Bouncing around Germany

All is well. Right now I am in Fuerth, Odenwald with my cousin and his wife and three boys. Irmi and I went shopping at a big center and I bought some German books on CD. We also had a cappucino and amaretto torte at the Vienna cafe. Tomorrow, I'll see Aunt Barbara and Uncle Gotthold. On Saturday we are going to Stuttgart and that will be it. On Sunday I imagine we will go the free church in Babenhausen. Last Sunday I went to state church in Mainz with Marion.

I've been using quite a bit of public transportation on my own. Enjoying that a lot, since we can never do that in Canada. You can buy one ticket to take the bus or the tram in the city and combine it with your train ticket to another city. Everything is very efficient and you can look up everything on the internet ahead of time.

Nobody should count on my bringing back any chocolate. I am told that the maximum is now 2 chocolate bars per traveller. This is a new rule, apparently.

If someone wants something else, you need to let me know right now. I can get it on Friday. Yours truly, for now.

made it to Germania

It has been a full day, walking all over Aschaffenburg, followed up with a bikeride through Babenhausen to see the new free church my hosts attend and helped build, and bit of red wine. Now I'm finished. The keyboard is different, too. I can't blog today. Tomorrow, on to Bensheim.

Calgary

Howdie Patners: made it as far as Calgary. Stayed at the camper in Red Deer over night. Had breakfast in the great outdoors. Was cold. Calgary is warm. Everywhere it is dry.

Went to see Aunt in hospice. She seemed more tired than last time. She is on antibiotics for her lungs. She had visitors all day. First the chaplain, then the neighbors, then all of us.

I was curious about the chaplain. She said he is a native Indian who also sings to her. Now I was wondering if he was Christian chaplain or practitioner of native spirituality. I am still not quite sure from what she told me. He does not read to her from the Bible, we got that far. But he puts it into his prayers. Whatever that exactly means. She just kept saying that he was a "chaplain." He makes her feel good by telling her how much he enjoys his friendship with her. That is a nice and gracious thing to say. But I hope he has more substance than that. He visits two or three times a week, she says and sings "very good" songs.

Going to the airport now for a midnight flight.

Last chance at BOC's/ Evolution

OK, let me prove my complete nuttiness. We are right out of Books of Concord. Yesterday, Martin gave one to Rev. Tawa A., who is doing his PHD in the States on Apologetics at a Baptist University. (Tawa, correct me where wrong info. Tell what you are doing! (Do write!))

So this is a reminder. They are on sale this month. :) I just bought several more. (I conveniently forget how many).

I also blew some time on a video at Uncommon Descent. "Signature in the Cell". It seemed really good. I will have to watch it again and pay more attention; I was kind of doing my dishes. Anyone with an opinion on the man's work? And what did anyone think of "Expelled". We watched it at church convention for evening entertainment in the movie theatre. I liked it a lot, especially the irony at the end with Richard Dawkins. Smart move.

Now, I really have to think about my trip. Leaving on the 27th.

Speechless

From our little local newspaper.

What will the Alliance Church come up with next. Do they have all the good ideas? They have done so much in this community, it's unbelievable. Just in the last while they have brought Bibles to every house in town, they ran a huge Truth Project, they have sent out attractive and handy invitations to every home. They have busy little churches in every little town here, now.

They had a man with my dying son and they had a man help me with my son's truck. They have prayed for me and with me, but they don't have the gospel straight. I have to find out more what they believe, exactly. I know it will be decision theology and rebaptism to join, etc.(not that I'm joining. nonono). I know "grandma Julie" and many of them.

The Sturgeon Alliance Church is starting an evening Youth program during the summer, and hopes to expand its Coffee&Chaos program when it resumes in the fall.

"We're having Youth Drop In on Friday, June 26, and are hoping to have it throughout the summer and into the fall," said executive pastor Jason Roffey. Youth night will give young people a safe place to hang out and play games such as pool, air hockey or fooze ball or to sit and watch TV.

Coffee&Chaos (C&C) began in March, and its first few months were so successful organizers are looking to expand it. "We're looking forward to getting it going in the fall," Roffey said.

C&C grew out of the pre-school programs run for three and four year old children. Their parents, usually with other children in the family, would sit and visit while the one child attended the program.

"It's a chance for them (parents) to get out of their home and connect with others," said Roffey.

One of the participants is a senior fondly known as 'grandma Julie' who comes in to read to children.

Having a Grandma is great for some kids who don't have nearby grandparents," Roffey said.

With that in mind, he has applied for a $15,000 New Horizons federal grant to expand C&C. The grant application was formally supported by the Town of Gibbons council. The grant is geared to community and leadership with a focus on Seniors.

"We looked at that grant and this program and thought, yeah, that fits," said Roffey. "There's a pretty significant Seniors population in town. We're looking to engage some folks that way."

The grant will enable the program to expand to include a greater multi-generational component. With the fund C&C can increase leadership opportunities, the chance to build relationships with others in the community and inter-active play. Grant funds will cover the purchase of a high quality coffee machine, removable walls, interactive play toys and promotion of the program.

