injunctions of the Bible for diet and so forth, that is one kind of challenge – but not the challenge which cuts to the heart of the Christian injunction to love the Lord and your neighbor as yourself.

"Sometimes, the person one is most challenged to love turns out to be the self. When one is ill, helpless, vulnerable or uncomfortable, temptations arise that are a real challenge. There is the temptation to criticize the self for being in such a condition. There is the temptation to lose heart. There is the temptation to feel all alone. There is the temptation towards self-pity. These constitute a challenge which only a seasoned disciple of Christ can encounter with the knowledge that all is well and a prayer of thankfulness that such a challenge has been offered.

"When challenges of this kind come, accept them in gratitude and rest in peace of mind, knowing that the Lord is with you every moment of the way."

Meanwhile Mick manhandled the Christmas tree through the front door after gently laying away our homemade tree-top angel, our many ornaments, each with a story to tell of who gave it to us and when, and the lights that had wreathed the tree.

We went at 11:30 for a conversation with our trust officer, Doris S. Over a delicious lunch we talked over strategies and concerns. It was an excellent conversation. Doris will continue to lower our exposure to Exxon, with whose ethics we are in disagreement. We also will continue to look for non-equity sources of good investment for Don’s legacy to us. That trust has been our go-to for special needs for 25 years now, and we hope to nurture it well into the future.

When we returned to Camelot I came upstairs to my bower to edit another recent channeling session, this one responding to a question from Gary on the difference, speaking in terms of energy expenditure, of channeling radiance of being and being radiant. It was a fascinating session for me, and also contained an interesting Q and A on illness and the spiritual principles concerning it.

After a good warm bath for Mick and me to toast our cold toes and fingers and enjoy being clean – a metaphysical event for me as well as a physical one – I was off to choir practice at St. Luke’s. We had a wonderful rehearsal, starting the New Year with lots of new music for Epiphany, that wonderful liturgical season of light. I swam in the music like an otter! Whee! And I got to sing alto all night, a singular treat!

When I returned home we offered the Gaia Meditation – Mick offered the closing prayer - and then had Gary’s Christmas. He’s been gone for all previous 2008 occasions to open presents, so we had our own ceremony quite late. Gary gave me the best present ever: a certificate good for his detailing Stanley Outback! He’s superb at doing this, and Stanley will soon shine! Mick received one gadget which lets him listen to his beloved iPod in the car and another one for the iPod which I did not understand – but Mick did and he was thrilled!

We gave Gary a gift card to the nicest near shopping center, where he promised to spend it on clothes and books, and a couple of pairs of flannel-lined jeans for his camping excursions. And he exclaimed over Mel’s stocking, which was amazingly generous, filled with three candles for his baths, lock de-icer and all manner of candies, nuts and fruit. Merry Christmas, again!