What a morning at Paper Mill Park where I walked the pathway around the park because I was early and we did not have choir rehearsal this morning. The day was brilliant and I thought, when I was hanging from this bar and seeing my shadow, what a nice picture it would make. So, I got down and waved, hid the iPhone and snapped and sent it to Facebook before I continued my walk. Just amazing, wonderful technology.
Then, we were treated to a magical, engaging, fun-loving, singing, stomping and spirit-lifting service by Clem Bowen, storyteller, musician, pantomimist and trained clown.
He strummed this dulcimer made for him by a instrument maker in Newark. It was simple and his songs had just a few word lyrics but we sang robustly and enthusiastically about peace (Shalom) and about a fox and his home. Magical interaction ... what a talent.
My candle had four parts to it ... beginning with a shout out to Andy Levin, who played and sang for us and who sang a lovely song that I thought was a nice gesture to his granddaughter, a baby, visiting the church for the first time; the performance of Serafin last Sunday afternoon; the performance and help of Delaware Hospice regarding my mother and assisting my father; and the safe arrival of Liz, my cousin, who was travelling to Delaware from Connecticut as I spoke my joys.
One individual, who I found quite attractive and had an empathy to match her beauty, lit a candle for the victims of the typhoon. She is a meteorologist and she works a lot in the RE wing of the church (today's service was intergenerational) and she was very knowledgeable of the storm in the South Pacific and she mentioned her husband, a printer, who does the shopping and the cooking while she does the laundry and the cleaning, quite a gender neutral household. Her name is Terri.
Addendum: Before bed, I sort through the records on the shelf in his TV bedroom and I pull them out and fire questions at him. MY gracious, does he know his records, spouting out facts on the performers and the words in a rapid pace. No mental loss here. I am astounded that he knows so much ... where have I been? Why have I not been questioning him and learning from his vast store of classical music knowledge. It is awesome.
On my walk, I have a unique exchange with Doug, who I called after trying to talk in the morning as I walked Paper Mill Park and he walked the fairway at Atlanta Athletic Club. Like a kid, he told me of a dining experience the previous evening at an exclusive steak place, very expensive, with a gazillionaire patient who was hosting him and a couple of his friends. He asked whether his date, a former beauty pageant winner from Hawaii all buxom and curvy and wearing threadbare clothing went on to drink more than a few Cosmopolitans and spout her bisexuality and the food came and the hors d'oeuvres and the wine and the bill, believe it or not, was at least a $1,000, all picked up by the wealthy patient, who eats at this establishment about five times a week. Go figure.
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