Green Dust

Ah, yes. Spring. The time when pollen silently and stealthily oozes into existence, covering all surfaces in Eastern North Carolina with a fine powdery yellow-green dust. Insidious, pollen coats every surface--overnight black cars morph into chartreuse; sidewalks, fences, shrubs all become the color of lemon citrine, but without the lovely luster. My entry tile is coated, the downstairs carpet has a green cast, and my black T-shirt has turned a dingy yellow. Yes, I have been outside working all day long, tirelessly fighting a war against pollen and losing. It wasn't even a fair fight. An hour after I hosed down the patio, the pollen was so thick you couldn't even see the cement underneath. If this is what the pollen has done to the patio, I shudder to think what it is doing to my lungs.

Religion and Politics

Today I received the following email from my minister:

Dear Church,

Again I am forwarding a letter to you from Faithful America. This letter asks a serious question: What is the war (and I would add other social issues) doing to America's soul?

After reading the letter, follow your heart.

Peace,

David

Ending the war is a moral issue Dear David: If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14 This week the U.S. House is taking up a bill that, if passed, will call for a pullout of troops from Iraq by the fall of 2008. A lot of political wrangling and deal making have gone into this measure in an effort to get passage of a bill that already the President has promised to veto. All of this is unfortunate because every day the war is allowed to continue, more and more lives of soldiers and innocent civilians are lost. Lamenting this fact, last Friday at the Christian Witness for Peace at the Washington National Cathedral the Rev. Dr. Raphael G. Warnock, pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta, described our political logjam: “Congress...by its action or its lack of action, has proven to be totally morally inept to in intervene and too politically compromised to act with real conviction... More than ever America needs our moral witness." We people of faith and conscience must once again remind our elected leaders in Washington that as they seek political solutions, this war is simply immoral and that any action that delays its end for political reasons is simply not acceptable. Simply put, neither the White House nor Congress has begun to lead our nation in the way of peace to which the prophets and sages of the world have called us. Anything less than a total commitment to ending this war as quickly as possible amounts to complicity, and we seek your help in leading our leaders back to the high purpose of pursuing peace. We urge you to write to your representative today and remind him or her of the moral imperative to end this horrendous war. While we cannot argue one way or another as to the merits of this bill or that amendment, we can and do acknowledge that peace is too precious and life too dear to waste one more hour seeking anything less than a swift and complete end to this nightmare. Dr. Warnock last Friday warned that the wrong question is being asked. It is not about whether America will lose the war but rather whether "America may well lose its soul." It is up to us, people whose faith informs our values, to speak up and demand the best of our elected officials in this most trying of times. With blessings to you for all you do for peace, Vince Isner FaithfulAmerica.org Send a letter to the following decision maker(s): Your Congressperson Below is the sample letter: Subject: What you need to know as you decide about the war Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here], The war in Iraq must end. No matter what measures are before you, and no matter what the President threatens to do, I call upon you first to recognize and then to respond to the simple fact that we are engaged in an immoral war and that it must end swiftly. We are in danger of losing our national soul in the continued prosecution of this unjust war. Thus far neither Congress nor the White House has committed to lead our nation in the way of peace to which the prophets and sages of the world have called us. As you debate the options before you, I ask that above all you recognize your moral obligation to place peace above politics. Anything less than a total commitment to ending this war as quickly as possible amounts to complicity in war. I ask you to set aside political compromise and embrace the high purpose of pursuing peace. The moral imperative to end this horrendous war should far outweigh any political compromise. While I cannot argue one way or another as to the merits of this bill or that amendment, I can and do acknowledge that peace is too precious and life too dear to waste one more hour seeking anything less than a swift and complete end to this nightmare. Sincerely, David Griffin Take Action! Instructions: Click here to take action on this issue or choose the "Reply to Sender" option on your email program. Tell-A-Friend: Visit the web address below to tell your friends about this. Tell-a-Friend! What's At Stake: Campaign Expiration Date: April 19, 2007 If you received this message from a friend, you can sign up for FaithfulAmerica. This message was sent to griffjdav@earthlink.net. Visit your subscription management page to modify your email communication preferences or update your personal profile. To stop ALL email from FaithfulAmerica, click to remove yourself from our lists (or reply via email with "remove or unsubscribe" in the subject line).

I thought a lot about this for quite a while. Then, a second email from my minister arrived indicating that the previous email must have struck a nerve with some members of the congregation:

The emails I am receiving are interesting. Some agree and others disagree.

