Tuesday, September 09, 2008

I love My Life...I Just Wish It Moved Slower

I really should have vacuumed on Sunday. Instead of driving 35 miles to the Fall Harvest Festival. The one that ended on Saturday.

The sun was hitting the floors just right last night when I flew in to feed Maggie and let her out. It illuminated the layer of dust on the hardwood and highlighted the dust bunnies under the table by the stairs. But I did not have time to stop and admire how picturesque it all was. I had to do my dog duties, grab fast food and head back to work. It's one of those weeks when there are not enough hours. The vacuuming is going to have to wait.

In addition to the usual things the week holds, yesterday I got a call asking me to do a funeral on Saturday. This will be my second one, ever. It will also, like the last one, be for a person I do not know. One that few people in my church know. It's kind of the same story as the last one....used to go here long ago, went away, coming back to be buried. Only this man is the son instead of the parent, a person younger than I am, who happened to mention his wishes to a sibling "randomly" a few weeks before his completely unanticipated death to be buried in his home town, from his old church. Perhaps this is my new call....to bury the unknown soldiers of this congregation. To bring them home for the last time. It is a wonderful thing to be able to do, to provide for families and friends that come from all walks of church and not, this gathering place to say goodbye, to offer this dock, this threshold where they can gather and remember and comfort one another with the message that this not an end but simply a transition in the way they know this loved one, in the way they are with them. To offer simplicity and beauty, comfort and hospitality. That is, at least my hope.

So there's funeral prep and Sunday's sermon. I'm still behind at work. Those twelve reports the government needs are still staring at me along with some regular daily stuff. My peer review is next week for my annual raise so I should be primping and fussing with all my charts to make sure they are all bright and shiny, but there is no time. So I will simply have to hope that either I was thorough or the reviewers are not! Today at noon I have a meeting with two of the local clergy guys to plan the community Thanksgiving service (yes, I volunteered!) And the season is flying by which means there is a house and a yard and a car to get ready for winter.

And yesterday my boss came by with a "new and exciting project" for me. We meet at nine.

I wonder if this is why when I woke up this morning I could not unlock my jaw.

5 comments:

Elaine (aka...Purple) said...

Great title for this post. Hope you find some down time in the coming days.

Crimson Rambler said...

one thing at a time! You CAN do this! And people will be glad that you did!

Ruth Hull Chatlien said...

Sorry about the clenched jar. And I hope the new and exciting project won't be too much.

I thought this sentence about funerals was beautiful and right on:

"To offer simplicity and beauty, comfort and hospitality."

Blessings on your day.

Rev SS said...

Don't forget to breathe ... and ditto what crimson rambler said.

Terri said...

ah, yeah...lock jaw?...as my yoga teacher used to say, the place of the unspoken word....or sometimes I think the place of too many spoken words....

prayers for all you have to do!