In Remembrance

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.



Written by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae on 3 May 1915 after he witnessed the death of his friend, Lieutenant Alexis Helmer, 22 years old, the day before.

Write My Own Bible?

(An extract from 'Tales of a Magic Monastery' by Theophane the Monk)

I've been going there on retreat each year for the past forty years. Each time it's the same, yet somehow always different. The first time I went I forgot to bring my Bible. When I asked the guestmaster if I could borrow a Bible, he said,

"Wouldn't you care to write your own?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, write your own Bible - something of your own on the order of the Bible. You could tell of a classical bondage and the great liberation, a promised land, sacred songs, a messiah - that kind of thing. Ought to be much more interesting than just reading someone else's Bible. And you might learn more."

Well, I set to work. It took me a month. I never learned so much about the official Bible. When I was finished, he recommended I take it home and try to live according to it for a year. I should keep a journal of my experience. But I shouldn't tell anybody about the project, nor show anyone the books. Next year, after Christmas I could come back for another retreat.

It was quite a year. An eyeopener. Most certainly I had never put so much energy and alertness into living by the official Bible as I was putting into living by this one. And my daily meditations had never been so concentrated.

When I arrived back for my next retreat, he greeted me very warmly, took into his hands my Bible and my journal, kissed them with greatest reverence, and told me I could now spend a couple of days and nights in the Hall of the Great Fire. On the last night of the year, I should consign my two books to the flames. And that's what I did. A whole year's wisdom and labor - into the Great Fire. Afterwards he set me to work writing another Bible.

And so it went, these past forty years. Each year a new Bible, a new journal, and then at the end of the year - into the flames. Until now I have never told anyone about this.


The first time I read this tale many years ago I thought it was heretical....and then I was in a small group exercise where we tried something similar.

We wrote our 'Genesis', our origins, we reflected on our past and our family.

We wrote our 'Exodus', our journey out of captivity into freedom.

We wrote 'Psalms', our own personal lyrics of praise born out of our daily experiences.

We wrote our own 'Proverbs and Wisdom'...lessons learned from the reality of trying to walk a life of faith.

We wrote our 'Gospel and Acts', how we heard the good news and how that altered our lives.

We wrote 'Epistles' to ourselves, practical Godly advice relating to issues we were currently facing.

It was an incredibly powerful act of reflection and remembering.

One part of the tale still bothered me however. That after doing all that writing the monk is asked to consign his books to the flames and start again. It's taken me a while to realize why that is a good thing. My experience of God has altered, grown, evolved, enlarged and shifted over the years. There are beliefs and experiences I've had to grow into, and there are others I have needed to discard.

If I don't 'burn my bible', I will be in danger of always trying to recreate the the exact way my walk with God looked like when I was a teenager - back when I was right about EVERYTHING and would berate anyone until they verbally agreed with my point of view.

I will be in danger of recreating my twenties - when I was convinced that I had to hate myself for God to love me.

Even now, who I have grown into will be dangerous if I stay here. My experience of myself and of God is ever shifting as my finite mind focuses on different aspects of God's infinite reality.

Worship on the iphone?

This is pretty impressive!

Ways of thinking about Creativity

The speaker is Elizabeth Gilbert, the author of Eat, Pray Love.

The original video is here

My deep dark secret...

My Brother is a Morris Dancer.

There, I've said it - admitted it in public.

Many people would be embarrassed to have a Morris Dancer in the family, but not me. I am proud of my hankie waving, bell wearing, stick shaking, hop, skip and jumping brother. He is part of an English tradition that dates back to to the 14th Century according to some historians.

When I was home in the U.K. last week I was fortunate enough to witness his world debut dancing with Kemp's Men - the Norwich Morris Dancing Team.

Here are some videos of him in action (if you are reading this as a facebook note, you'll have to click 'view original post' to see them as facebook doesn't import them).

Enjoy!

Welcome home?

