#330: Generations of Hope

I moved a lot as a child.

Every school year was a new school,

new kids, new neighborhood.

One of the most unexpected delights of

living on an island is knowing people 

for a Very Long Time.

This is Mary:

My best buddy in my arms at my wedding.

Thirty years ago she would tag along with me

on visits to elderly folk who needed baths or a shave or 

their blood pressure checked.

Mary loved every one of them and they loved her.

This is Mary:

Now she's the bride.

Full of hope for the future.

It's a joy to watch the island's children grow,

then venture, all over the world.

#329: Selectman Candidate Tobias

Indulge a mother's pride, won't you?

This is one of my kids.

He's 23 and running for a 3 year seat

on the Board of Selectmen.

His great-grandfather, Walter Glidden, Jr., was a Selectman.

Here's something else he's been doing:

This is one of Underground Tom's creations.
Tobias taught a Miniature Building Workshop
 at the Nantucket Lighthouse School
on Rugged Road.
I don't know how, but a bunch of folk
transported this masterpiece to the school,

And the kids built a foundation for it.

Cool, huh?
Selectman Tobias Glidden. That's my boy.

#328: Nantucket Tea Party

 David's mom had a library of Nantucket books.

One of my favorites was 'The first Nantucket tea party.'

You can read it by clicking here.

Every winter my friend Mary has a ladies' tea party.
I play guitar, we all sing, and share favorite Scriptures.

And eat cake,

And other treats.
As tasty as they are pretty.

Summers can be crazy busy, but winters
have time enough for tea.

#327: Apple Magsafe Power Adapter

Hey, did you miss me?

I certainly missed writing.

Here's the culprit(s):

Yes, I too was a victim of the Apple T-shaped

power connector fiasco.

How did Apple, maker of my my top-notch laptop

ship it with such a shoddy cord?

I must admit the one cord may have been

chewed by Chiniculla...

Otherwise, the problem was wires pulling out at the T.

When I couldn't cobble together a workable cord, 

or borrow one from my kid (went back to college...)

I went to eBay and ordered a refurbished adaptor from

Wegener Media via eBay.

Problem solved.

Here's a Nantucket naiad house, on Monomoy Beach:

Had lots of time to wander with no laptop.

Thanks for visiting,

I'm thrilled to be back.

#326: Sermon Haiku 28: Matthew 5

Three guys with a boat

Everything's about to change

Because of Jesus

The story begins

He needs a boat to teach from

Peter rows Him out

After the teaching

Even though the nets are cleaned

Jesus says 'Go fish'

What? We fished all night!

Since it's You: 'lower the nets'

The whole crowd watches

As the nets fill up

The other boat comes to help

Overwhelming catch

Peter realizes

This is not about the fish

God stands next to him

Leaving everything

hundreds of fish, nets, boats, home

They follow Jesus

Whom do I follow?

#325: Sermon Haiku #27: Matthew 4

Genuine belief

Unseen in the easy times

Sparkles in trials

Beta tests show flaws

Yet also show steadfastness,

usefulness and faith.

Jesus was tested,

Satan tried to find a chink,

Will the Lamb hold true?

Tempted just like us

How did Jesus handle it?

Plumb line of the Word

When we think we stand

Beware, Satan is nearby

Distorting the truth

Do what Jesus did

Use the sword of the Spirit,

God's Word, our weapon

Hold tight, He never lets go.

Sermon Haiku #8 (also on Matthew 4)

#324: Sermon Haiku #26: Matthew 3

Infallible words

God's global positioning

Listen for His voice

John, in camel's hair

GPS, points to Jesus

Wilderness crier

Leaving Galilee

Jesus came to be baptized

John was reluctant

You should baptize me

Not the other way around

'Let it be so, now'

So, John baptized Him

Under the Jordan's waters

Standing there, dripping

Holy Trinity

The dove, the voice from heaven

the beloved son

When we meet Jesus

He forgives first, don't miss this

Then the Spirit comes

As His much loved child,

will you pass on the story?

Others are still lost

Looking for the way

home.

#323: President Kennedy's Bunker

Out in Tom Nevers,

there used to be a Navy base.

Back in David's bachelor days,

he shared an apartment with a sailor

who left this dish:

The Navy base was abandoned in 1962.

It was a fun place to 

poke around until they took 

most of the buildings down.

One that remains:

Tucked under the hill where we sit to

watch the Demolition Derby,

looking like it belongs in Hobbiton,

Is the bunker built to shelter President Kennedy

in case of a nuclear attack while he

was in Hyannisport.

I can hear it now,

"Quick, Mr. President, we have to 

fly over to Nantucket through

all this nuclear fallout so you can be safe

in the bunker."

"No wait! Nantucket's fogged in,
we'll have to take the ferry."

#322: Hubbard Squash

Volunteers.

That's what they called the squash vines

which grew out of the compost pile at Hummock Pond Farm.

Volunteers are such a fun part of gardening.

All the work we do to grow what we planted

and God says, 'How about some of these?'

The vines turned out to be Blue Hubbard squash.

This variety came north on a sailing ship to Marblehead

in the late 1700's.

They grow bigger than your head!

Seeds are baked and lightly salted.

(saving a few to plant in the spring...)

The flesh makes yummy pies and soups and sidedishes.

I bake it then freeze the extra in 2 cup portions.

An unexpected gift for the winter.

#321: Sweet Potato Surprise

We're cleaning out the compost pile.

Its corner post has rotted:

It's needed a rebuild since last spring,
nothing pretty here.

Except, maybe:

Growing up inside the rotted stump,

A serendipitous sweet potato.

Fried up with Irish sausage,

a pretty good breakfast.

#320: Moonrise over Nantucket Harbor

With ducks murmuring

In clear air, the moon rises

Over still water

#319: Winter Launch

It appears the turkey vultures

will be staying the winter:

They launch around nine in the morning

then ride thermals all day.

When I was taking photos of them,

I caught a last leaf of summer:

drifting down,

making me think of words of the hymn:

'Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms

Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms.'

It seemed to have been launched

on a flight to earth,

gently brought down by the wind.

#318: Tiny Epiphany

Sunrises are like God saying, Here I am, I love you!

Big splash, as it were.

It takes more focus to see Him in the small:

baby lettuce

(in the greenhouse)

rosemary blossoms

carnation bud,

and if you miss Him there...

'I have loved you with an everlasting love'

#317: Epiphany

Yesterday was Epiphany and I almost missed it.

I was busy. Working. Dump run. Feeding the cat.

Then, at dusk:

God's hand, revealed.

#316: Sconset in Winter

'Sconset beach, where the first of the fishmonger Gliddens

used to launch his boat and bring in his codfish.

They say you can tell the power of the undertow at a beach

by the steepness of it.

'Sconset is at least 30 degrees.

Not good for swimming, even in the summer.

The bluff has a walkway between

the cottages.

It's fun to look in the windows.

The deserted houses have green lawns,

 in January!

The view from the cliff.

Across the Atlantic to Portugal.

The winter community is small,

but the lights are still on

in 'Sconset.