C&C is primarily run by Kelly Kozak and her ministry team. They welcome everyone to just show up for a cup of coffee and the chance to spend time in the chaotic atmosphere of playing children. C&C ran from 9:30 to 11:30 am in the spring, and is expected to have the same time slot in the fall.

Both the Youth program and C&C are held in the bright, wide open expansion of the Sturgeon Alliance Church facility.

My Father

This Father's Day is difficult for me also, similarly to Mother's Day, thinking of nothing but my grief over Stefan. But Martin says special day's don't change things for him. It's always the same. So we are different. I got Martin some beautiful no-iron shirts. Win, win for me--a good looking man and no ironing required!

The picture above is of my own father, Werner, born to farmers in Silesia. At the end of the war he was 11, his mother died and he became a refugee. When Stefan turned 11, my dad told him what the day was like on his own 11th birthday, sitting on a tree on a hill, looking down into the valley, with the Russians having rounded up all the cattle, which were screaming loudly with not getting milked, to be hauled off.

He married a beautiful local girl in Hesse, daughter of civil administrator and permanent church elder, well-known pillar of the community. My Dad was talented in a well-rounded way and enjoyed life. My mother sometimes joked about the ironies of having married a poor refugee, but my dad was so great, my grandpa thought he was very intelligent in discussing politics and other subjects. Indeed, we children spent a lot of time listening to adult discussions.

He built three houses in his lifetime, using his own labor to a large extent. Our first house had an unexploded bomb on the lot that needed dealing with. He had bought the lot cheap in a low lying area close to a little airstrip. He became a heavy equipment salesman and sometimes we owned backhoes and equipment that he used. As children we learned to distinguish between different machinery and makes of cranes, types of scaffolding... The post-war building boom made a good career possible.

He always sang in church choir but never took a church position. My mother always said he put his light under the bowl by not being more active on council. He cooked and vacuumed, said nighttime prayers, took us on holidays, taught us to swim clear across little lakes and gravel pits. He took us bike-riding. We had adventures sailing boats including on navigated German rivers. He loved get-togethers and was gregarious. We went camping and made friends with the neighboring campers. He was sensible and gentle. He deeply cared for us in a non-mushy way. He stood in line early in the morning to get me into Catholic girl grammar school. He loved our mother. Our mother was the most beautiful woman in the land. He lost her too early.

I adored him. I once wrote him a letter about it, when I was already married. (Who can say such a thing face to face? We did not even hug in our family. Can you believe it: we shook hands.) I never heard him acknowledge my letter. My step-mother once told md that it had meant a lot to him. It had meant so much, he could not talk about it. People, eh?

(I was going to say: Men!!! But then I thought better of it, since I did not tell him face to face, either.)

He died early this decade of a rare cancer having been afflicted with Parkinson's for a while.

On his right hand is my little sister. On his left hand is my brother. On the far is me, the oldest. I have much to be grateful for.

I am wondering what the implications are for those of you, whom I do know who did not have a good father, or now live in divorced situations. Even though my father was a good man, he was, like almost all decent fathers, very busy with work while the children were growing up, so the time he spent was really often also a "quality" time versus "quantity" time. His gentility, his love of life, his intelligence, his hard work, his treasuring of holidays, his telling of stories, poems, proverbs, prayers, singing of all kinds of songs, his faithfulness in church attendance, even if he was not going to be very involved (he did teach Sunday School once; it was so special, I still remember it was about Nebuchadnezzar), his supportive way of dealing with our mother: all of it still made us secure and happy enough.

My thoughts are with all who are somewhat sad today, including ourselves. All of life is such a mixed-up, messy bag. All of it makes me appreciate Christ more and more, who is gentle and strong and full of life, intelligence, stories, prayers and deep care for everyone. It really does.

so dry

Christopher Hitchens compliments Ezra Levant

Christopher Hitchens compliments Ezra Levant.

Ergonomics for dental staff

Dr. S. kindly sent me the link to this website. She attended a lecture that was very helpful to her. Back issues are common everywhere, but especially among dental personnel. (Perhaps, Dr. S. can leave a comment or write a post that elaborates on the lecture?)

In the past, I have found a book "The Back Doctor", by Dr. Hamilton Hall, excellent, which I used to issue as reading to all new staff. The link above, is to a newer version of the book, which I have not read, but you can see that Chapter's "medical experts" have included it in the "trusted advisor health program". With his emphasis on exercise, he really can't be wrong.

Can use more rain

Martin says it did not rain that much. He will still need to haul water to water his trees and the forecast is for a dry summer. How would they know?

Rain

We have rain to give thanks for. It rained most of last night and also one of the previous nights. Martin calls it the million dollar rain, but it really is the billions of dollar rain.

It was the first rain we had all year. Some farmers were already selling their cattle anticipating sky-high feed costs and scrawny cattle later on.

Saskatchewan had not had this little rain by this time in 120 years or something, told me someone at the office. Hopefully, they're getting some, too.

Book of Concord

Somebody's book of Concord. Guess whose. (Those of you who know don't tell. Not mine, anyways.) There are markers also on the north end of the book,too. How do you remember what you've marked?