(random thoughts for Sunday's Contemplative Service)

The American Immigration officer smiled at me as he handed me back my Passport and Green Card.

'Welcome Home.'

It was nice to be welcomed so warmly after so many hours travelling.

I have lived many different places in my life. Norwich. New Cross. Battersea. Nottingham. Bratislava, Birmingham. Lubbock and Houston to be precise. Each of these places I have labeled as 'Home'. Even before I moved to another country I can remember making an internal decision that the place where I was living would be called Home. Even though I just flew back from the U.K. to the place where I was born, I didn't fly 'home', as home is Houston, the Immigration Officer was correct.

This mindset didn't sit very well with my parents. They wanted me to know that even though I was moving to the U.S. 'I could always come home.'

When the house that I grew up in was sold 3 years ago, I was surprised how emotional I was. There were many memories in that house even though I hadn't lived there for many years. I walked past that house last week and it felt strange to not be able to push open the gate and walk up the driveway and in the back door.

But when the house was sold, I hadn't somehow lost 'home'.

When the airplane touched down at George Bush Intercontinental Airport I felt glad to be home even before the Immigration Officer confirmed it.

My decision to call the place I am living home was prompted by the realization that if I do that then I will spend a lot less time feeling 'homesick'. I sometimes miss things from the U.K. but I'm not really homesick, I am connected to people through the Internet, and I can get most of the products I miss. (Though if anyone finds out a place in Houston that sells Jelly Babies let me know)

When I was a child at camp we used to sing a song that went as follows:

This world is not my home, I'm just a-passing through
My treasure is laid up, way beyond the blue
The Savior beckons me from Heaven's open door
And I can't feel at home in this world anymore.

I struggle with this song. I do feel at home in this world, I'm not homesick for Heaven, yes I'm looking forward to being reunited with loved ones there, but my relationship with Jesus is more than just a golden ticket to enter through the pearly gates. There is a genre of Christian music that expresses the sentiment of 'When we all get to heaven it will be o.k.' That is true, but it should not make me complacent to the injustices of this world.

We pray 'on earth as it is in Heaven', I want my earthly home to be a reflection of my heavenly one.

My view of 'home' needs to expand to contain all the glories of Heaven.

Haha!

April Games

April was a good month with 47 games played of 27 different games! Here are some of the highlights of the month.

Hive is still in the lead with 6 plays in April. It's been one of my tops games every month so far and I don't see the obsession slowing down soon. By contrast my top played game of last year Dominion has not hit the table this year yet. I am off to the U.K. tomorrow, I've already sent my family over there the game Dominion, so that will hit the table, and I've just thrown Hive in my suitcase too :)

Werewolf has hit the table again in April, but another one of my current obsessions is the game Sticheln I've heard various theories about the name of this game, apparently it is a German pun that doesn't really translate. I believe the name is a sort of pun -- "sticheln", as I understand it, means "to prick", while "Stich" is the word for "trick" (the card game version.) Imagine a trick taking game where a) you don't have to follow the suit that was led and b) every card that is not the same as the color led is instantly trump! Then add a crazy scoring system that makes it very easy to get negative points and you get some of the painful enjoyment that is Sticheln. The game play is very interactive and you often have to choose between giving yourself a few positive points or giving a lot of negative points to a competitor :)

Dixit is almost at the other end of the spectrum to Sticheln. Yes there is a game here complete with keeping score, but your score seems almost irrelevant to the fun of the game. The cards feature some of the most beautiful artwork I have seen.

Through the Ages is not the sort of game I normally enjoy.

A full game usually takes about 3 1/2 hours and involves guiding your civilization through various eras. Helping them learn new Technology and develop Art and Religion and Warfare. I think what appeals to me in this game more than some of the others I have played is that it feels a bit more like multi-player solitaire than a pitched battle. Yes you can attack other players, but that is not the central theme of the game. Each turn I am trying to discern how to maximize my civilization given the various options presented to me.