Is this a moral or political view? Should we separate church and state? The Bible does not separate the political and religious. The crucifixion of Jesus was because Jesus confronted the political, domination system of Rome. Political has to do with the way the government carries out it's decisions. Moral has to do with right and wrong. I do not feel we can separate how we do something from the way it is right or wrong. A part of this is whether the ends justify the means. Yes, I know some of us differ on this also. The cost of war is more than money; it is about lives lost on both sides of the war. It is also about money in that money is diverted from social justice issues (poverty, health care, social security, etc) and placed in budget items for war. There are moral decisions here, at least in my mind. Marcus Borg writes of our perception of God and uses the term panentheism. (No, not pantheism.) Panentheism is that God is in everything, a part of everything, and cannot be separate from anything. God is!

If I knew how I would set up a blog for us to communicate. That is what healthy churches do. I would be interested if you think I should not send out anything that speaks of moral issues - economy, AIDS, Darfur, health care, war, homelessness, as well as how people are using religion for their material benefit. Or shall church news/information be only for what happens here in Winterville Christian Church?

Peace,

David

I began to mull this over in earnest. I came to the conclusion that we are a Christian church in a democracy. Whether or not I agree with someone else's thoughts and words, it is my responsibility to be informed; I need to look at all sides of an issue. When doing so, I always come back to considering how Jesus would view the situation, what Jesus would say in response. Why? Because my faith is firmly rooted in the teachings of Jesus. How could my faith be rooted in one thing and my moral code be rooted in something else?

During the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, every time I heard the issue of weapons of mass destruction discussed, I wanted to scream, "WHO HAS THE MOST WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION? WHO IS THE ONLY COUNTRY THAT HAS USED NUCLEAR WEAPONS?" Why can WE have WMDs, but "THEY" can't? (In this case "they" can be any other country.)

Why is it so easy to see the sins of others while ignoring our own transgressions? Why shouldn't our moral code be tied to our religion? How can the USA always be right no matter what our sins? The number of American lives that have been lost in Iraq is a tragedy as are the hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis who have died. Think if we Americans and our government were innocent, falsely accused and then invaded by a foreign power. Then our babies and grandmothers began to die in hordes as the bombs fell and the bullets flew. How would WE feel?

Does the USA have the right to bully other countries or to kill innocent victims? Do we have the right to say who can and cannot have nuclear power? No wonder most of Europe is disgusted with us.

Before this war began, I marched in a peace demonstration in Blacksburg. My humble sign said, "You reap what you sow." Think of what our harvest will be...then weep.

Keeping Busy

A Two-Day Job

Each year I am part of a team that is responsible for organizing a summer camp for gifted students. The camp is the culmination of our graduate students' four-course sequence in gifted education and provides them with a practicum experience. There are hundreds of details and it takes an entire year to get everything ready. In fact, the week after camp ends we begin planning for the next year. One of the biggest jobs is evaluating the units that our graduate students will teach during camp. The focus is on providing rigorous experiences for the gifted children, ones they will not have in the classroom. As part of the third course, our graduate students create the units. My colleagues and I spend two days going through each unit with a fine toothed comb. Each unit must be reviewed by two of us, but independently.

I know that our students put forth much effort in creating the units, so I believe I owe it to them to put forth much effort in the evaluation process. This is how I have spent my last two days. It is a monumental task and part of my job, so I am not complaining. However, I am glad this task is finished for this year!

Seder Meal

I am now heading up a committee at church and it is my duty to ensure that the Seder Meal comes off without a hitch. This is a learning process for me as I never have been responsible for purchasing, preparing, serving, and cleaning up for a large room full of people. There is a good reason why I am not a caterer! However, I do have a fine group of hard working people on my committee so I believe we can pull this off without a hitch. Here's the email I received from the minister:

Attached is an almost complete bulletin for the Seder Meal.

What is needed on each table: on Seder plate put roasted or boiled egg, parsley, charoset, horseradish, spring of parsley and small dish with salt water. In addition on each table:, dish for washing hands and hand towel, three pieces of Matzoh ( 6 x6) or whatever size is in the box, wrapped in white napkin, wine, grape juice, and ice water, white candle in candle holder and Spring flowers. The tables are to be covered in white tablet cloths.

Before the dinner several pieces of regular bread need to be hidden for the House Cleaning.

A possible charoset recipe:

1 cup of chopped apples (2-3 apples)

1 cup chopped almonds or pecans

1 tsp of cinnamon

1/4 tsp of ginger

1 tsp honey or to taste

grape juice to form a mortar texture

serves 8-10

We will need to get together to talk about menu. Something that could be a nice dessert touch would be a lamb cake with coconut. Anybody have a lamb cake pan?

Peace,

David

PS There may be a few additional small touches that I have forgotten to include.

So, that's what a Seder Meal is all about!

