A strange thing happened: On the way to the close of the vestry meeting last Sunday, right before we anointed and prayed for our Senior Warden, Bill Stone, the treasurer, Rick Moss, reported, among other things, that we were not in the red. It’s the end of June and summer is upon us, a time when I usually write to you all asking for more support. This is wonderful! What am I to do?

This past Sunday, we joined Gil and Linda Riley as they reaffirmed and renewed their wedding vows on their 50 year anniversary. Their children and grandchildren watched with us as we witnessed their re-commitment to one another for "another 50 years."

The phrase “completely calm” often appears in our conversations as more of a wish than a description. The public is urged to remain calm in the face of distress, tragedy, or danger. Families are asked to be calm at the hearing of difficult news and friends offer the advice at the beginning of a difficult conversation.

Dear Friends, Here are some of the responses I got from you all, and you were all so different and each so spot on! Thank you for sharing! I have included a 3-4 minute video that I intend to show Sunday. It is guaranteed to bless your socks off.

As the story goes, mythical no doubt, one of the Rector’s grandkids organized a preschool escape on her second day. The first day must have been reconnaissance. Her siblings seemed not to have followed suit. The preschool has blessed the socks off our family. The preschool can touch us in a lot of different ways. Just its daily presence brings an ambiance of joy to our New Covenant campus. But Chuck Hazama’s testimony is unique and stunning, and will likely bless your socks off, too.

1+1+1=1 Reducing the doctrine of the Most Holy Trinity primarily to mathematics leads to absurdity. (Reducing anything significant to mathematics almost always does.)

Dear Friends, First, we carried the remainder of the cord back to its stack in the woods. Then the floor was to be swept, as were the screens. The porch was now ready for the summer furniture to be brought from the garage rafters and basement. As if there were marks on the concrete floor, each piece had its place and was positioned precisely. Last to be put in its place, next to the brick chimney, was the hibachi. Soon we would be grilling again. Summer was officially here.

The last time Barb and I headed out of town on a weekend to simply be attenders, i.e. not having a scripted part in the ceremony, was on a day of two funerals. (I say scripted because attending, being there, is a critical part in all ceremonies.)

“They took in my family and me when no one else would have us. Why would I leave for money and prestige?” So said Mike Pressler, famous for the Duke lacrosse sex scandal of almost a decade ago, when asked why he continues coaching at Bryant University while turning down offers for more than three times his current salary at division one colleges and more prestigious universities.

Last week was a very full one. We entered into the worship service on Easter Sunday having taken a long route through Lent and Palm Sunday to the services of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.