It's strange, I like Sticheln because it features a lot of 'mess with your opponent' opportunities while I like Through the Ages because it doesn't!

Storms at Sea

Jesus Calms the Storm by Rembrandt

Storms happen.

Life is not always clear blue skies and white fluffy clouds. Growing up in the U.K. I experienced a lot of rain (though not as much as the stereotypes portray). I learned to label sunny dry days as good, and wet rainy days as bad.

Then I moved to the arid lands of West Texas. Lubbock once went 98 days without a drop of rain. Suddenly the dry days were ‘bad’ and when the storm eventually hit it was ‘good’.

Storms on the Sea of Galilee were common. The geography of the area combined with the shallowness of the water meant that storms occurred frequently. We only read about a few storms in the Gospels, and they all have some kind of supernatural phenomenon attached to them, Jesus calming the storm, Jesus walking on the water. I don’t think Jesus calmed every storm he was caught in. He certainly didn’t heal every person who was brought to him.

Storms are not good and bad in themselves, I might label them that way because of how I think they help or hinder me, but of themselves they are morally neutral. I also have a tendency to label how I encounter God in the storm. If God calms the storm or if I encounter Him in the midst of it then its ‘good’, but if the storm just takes its natural course then it is ‘bad’.

I wonder if the disciples ever got frustrated in a stormy sea crossing ‘Jesus, you calmed that last storm, why won’t you calm this one? Don’t you care about us anymore? We might drown!’

Sometimes I encounter God in the midst of the storm, sometimes I encounter God when he calms the storm, and sometimes the storm continues unabated and I don’t get that fuzzy feeling that I have come to label as ‘the Presence of God’. But that doesn’t mean God is absent, it just means I have to look closer at what I categorize as an encounter with God.

The sun is always there shining, even when a passing storm obscures it from view and prevents me from feeling its warmth. I was involved in a worship service last weekend and at the end of the event one of the singers in the band said ‘Wow, God was really present tonight, couldn’t you just feel it?’ I said nothing, but internally my reaction was ‘No I couldn’t. I was tucked at the back of the platform concentrating hard to play music that I only learned the day before. I was more concerned with whether I was playing the correct chord than whether I had a feeling of God.’ But just because I could not feel him did not mean God was absent.

God was present.

God is present.

God is always present.

Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you. (Psalm 139: 7-12)

Storms happen.

When the storm suddenly becomes calm – God is present.
When I see a figure walking towards me across the waves – God is present.
When the storm continues to rage around me – God is present.

Whatever you are walking through right now, God is present.

The Longest Password

During a recent computer problem it was discovered that a blonde was using the following password on her computer:

MickeyMinniePlutoHueyLouieDeweyDonaldGoofySacramento.

When asked why her password was so long so replied,

'I was told the password had to be 8 characters long and include at least one capital.'

Italian Tomato Tart

I've had so many people ask me for this recipe since I posted a picture of the completed tart on Facebook that I had to make it again just to stop the emails :) Having said that it is a) wonderful to know people are interested in what I am cooking, b) I like making and eating this tart and c) It's actually really healthy!

Crust

1 (10 ounce) package frozen long-grain brown rice (I use Birds Eye Steam fresh, but see note below)
2 tablespoons pesto
1 tablespoon fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1 large egg
cooking spray

Filling

1/2 cup low fat milk (fat free or 1%)
1/2 cup egg substitute (see note)
1/4 teaspoon salt (see note)
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
dash of ground red pepper
1 large egg
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded part skimmed mozzarella cheese (see note)
1 ounce prosciutto cut into thin strips (see note)
4 small plum/Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon fresh basil


