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Tuesday, December 31, 2019

A Year of Gratitude



I have been surprised and pleased that every month this year, my most viewed post has been “A Place of Gratitude.” It was my first essay of the year, posted on January 2nd, and it immediately went to the top ten most viewed posts of the month. It has remained in that top ten spot every month and has now become one of the top ten posts of all time since I began blogging ten years ago.

In Book and Film

Other popular posts this year included a book review of Attica Locke’s beautifully written mystery novel, Bluebird, Bluebird, an essay linking a new Star Trek episode with words from the poet Antonio Machado in “Make a New Road,” and a look back at an old movie, Being There (1979), which was Peter Sellers' last film.

In Poetry

There was poetry this year, of course. Every April, I always highlight poetry for National Poetry Month. This year, my entries included writing poetry, listening to poetry, and some wonderful examples of poetry at the movies. You can see links to all of those at “April Is Poetry Month.”

I have a series of journalistic poems (poetry written in response to current events in the news). This year I did a new journalistic poem, “Broken Glass, Shattered Dreams.” On another note, my most recent poem, “Communal Blessing,” is a reflection of one of those quiet awakenings  a holy encounter, as it were  that we can often experience in our daily living.

There is always a haiku. Every Saturday I post a haiku. Most often, haiku take their inspiration from nature. Sometimes I find that inspiration in one of my own photographs, as with “Summer’s End,” and sometimes it is in someone else’s photograph like in “Winterlight.”

In Spirituality

While I don’t claim to have a “spirituality blog,” spirituality often enters into my essay topics. “Why Pray?” is an examination of how I found participation in liturgical prayers to be a transformative experience. “Religion and Culture” is a response to another blogger on the question of cultural accommodation in religious practice and “Just Like Jonah” poses the question of how our faith might influence our response to the xenophobia and hate speech that can arise in our own culture.

In Thanks

For those who peruse my blog pages, I thank you for your online visits. I hope that you find gratitude in the coming year and I hope you will continue to visit my posts at Not Dark Yet.




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Monday, December 30, 2019

Monday Music: The Sun Never Says

Last year I began delving into the writings of Hafiz by reading Daniel Ladinsky's translations of the Persian poet. I am thankful for Penny Nash at Peneloepiscopal for introducing me to this beautiful choral piece based upon a poem by Hafiz.




Music by Dan Forrest
Text from Hafiz-inspired poetry by Daniel Ladinsky

Even
After
All this time
The sun never says to the earth,
“You owe
Me.”
Look
What happens
With a love like that,
It lights the
Whole
Sky.

-Daniel Ladinsky, from “The Gift”, copyright 1999


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Saturday, December 28, 2019

Saturday Haiku: Christmas Journey



Mary and Joseph
journeyed from that quiet town
into all the world



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Image: Mary and Joseph on the way to Bethlehem
Found at Ignatian Spirituality.com



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Friday, December 27, 2019

Friday Funnies: Looking for that Special Gift

As the Three Kings prepare for their once in a lifetime trip...





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Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Christmas Greetings

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Photo by Rachael Callahan @objectivityrach
A view from Railroad Park of Downtown Birmingham at Christmas time


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Saturday, December 21, 2019

Saturday Haiku: Winterlight



by peaceful waters
the soul of the day grows still
as snow gently falls



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Photo by Tammi Ingram Gates: "Snow in Limestone County"
Beaverdam Creek in Limestone County, Alabama
Retrieved from Alabama the Beautiful Facebook site



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Friday, December 20, 2019

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

A Holy Encounter






Communal Blessing

As parishioners stood in line
Moving slowly toward the altar,
The toddler was smiling at his mother
As she held him in her arms.

Someone turned to look back at the child,
Catching his attention
With raised eyebrows and a smile.
Another reached out to touch the toddler
And to delight in the interaction.

As they awaited the communal blessing
Of bread and wine
From the priest at the altar,
They sought a blessing
From the babe in arms.

Blest be the toddler
Who reminds us that
God blooms in every generation.

                           ~ Charles Kinnaird


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Photo: Prayer rail at the First Lutheran Church o Pittsburgh



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Saturday, December 14, 2019

Saturday Haiku: Birding


birds eat together
and quickly sound the alarm
when the cat walks by





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Photo by Teresa Williams Hood,
Found on Facebook's Alabama the Beautiful Facebook site


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Wednesday, December 11, 2019

A Liturgical Reset Button


Last Sunday I visited my friends at Grace Episcopal Church in Woodlawn on Birmingham’s northeastern side. It is an old  part of town that is trying to revitalize, and Grace has long been a help to those in need as well as a witness to the Anglo-Catholic liturgy.

I like to visit there to offer part of my tithe to the work they are doing on the streets, and I also enjoy the liturgy, especially during Advent. On that second Sunday of Advent, the liturgy provided me with an important “reset.” Don’t we all need a reset button from time to time?

My reset came by way of the Prayers of the People. One of the things I like about the Book of Common Prayer is that the prayers offer a collective wisdom of what kinds of things we ought to pray for. In shaping our corporate prayer, we are also provided guidance on what things are important and how we should live our lives to help improve the chances that our prayerful intentions may be met.

I came to worship that day with concern over the state of our nation’s political mood. The selected prayers for that day were from the Prayers of the People, Form IV. The passages that resonated with me and helped me to bring some quiet to my soul were these:

Guide the people of this land, and of all the nations, in the
ways of justice and peace; that we may honor one another
and serve the common good.

