Borrow my mum!

There's this project for which I have tons of arguments, all of them excellent. A project that I would like to see realised. A project discussed with friends and they all liked it. A project I'd like to expose here and elsewhere with flamboyant verve.

But really it is quite simple: it's time to pair up the groaning places with the healing places. The idea: the kids who never had a chance get to spend some time in the now deserted quarters of the twentysomethings who have moved on with their life, leaving their parents with a bad case of empty-nest syndrome. In short, you can borrow my mum!

I mean this, and I've done it. I've plugged kids with my mum and her partner by simply asking them to take them in. They could live in my former room, dabble in my books, play my guitars, stroke my cat, love my friends, go to my school, hear my preacher, learn to ride horses... you get the picture. And by the time they meet, the hosts have become experts at nurturing young people anyway, so they're not beginners either.

Another family of empty-nesters welcomed Rob, one of my best friend, when he was 16 and war broke out in Rwanda. You should see the love that developed between them. My mum misses my crazy borderline friends, she now loves them in a very real sense, and they love her too. It was the best time of her last five years, in the evenings she was looking forward to coming home to the sempiternal spaghetti they would cook. Rob and his German family share the most inspiring love relationship. This works and it is that easy!

You know, I love mainstream folks. During the Second World War an entire village became heroes because someone had encouraged them. Someone let them believe that they could be just that. That's the greatest gift you can give anyone: to see the flame in them and to passionately believe in it. And when I see my contemporaries on a Saturday afternoon, buying crap pseudo-spirituality books in their desperate search for God. I love them so much I could scream.

Should I read books?

This may seem like an odd question, but it is a real one. I’m scared of books that resemble my own thought-process too much. This one in particular could kill off my reflection by having it all laid out. The book looks very good; I would no doubt enjoy it. Still, it’s the same sense of uneasiness I mentioned in a recent post. I’m not prepared to trade my fresh croissants for defrost, microwaved ones. Quakers listen to their Shepherd’s voice, Friend, and that’s what Quakers do!

Not all readings fall in that category though. There are some books (and internet resources) that I want to read to pick up a new conceptual toolkit, or to "know that I am not alone" doing this stuff. Maybe I'll still get it, pick up some ideas and then move on. Is it just me or is anyone else concerned about crowding out their prayer lifeline with books?

Coffee number seven: "What are you talking about?"

D. The state, Sina, the state! I don't want to give up the state. Collective achievements, Scandinavian social democracy, the "European Dream". We all pay taxes towards the welfare of our fellow citizens, surely if we take part in this we're not wicked, collectively, I mean.

S. But that's not Christianity. You know, Christianity is this (he grabs his shirt): you take only the T-shirt and jeans you're wearing right now, and you start trusting in God. That's Jesus. What you're talking about, well... I don't know what you're talking about, he says with his charateristic wicked smile.

Sina is a practicing muslim who could barely hide his disappointment when his Irish girlfriend and I chose "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" over "Luther" as our movie of the night. Ah, shallow girls! He proceeded to make some Lebanese peppermint tea (with pine nuts) for said shallow girls and to serve it himself.

Coffee number six: " that sounds interesting"

With Paul and Rebecca, my theologian flatmates...


P. How was Glastonbury?

D. Amazing

P. What did you like about it?

D. Everything, you HAVE GOT TO GO THERE!!!!!!!!

P (smiles at my huge enthusiasm) Just what is so good about it?

D. A hundred parties going on at the same time, and you’re invited to all of them. The world’s greatest vibe, a sense of joy, happiness and excitement to scream home about… I’ve yet to meet someone who does not use superlatives to describe Glastonbury. “The best experience of my life” is what people say. And they’re right.

P. Sounds good.

D. It is good! Get thee down there next year, take my word. You moving to Duke? That’s so exiting! The divinity school over there is mint. You’re gonna be surrounded by brilliant folks. I’m so jealous. You heard anything about the new monastics?

P. A little bit, did they not start there?

D. Yes, but they’re all over the place now.

P. What do they do?

D. They pair up in community houses with a bunch of their mates and they seek to be a presence in their neighborhood. They treat everyone like he was Christ and they assume that they themselves are the walking Church on the street. That is, if someone meets them, that someone is encountering the Church and the love of Christ, NOT a wall of indifference. (To Rebecca) You heard of them?

R. No, but it sounds really good!

D. You bet, it’s attractive as hell, it’s exactly like when you used to live at the catholic chaplaincy last year, with Father Tom and some other students from the Cathsoc, the nurturing love you got to share there! Well they’re just doing that beyond university. And they’re not morose types, they’re having a rolling time. Just like you in the Durham Chaplaincy. I suppose they do a bit more outreach, but really not that much, they just remain open to whoever is intrigued enough to “want some of what they’re having”. It’s like in Harry and Sally! And they’re our age! I can’t believe it’s our generation who’s doing something really cool like this.

P. Yes, that sounds interesting.

D. Oh you frikin' shut up you lucky sod! You’re gonna be bathing in it in NC. I wish I could find some in Britain.

Cat power

I miss the days in which my inspiration was wordless. Then, I did not feel like trying to tie down my thoughts into words. It felt ridiculous even to seek understanding. My cat thinks it’s got me figured out. Well, it may have some concepts on the topic, but I don’t think it can figure me out at all. Similarly, I may have some concepts on the topic of God, but I certainly haven’t figured Him out. And there’s a helluva more ground to cover between my mind and God’s than between my cat’s and mine*.

So like my cat, I was busy being mellow and affectionate. Like my cat, if I was hungry, I just meowed my head out until I received some food. Like my cat, I *mostly* turned up when called. And such was life. I wish there were more cats in the Gospel because I haven’t got the first clue about sheep psychology. Maybe I should hang out with sheeps more.

* this idea is again borrowed from John Cleese.

Quote of the day

“Atheism, true ‘existential’ atheism, burning with hatred of a seemingly unjust and unmerciful God is a spiritual state; it is a real attempt to grapple with the true God whose ways are so inexplicable even to the most believing of men and it has more than once been known to end in a blinding vision of Him Whom the real atheist truly seeks. It is Christ Who works in these souls. The Antichrist is not to be found primarily in the great deniers, but in the small affirmers, whose Christ is only on the lips. Nietzsche, in calling himself Antichrist proved thereby his intense hunger for Christ.”

Father Seraphim Rose

Guide to the Quaker language

"Quakerism, particularly in its corporate expressions, has developed its own peculiar patois. In an effort to help orientate new staff, the following translations of commonly used phrases are offered:

-I have a concern.
(I understand this subject better than anyone here.)

-Thee has a concern.
(Thee's stubborn isn't thee?)

-He (she) has a concern.
(He (She) gets hold of an idea and just won't let up on it.)

-Although I dislike being divisive, I cannot in conscience agree that this work
should go forward in the manner proposed.
(Over my dead body!)

-While we respect our friend's right to dissent, we hope he will feel able to unite
himself with the group in this decision.
(OK buddy. Over your dead body!)

-The name of that Friend would not have occurred to me.
(Good God! Not HIM!)

-I have certain hesitations.
(This always means NO!)

-Staff are encouraged to be present.
(You better be there... or else.)

-It has occurred to me while we have been discussing this...
(Stand back everybody...I've been thinking about this for weeks and I'm about to
give you all the word on it.)

-After a widely ranging discussion, the group was unable to reach consensus.
(It was a real knock-down, drag-out fight.)"

via this site: http://www.kvaekerne.dk/personal/HFH/humorquaker.html