Notes on ingredients and how I modify the recipe

• I was actually surprised to be able to find the frozen long-grain brown rice in the freezer section of my grocery store, and even more surprised that it tastes quite good. Here's a pic to help you locate it. If you don't like using frozen rice - and I must admit I was skeptical, just cook too much rice next time you make some and save 10 ounces for this.
• The first time I made this I didn't use any egg substitute, I just used 1/2 cup of freshly beaten eggs instead. I couldn't notice any taste difference this time when I used the substitute, plus it lowered the cholesterol level of the tart - bonus :)
• I omitted the salt, mainly because I increased the amount of prosciutto quite considerably and that is already salty. If you don't increase the prosciutto then I would add the salt in.
• I also didn't measure the mozzarella, I just eyeballed it until I had thrown in enough to cover the bottom of the pie dish. I also didn't measure the 1/8 teaspoon of ground black pepper or the dash of red pepper, that's right folks, I'm a cooking Maverick!
• My local store sells thin slices of Prosciutto in 3oz packages. I just slice up the lot and put it in the tart. I know that this increases the sodium level which is why I omit the salt. It makes the tart taste so good with the extra amount of meaty goodness though.

So here is how to make this yummy goodness.

1. Preheat the oven to 350F

2. To prepare the crust, cook the brown rice according to the package directions. Combine cooked rice, pesto, Parmesan cheese, and 1 egg; firmly press into the bottom and sides of a 9 inch pie plate coated with cooking spray.

To be honest this is the only slightly frustrating step. To help make it not so messy I would suggest pushing it into the plate using a rubber spatula. The first time I baked this I used my hands and although I'm all for tactile cookery this was a little bit too messy for me. The rice seemed to stick to my skin in a way that it didn't to my trusty red spatula :) As you can see from the picture, it's practically impossible to get this totally even, there will be holes! But don't worry, they cover up and the filling helps hold the crust together beautifully.

Bake the crust at 350F for 15 minutes and then remove the dish from the oven.

Increase the oven temperature to 400F

To prepare the filling, whisk together the milk, egg substitute (or egg), salt, pepper, red pepper and large egg in a bowl.

Sprinkle half the mozzarella and half the prosciutto into the bottom of the prepared crust. Top with half the tomato slices. Repeat procedure with the remaining mozzarella, prosciutto and tomatoes.

You should get something like the pic above. Next pour the milk mixture over the tomatoes.

Bake at 400F for 10 minutes. Then reduce the oven temperature to 325F (do not remove tart from oven) and bake an additional 35 minutes until set.

Cool for 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with fresh basil and cut into wedges.

That's it. Be careful not to overcook this. I found the 35 minutes plenty as the filling will firm up in the 10 minute wait once it's out of the oven.

I normally serve it with some steamed vegetables, and this evening I also sauteed some mushrooms I had in the fridge and wilted some spinach as well.

Healthy and delicious!

I'm sure there are lots of other variants you could put in this brown rice crust, it's so much easier and quicker than making a pastry quiche case. Just throw in your favorite fillings and cook a slice of happiness.

Cat Stevens Was Wrong (possibly)....

...but I don't know about Eleanor Farjeon

We sang 'Morning Has Broken' in the Contemplative Service this morning.



The third stanza always seems to create discord in the congregation.

Mine is the sunlight, mine is the morning
Born of the one light, Eden saw play
Praise with elation, praise every morning
God's recreation of the new day

90% of the congregation sing 'recreation' the other 10% sing 'Re-creation', probably the ones who have had it drilled into them by a Choir Director! I sang 'Re-creation' this morning. In the above clip Cat Stevens sings it the other way, but I don't think the lyrics make much sense that way.

I get excited about the thought that each day is a re-creation. Yesterday's messes do not affect the beauty of the new day. Every moment I also have the opportunity to engage in activities that 're-create' me. As you can tell from my posts, that would be cooking, music, boardgames, reading, time with friends etc.

What 're-creates' you?

Beware the Pizza

I haven't written that much about it, but I'm dieting at the moment. I am working with a fitness/diet coach. Every day I try to do at least 10,000 steps (including a 30 minute walk), some stretches, drink 64oz of water and to consume no more than 2000 calories. Since I started on Feb 20th I have dropped 18 pounds!