Give us all a reverence for the earth as your own creation,
that we may use its resources rightly in the service of others
and to your honor and glory.

I took comfort that I could join with so many others in that prayer to honor the common good and to reverence the environment. I also took comfort that these words from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer perhaps will seep into the nation’s conscience. I found hope that there is this continued witness to how we should order our lives.

The next passage brought our prayers to a more personal level:

Bless all whose lives are closely linked with ours, and grant
that we may serve Christ in them, and love one another as he
loves us.

Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer

O Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer and guide my steps.



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Monday, December 9, 2019

Monday Music: Send Love Spread Peace (Ringo Starr)

Here's a nice track off of Ringo Starr's new album, What's My Name. The song is called "send Love, Spread Peace."





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Sunday, December 8, 2019

Celebrating The Feast of the Immaculate Conception

May you be blessed on this day that honors the divine feminine among us and looks toward the proclamation of "God with us." May we see it as a day to welcome the divine, and not to cower in fear of not being worthy.
The following is a post from my archives (December 8, 2011). It was good for me to be reminded of this message on this day. ~ CK 

I stated in my blog post, A Jungian Appreciation of Mary, that I saw no need for the idea of the Immaculate Conception (whereby Mary was born free from original sin). As a practicing Catholic, however, today I will attend the Mass of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. The primary reason for my participation will be that I see the importance of honoring the feminine within our sacred spaces.

This week, Richard Rohr has been offering a series of meditations on “Mary, the Prepared One.” A couple of days ago he said something I had never thought about.  When the angel Gabriel appeared to her to inform her that she had found favor with God to bring the savior into the world, Mary “refuses to play the ‘Lord, I am not worthy’ card that had become normative in most biblical theophanies. She simply states, ‘Let it be done unto me.’  She lets God do all the giving. Her job is to receive such perfect giving.”

Mary refuses to play the “Lord I am not worthy” card!  I like that image of Mary on this day set aside in her honor. I am not one who thinks we need to wallow in all of this rigmarole of Original Sin.  The blessings of Life are around us for us to take part in as we will.

Rohr also states in his meditation on Mary that “The word favor doesn’t say anything about the recipient. Favor says something about the one who is doing the favoring.” And that “God does not love you because you are good; God loves you because God is good. God does not love you because you are good; you are good because God loves you.” 

May you be blessed on this day that honors the divine feminine among us and looks toward the proclamation of "God with us." May we see it as a day to welcome the divine, and not to cower in fear of not being worthy.



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Saturday, December 7, 2019

Saturday Haiku: Autumn Scents









a cold wind blowing
the scent of autumn acorns
and fresh green laurel















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Photo by Charles Kinnaird: Rock Wall at Birmingham Botanical Gardens



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Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Being There

I saw Being There, starring Peter Sellers, when it was first released in 1979. I only saw it once, but it was the kind of film that makes a lasting impression.  I recall that at the time it was quite an intriguing film. It highlighted the influence of television on our society, and the artistic quality of the film created a unique environment in which to explore the dynamics of human perceptions and relationships.  

The story follows a simple-minded gardener named Chance who is thrust out into the world at midlife after having lived his whole life on a wealthy estate where he knew nothing of the world except gardening and what he saw on television.  When the wealthy estate owner dies, Chance is on his own for the first time.  His initial encounter with an urban street gang prompts Chance to point his TV remote at them, as though to try to change the channel. That moment, as much of the film, evokes both humor and a poignant sense of pity. 

Chance soon finds himself taken into the family of a well-to-do senator in Washington after the senator’s wife bumps into him (quite literally with her car). Chance’s simple observations about the only thing he knows, gardening, soon make him the toast of the town as the people and the television media put their own spin on the words he speaks. 

There is one scene that stood out as a significant side commentary and surprised most of the audience where I saw the film. It is a scene where the black former housekeeper from the estate where Chance had lived saw him on television and gave a pointed soliloquy about how “You only have to be white to make it in America.” (see below)

I happened upon an article from 2017 that speaks of the continued relevance of Being There:  “Being There: Still funny, but newly grim and topical,” by Ben Sachs.  A couple of quotes from the online article are in order:

“Many have called Being There, both the book and the film, a premonition of the Reagan revolution, which came to power, in part, on the strength of Reagan's ability to communicate on TV. The deathlike air of the film certainly connotes the end of something big, while the humor comments on the timeless human desire to be deceived by something that sounds good. These opposing elements give Being There an enduring complexity, although sometimes it's too bleak in its outlook to be laugh-out-loud funny.”
“In its deep cynicism about American media and politics, Being There may also have a renewed topicality in 2017. The film's penultimate moment finds a D.C. insider proposing the idea that Chance runs for president himself. I suspect that … at least one audience member will want to discuss what a Chance the gardener administration might look like and whether it would be preferable to the one that's currently running the country.”
Being There was Peter Sellers final role (he died a year after the film was released).  It was also Hal Asby’s last cinematic success as a director, having made his mark with previous films such as Coming Home, and Harold and Maude.

For those who want to see a little bit of what we’re talking about in Being There, below are some clips and film commentary on the movie.  The second clip is the soliloquy about "You only have to be white" that I referred to earlier. 











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Monday, December 2, 2019

Monday Music: Misty Blue (Dorothy Moore)

I heard this song by Dorothy Moore a few weeks ago at a dance performance at the Alabama School of Fine Arts. It came as such a moving moment during the particular dance piece that I had to go find the recording.





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