Memories

Home safe

I’m back in Glasgow and only a bit jet lagged. I had a wonderful time at my family & high school reunions and it was so good to be back with people who never forget me for who I was and who I have become and have yet to be. Mermories of my past behaviour were frequently brought up (I was a little vandal) and also compliments about my wife, kids, ministry that made me feel so loved and appreciated.  Special thanks go out to my sister Mary for hosting me, my parents for carting me about, and to my brother Brian and his wife Karen for the goodies and taking me to the airport. Makes me want to move back to the States….but I can’t. Mike

Returning home

It is my last day of my visit to the US. I have done just about all I wanted too. I have had lots of seafood, seen my family and friends, visited memories of when I was a rebellious vandal I walked around the town a bit but generally just hung out with people. Today I have a few errands to run and then pack before I leave this evening. It will be good to be back home with my family and to pick back up with our business plans and Mosaic community.

Goodbyes

We have said goodbye to too many people the past few months. This week is even harder. Last month, a member of our Mosaic community got married and then moved to Singapore. Two days ago Carol and I said farewell to Stuart a friend that was reuniting with his family in Australia. These friends are travelling to places we may never go to; and they may never come back here. Tomorrow we say farewell to our friend Mridu, who is from Nepal & has been living with us for 8 months. She however will be studying at Harvard for 3 years. There is a possibility we will see her again. All of these goodbyes are making me long for stability in relationships. Aside from selfish motivations, there is the mutual benefit we receive as we share in all things – caring for one another, learning from one another, and being united in the Spirit (to name a few). I never thought about this aspect of being in a community here – our focus has been on growth/development of a church and you tend to view leaving as a detriment. However, if we have truly been living in the Spirit and a spiritual community, these people will have grown up in the Lord and they go on prepared to plant the seed’s of Christ love elsewhere. Goodbyes then can be seen as throwing seeds into the air to take root elsewhere.

Why I love Glasgow

I love Glasgow. Many simple things I encounter make me smile and appreciate living here. Today, it was the lady showing up at the door asking if this ‘is the house she sold manure to?’ I thought to myself, “no but we certainly are full of it at times!”. People are always showing up - young Mormons on their required 2 year stint, fishmongers, and since we live in a former orphanage, those that were once cared for here. Our first week in our flat we had a reporter ring the buzzer asking if Martin O’Neill lived here - “No he doesn’t, I’m the new tenant, and I don’t know who Martin O’Neill is.” I now know who he is - a former Celtic coach - and we eventually got to meet him. These are the people. However, as I look out our front windows - often doing the washing up (dishes), I see a plant that only flowers for a couple weeks. One year we missed it as we were in America. Today, I found a little bouquet on the table for Father’s Day. Here is a photo and a reminder of why I love Glasgow: 

New Page

In April we fasted from TV, PC, & DS – for the older readers that is television, personal computer and Nintendo Developers Station (a hand held game). The kids had become addicted to them and were fighting and we were fighting with them about the games. It was out of control - even if we only let them watch TV for 30 minutes in the evening with us there would be disputes. So we banned them for a month and we all adhered to this e-fast (except me who kept working on the PC). Today it carries on but with greater freedom. Today I awakened to the girls playing in their room with toys. Harrison is to be found reading. I however, and breaking the fast with a cup of coffee and posting this blog update! P.S. – Do you like the new look of the site? I had to update Mosaic’s (www.glasgowmosaic.com), so I did ours as well.

Home Again

Carol has returned home after visiting her father for his 80th birthday. I’m not one to get homesick as I am a fairly independent person and a phone call can pacify me. However, I missed her alot and the past month I have really been homesick for my family in the USA. It doesn’t help that I have a 20th high school reunion, family reunion, family home being sold, and I listened to John Denver and James Taylor for the past few weeks. Memories of my past kept flooding my mind and also regrets I have or regrets I will have if I don’t say some goodbyes and make some effort to reconnect. In 6 years I have been to the USA 4 times now so Ireally shouldn’t be that homesick (IMO). But I cannot deny it so I’ve booked tickets to visit family and friends from June 19-24th!

Like A Sad Song (by John Denver)

Usually in the morning I’m filled with sweet belonging and everything is beautiful to see.
Even when it’s raining, the sound of heaven singing is simply joyful music to me.
But sometimes I feel like a sad song, like I’m all alone without you.

So many different places, a million smiling faces, life is so incredible to me.
Especially to be near you and how it is to touch you, oh, paradise was made for you and me.
Sometimes I feel like a sad song, like I’m all alone without you.

I know that life goes on just perfectly and everything is just the way that it should be.
Still there are times when my heart feels like breaking and anywhere is where I’d rather be.
Oh, and in the nighttime, I know that it’s the right time to hold you close and say I love you so.
To have someone to share with and someone I can care with
and that is why I wanted you to know.
Sometimes I feel like a sad song, like I’m all alone without you, without you.

Perspective

I’ve been down the past week for a variety of reasons and really feeling burdened. On Friday it was a particularly rough day with almost burning the house down and having some really difficult ministry related conversations. In passing someone mentioned all the polic that were 5 minutes from the school - something major had obviously happened. I read this on Monday from the BBC website:

“A murder inquiry has been launched following what police called the “violent death” of Eleni Pachou. The body of the 25-year-old, who was from Greece, was found in Di Maggio’s pizzeria in Ruthven Lane in the city’s west end at 0820 BST on Friday. ”

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7427580.stm

Her family is grieving over her death and I’m bemoaning what really are trivial things. With opening a business ourselves and at times having staff, perhaps even Carol or myself, closing the store at night, this could have just as easily been one of us. This news about this young ladies death, in a well off business district, 5 minutes from my kids school, and me pitying myself, makes me sick of my sinful attitude. We have much to be thankful for if we only had the proper perspective. I am thankful.

Heavenly protection?

I was getting some of our dinner ready in advance - chicken stock - because I had a busy afternoon. I put the chicken bones in the pot, added water, brought it a boil, turned it down and let it simmer. I then got Sophie settled with a movie, made a phone call, and then a friend came around. I had to run out the door with Sophie to get to ballet because I talked too long on my call. That was at 220pm. At 4pm, five minutes from returning home, I remembered the stock was still simmering. I prayed the rest of the way home, ran up into the house to find smoke filling it but no flames. A disaster has been averted by heavenly forces! What it did tell me was the smoke alarms - batteries changed when the clocks sprang ahead - don’t work for smoke. Which needs addressed and perhaps has longer term benefits then we realize now.

The world gets smaller

Today waiting for an appointment, I found this article about an ‘uncontacted tribe’: http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/05/30/brazil.tribes/index.html#cnnSTCVideo

There are still people who have no/little contact with the outside world due to their remote locations in which they live - the Amazon for most if not all. This morning I prayed with the kids - “Father as we smell the exhaust, hear the rumble of traffic, and walk through congested streets, we thank you for this day.” I prayed this because we were having an early walk to school and the sun was out. The urban jungle was trying to break into my mind and I turned it toward praise. This uncontacted tribe lives so differently and now we have invaded their world with an airplane, video/photos, and the internet. Like my prayers, their bows and arrows tried to ward off the encroaching urban jungle.