"Gratitude" is The Beginning of Vacation!

It feels like it's been a long winter in Arnold California and proof of it was just around the corner as Daryl and I began our vacation trip. Lake Alpine and Lake Caples are still both frozen on this summer day in June. Ebbetts Pass, Tioga Pass and Sonora Pass are all closed, so we made our way to route 88 and oh how sweet it is!

The winter felt too long as our parish grieved the death of our beloved Rev, Jo Siders and the sadness still hangs in the air. I have yet to truly allow the emotions of this loss to wash me as I have been busy tending to the grief of others. My usual ritual of kayaking to the middle of the lake where we live and letting her go has not yet happened. I discovered early on in ministry that I need my own time for saying goodbye, away from all those whom I serve and where God speaks to me in the silence of a death.

So even though the loss rides silently beneath my skin, I discovered the healing powers of gratitude as we drove away from our cabin in the woods. The magnificent trees spiraling towards heaven, the stark green moss hanging on from the winter snows, the mountains darting sharply to the skies, and the caress of my lover's hand on my neck, embrace me and I am grateful.

I smile as I think of the beloved parish I serve and all those juggling the work so Daryl and I can gain refresment from each other and our family. As the wind is wickedly bashing my hair and the scruffy trees are bending near the earth here in Barstow, I am reminded of our Pentecost service last week and I say thanks. I am blessed by this wonderful, faithful group who show up, who continually dance in the Spirit, whether it is through death, birth, illness, fellowship or annual meetings. We dance in gratitude for one another, for families, for the opportunity to impact our community with goodness. As I write, preparations are being made to dedicate our first house for Habitat for Humanity.

Each day Daryl and I begin the morning by saying, "This is the day God has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it" and this is the theme of our vacation journey. Sure there are lessons along the way, such as dealing with altitude sickness and struggling with the past reality of the treatment of the Japanese at Manzanar, yet we are grateful for it all. There are many lessons in each moment of life, whether painful or joyful. May the spirit of Pentecost lead the way!