Justifying My Existence

I am not a procrastinator ... 99.9% of the time. However, I could not bring myself to tackle my Consolidated Annual Report--which is due tomorrow--until I returned from Spring Break. It took me about seven hours to complete it (basically all day), and I hated every moment of it. So, you may ask, why am I not proud to see in writing all that I accomplished in my job at ECU over the last year? For one thing, I am not ego driven, so having to "brag" about my accomplishments grates on my nerves. Then, the form is a bit confusing. Where do I put my work on the Editorial Board for Five Ponds Press? Does it go in Service or in Pedagogical Materials? I can make a case for either or both. The entire process is detailed and nitpicky. BUT! It is done! Hooray!! I do not have to do this for another year. That said, I have learned a good lesson. I need to work on this sucker almost every day so that next year it will be mostly done when it is time to work on it. This means I have to keep an electronic log of every collaborative session, every student I meet with, every word I write, every advisee I help to register, and so on. This will save me having to go back through my calendar day by day for the past year. Now, can I make myself do it? I hope so. So what would keep me from taking the painless route? Probably the same thing that kept me from fulfilling my promise to dispose of at least one thing I own every single time I bring in something new.

If it Can Happen in Bucolic Riner, Virginia, it Can Happen Anywhere

Riner, Virginia

The following is a lead story on cnn.com. Read it and weep.

RINER, Virginia (AP) -- Two teens were charged with conspiracy to commit murder after one of them allegedly took a gun to school and at least one discussed shooting the principal and others, authorities said.

The boys, ages 14 and 15, were taken into custody Friday, said Lt. Brian Wright of the Montgomery County sheriff's office.

He said another student told sheriff's Deputy Kirk Hendricks, Auburn Middle School's resource officer, that the boys had a gun. "He probably saved some lives," Wright said.

Officers found a .22-caliber revolver and an undisclosed amount of ammunition, but it was not clear who the gun belonged to or how the boy obtained it, Wright said. He would not say where the gun was found. No shots were fired.

"We take this seriously, and the fact that we found a gun and ammo means this wasn't just talk," Wright said.

According to a preliminary investigation, at least one of the boys talked about plans to shoot Hendricks, Principal Guylene Wood-Setzer and at least one student, Wright said. Authorities would not say why the three were allegedly targeted.

The boys' names were withheld because they are minors. The 15-year-old was also charged with taking a gun onto school property and possession of a firearm by someone under 18.

Wood-Setzer declined to comment.

The school has 291 students in grades six through eight.

Riner is in southwestern Virginia, about 30 miles southwest of Roanoke.

Renewal

I believe that coming to the mountains for these very few days have been better than any medicine that a doctor could have ordered. Ahhhhhhhhh.

Last night I went with Judy B. to Martha Ann Stallings' house to meet with my old book group, "Reading Between the Wines". It was so good to see all my old friends and to catch up with all the goings on. Barbara Erdyle was there as was Carol Kahler; both are school principals and good people. Rochelle was there, too. I can't put a last name for dear Rochelle as she does not have one. She went to court and had her name legally changed to Rochelle--no middle or last name--a la Cher or Madonna. I love these dear women. What a good time I had.

This morning I arose fairly early, got dressed and went out to attend to business. My first stop was ODB where I had a lovely cup of coffee and a cranberry muffin. As I sat sipping my coffee I perused a copy of today's Roanoke Times. I bought Brenda Wojo a loaf of Portuguese Sweet Bread and another of Lemon Poppyseed. When I still worked for MCPS, Brenda was our administrative assistant. At times I would bring her a loaf of bread and she always loved it--so much, in fact, that she'd immediately open the bread and treat herself to a slice. I also bought a jar of apple butter "handmade in a copper kettle in Troutville" for me and one for Terry and Stephen. After all, when my girls come to visit I have to make fried apple pies. Grocery store apple butter just doesn't do it. I also bought T & S a pound of Mountain Mud coffee, a dozen scones, and two loaves of bread, the same kind I bought for Brenda. When Terry and Stephen lived in Blacksburg, they loved ODB scones, so whenever I can I take them a dozen.

My next stop was the NBB where I had a bit of business to attend to. Then I traversed the "Michael Vick Highway" over to Christiansburg where I met with Sharon Zuckerwar (Sharon now has the position I had when I left MCPS) to discuss a project I am doing for Five Ponds Press. We had a good time talking about "old times" and chuckling about the Teaching American History grant that she submitted last evening. The TAA grant that I received is coming to an end and the group heading it up decided to go for another one. God bless Melissa Lisanti.