The walking and the water consumption have been a problem for me, the first few days it seemed like I was going to the restroom every few minutes! I think my bladder has finally gotten used to the fact that it has to do more work now. Fitting in time to walk has been tricky, I've gotten together a group of people to walk at lunchtime at work, but as the weather gets hotter I've found myself walking in the Mall more because of the ac!

I've been stuck on a weight plateau for a week now. Basically I haven't been eating enough calories, so my body has gone into 'lockdown' mode. It thinks it's starving so it holds onto the fat that it has stored and refuses to burn any in exercise. Well that's what I've read online and it seems to make sense to me :)

To counteract that I decided I needed to come off the diet (at least for one meal), so today I went with some friends to California Pizza Kitchen. I consumed one Jerk Chicken Pizza and drank water and when I looked up the nutrition had quite a shock.

That one pizza of yummy goodness contained the following:

1356 Calories
24g Saturated Fat - which is 90% of the recommended daily intake!
137g of Carbohydrates
4236g Sodium - which is a whopping 184% of the recommended daily intake!!!
74g of Protein
9g of Fibre

In the past with a meal like that I would have generally drank at least 3 Dr Peppers which would add about another 450 calories and 123g of sugar.

I would have eaten that without a second thought and no ill effects, and then consumed something equally unhealthy in the evening too.

Not today!!!

In the afternoon I had stomach pains, intestinal rumblings, and I actually felt a bit light headed and loopy as well. It's amazing what 7 weeks of healthy eating can do. My body now rejects what it used to crave. It made me realize that the scene in 'Super Size Me' where Morgan Spurlock throws up after eating nothing but McDonald's for three days straight is entirely plausible. He had a diet far healthier than mine before he started, and his descent into fatty carbohydrate hell was far more severe than mine

So this evening I have some green peppers and some tomatoes roasting in the oven with a drop of pesto, garlic and capers in each one. I will consume this with a small green salad, drizzled with some balsamic vinegar and a light dusting of parmesan cheese, and learn to listen to my body....

...and hope that the carbohydrate shock of lunch is enough to get my body losing weight again!

And if you see me walking fast in the Mall, come say hello!

Fast Food Facts :(

I watched Super Size Me last weekend, and now having just read this, I don't think I can face a McDonalds again.

Food for thought

In our Contemplative Service today we used the following paraphrase of Ephesians 4: 20-24 written by my friend Jerry:

Think about how you have come to know Jesus in your daily experience. Consider how deeply the truth of Jesus has gotten into the fabric of your life. It is woven all through you, an intricate part of your lived experience. You didn’t get there all at once. The process is slow, sometimes painful. We take off the way we had grown accustomed to living, the habits and patterns ingrained in us over a lifetime. Like a mask that no longer represents us, we take off the images and facades that don’t represent our true selves. Once we take off the image-clothing, we’re ready to let the authentic person live through! No more hiding for us! We live emotionally and spiritually naked and unashamed. It’s like wearing new clothing, only this clothing is who we really were all along, reflecting the image of God within us.

It really resonated with me today, and seemed to fit well with 'The Warp and the Weft'.

Saturday Morning Cooking - Roti Parata!

A couple of weekends ago I went to a wonderful evening of Curry hosted by Doug and Veejay. Veejay's sister was in town from Canada where she owns an award winning Curry House. Her cooking was incredible and as part of the evening she taught us how to make Roti Parata. (I've also seen it spelled Prata or Pratatha)



I'm not going to post the dough recipe as she shared the one she uses which has some slight differences to the ones available online. Let's just say it tastes really good!


So here's what I cooked for Brunch today :)




I don't have any pics of the cooked version as I ate it rather quickly.

Whilst researching videos of Parata throwing on YouTube (yes, I need a life) I came across this rather yummy breakfast version.

Here's a finished Cheese and Egg Roti Parata cooking in the pan

March Board Game Results

28 games played in March, 18 different games.


Here are the highlights.