I arrived home and met Dottie for a trip to Roanoke. It was just like old times. Dottie drove into Roanoke via Rt. 11, her preferred route. First we went to Crystal Spring to Martinique where Dottie purchased a gift for her ailing brother-in-law. We then headed over to The Forum where we wandered around the shops. The snotty woman in E. I. Randall got on my last nerve and that is the last time I will go into that shop. Things change quickly in strip malls where there are local businesses. The gift shop was gone and a shoe store was in its place. Other shops had closed, too. Next we zipped downtown to The Market and walked around our old haunts. First, of course, we parked in our usual spot. Things were pretty much the same, but a new shoe store has sprung up next to La Di Dah. About 4:30 we wandered over to Frankie's where Dottie treated me to French martinis. Yum. At 5:00 we left Frankie's and went directly across the street to my favorite restaurant in the entire world. Alexander's, as always, was tres magnifique. We even got to sit in at our favorite table in the window. The food was divine as always. Oh, I do love to see my teeth prints in the Plugra butter on the dinner bread (made in the bakery on The Market) after I've taken my first bite. Dinner with Dottie at Alexander's made this entire trip worth every mile I drove to get here.

So, I have truly had A GRAND DAY OUT, just like Wallace & Gromit did ... no BETTER than their day out. After I catch up on email I will go to bed so that I can arise early, close up the house, and make my way back to the Green City. I am renewed in a way that is ultimately refreshing. Southwest Virginia is where I belong. Thank you, God, for this little slice of Heaven called Blacksburg. There is no place like it in the world.

Spring Break Part II (Part I is below.)

When I went to bed last night I realized that there is no alarm clock in this house--at least not one that works properly. In fact, the house looks like Paul still lives here. It's as if he has gone out for an afternoon stroll and will be back at any moment. I found the Wallace and Gromit clock in Paul's bedroom but the batteries were "flat" as Paul would say. This was quickly posing a problem as I had to be up at 7:30 to go to breakfast at Gillie's with Dottie. When I went to bed I told myself to wake up at 7:30 and I did just that. Amazing, eh? Again we had incredible luck parking downtown. We found a spot on the corner of College Avenue and Draper Road, walked the few steps across the street, and entered Gillie's. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh. I could smell the potatoes frying as soon as I walked in. Rich aromas of strong coffee, eggs simmering in the pan, and freshly squeezed orange juice tickled my nose and my appetite. We found a spot and as we sat down a young woman came to take our drink orders. "Coffee, water with lemon, and a large glass of orange juice," I requested. Dottie ordered and when the young woman brought our drinks I asked about Noah, Jan Gillie's older son, a delightful boy I taught in fifth grade. She said that Noah wasn't there but that Nick was in the kitchen. Jan Gillie once described Nick to me as a cross between Satan and Beelzebub--that was when Nick was in kindergarten. Now Nick is 19 and he looks normal to me. I saw no cloven hoofs or horns. I next asked about Renee, Jan's wife. The young woman said that Renee would be in soon, and sure enough, when Renee came in, she immediately came over to talk to me. "Jan wants to retire now that he's 58," she explained, but I don't see how he can. I'm training the boys to run the restaurant with me in case Jan does stop working. We have a bunch of old Volvos he wants to restore ... I made the boys start out as dishwashers and Noah now cooks. He's 23 and after a year and a half in San Francisco, he's ready to help with the restaurant. He works all three shifts now--breakfast, lunch and dinner and is a cook. He's learning how to do the books. He's not here now because he had something else to take care of." As Renee continued to talk about one of my favorite students, I realized I was more relaxed that I have been in years. So, I savored every mouthful of Chappie's Choice, the same breakfast I have eaten at Gillie's for 25 years. When Jan opened the restaurant in 1973, all he served was ice cream. When he expanded to a full restaurant, he developed a menu that to this day is largely unchanged. THANK GOODNESS!!

I arrived back home and Skyped Paul. Harry was there puttering about the house and he told Paul to ask me if he and Steven Winter could come over for a visit. I immediately thought of Ann Roberts and how she and Harry adore each other. I know she'll be excited when I tell her. I'm not sure if Harry wants to come visit me in North Carolina, but if he wants to see me I guess that's where he will come. I've been trying to think of places to take him and so far all I've come up with are New Bern, Beaufort, and Atlantic Beach. I'll have to cogitate on this.

My next appointment was at 12:10 at Shaker's with the Sisterhood. Yes, we were all back together again--Brenda Wojo, Brenda Brand, Judy Barylske, Bette Kreye and ME! Wow! What a wonderful time we had. Brenda Brand told me that Virginia Tech will soon be hiring someone to teach elementary social studies and that I should consider the job. I explained that I can't work for Tech and also that I need to finish two more years in North Carolina. Brenda wanted to know why I can't work for Tech. When I explained about my retirement, she said that Tech has the TIAA Cref option. This could be good news. I'll have to check with VSRS to make sure that my Virginia retirement income would not be affected. After all, I'd hate to have to pay back five years of retirement! Brenda said she felt certain I would be hired. This is certainly something to think about.

I must end this for now because Connie Joyce and Barbara Stepp are coming over to see me before I leave with Judy to go to Marth Ann Stalling's house for the book group meeting. Yes, I've been invited back to "Reading Between the Wines".

Stay tuned ... more later.