Top, once more is the ever popular Werewolf with 5 plays. I love to run this game although I do enjoy playing it too. It seems to work well with a crowd and people seem to pick it up fairly quickly. Moderating takes a fair amount of concentration though :)

Animalia is a new game to me, but I've quickly logged 3 plays in March alone. Every player is an Impressario trying to put together the best possible troop of performing animals. The game play is like a simplified Medici (which is a game I love). Animalia takes similar concepts to Medici but does without the auction mechanic and simplifies the scoring a little. It's definitely a game that is a stepping stone to the superior Medici whilst still being a lot of fun in its own right.

Ta Yu is a very elegant abstract game. The theme is one of connecting water flowing from the center of the board, but that doesn't really impact game play. In the simplest version you draw a tile and then play it. Deciding whether to help yourself or hinder your opponent is the main challenge of this game. Unfortunately the original Kosmos version (pictured here) is no longer available and consequently sells for a lot of money. I have the not so pretty but still playable new version instead.

Haggis is a game from a small independent designer that one of the other players in our group was asked to play test. It feels a little similar to Tichu (a game I love), but is actually playable by 2 or more unlike Tichu which really requires 4 players. It's a fun game, though to be honest I'm having a little trouble remembering it now.

Hive makes a return appearance into the 'Most played list'. Ok so it was only 2 plays in March, but when you consider the large number of different games I play, any repeat is a good sign. (last year I managed 378 plays of 186 different games!). As I only received Hive just before Christmas, it didn't make it into the Quarters, Nickels and Dimes last year, but this year I've already played it 11 times! Will it get played enough to topple last years winner (Dominion with 22 plays)? It's definitely possible as I've only played Dominion 3 times so far in 2010.

Tune in again next month to see what game takes the lead :)

Christ is Risen.....have a doughnut?

Growing up the U.K., doughnuts were considered an Afternoon Tea food. You would have sandwiches (white bread, with the crusts cut off of course) and hot tea with milk or lemon. The doughnut would be served as a sweet pastry at the end of the meal, usually as one choice among many, the Egg Custard, the Vanilla Slice and the Apple Turnover were all other options that made an appearance at our house.

Occasionally the doughnut would migrate to regular tea time, but the idea of eating a doughnut for breakfast never crossed our mind, doughnuts were not to be consumed before at least midday. When I relocated to Lubbock, Texas, and discovered doughnuts being served as a breakfast staple I was mystified. Some cultural differences took a great deal of getting used too. But I soon embraced the mystery of the fried dough breakfast and began to consume my fair share as a way to break fast - this was of course before my love affair with the Kolache entered the picture.

One thing that did mystify me however was the appearance of the doughnut in church, usually as an enticement for somebody to enter the Sunday school room. Most of the churches I attended in the U.K. never served more than hot tea with a plain biscuit (that's cookie for you American readers). Occasionally a more progressive church might serve chocolate biscuits if their budget could cover it, but Rich Tea Biscuits or a Plain Digestive was the usual level of snackage at most churches in the U.K. It seems to me that doughnuts are almost a requirement for worship in the U.S. Every Easter our worshipping staff has involved discussions about how many doughnuts to order, where they should be placed around the church and what type of doughnut is best. Should we order cake doughnuts? Chocolate? Glazed? Filled? I never realized that part of planning Easter Worship would involved estimating doughnut consumption. I guess nothing says 'Christ is Risen' quite like deep fried sugary dough.

Is it the shape I wonder, maybe subconsciously by consuming a doughnut we are consuming the stone that was in front of the tomb? Is it our way of declaring that not only is the tomb empty, but we are making sure it never gets blocked again? I wonder what the symbolism of sprinkles are.

Maybe it is us declaring our 'disdain' for the flesh by eating these fried carbohydrate bombs. We know our flesh will fail but our Spirits will live forever. Somehow I don't think Bavarian Cream was what St. Paul had in mind when he told us to 'Put to death the deeds of the body'.

I guess it's just as well that there is no Scriptural Prohibition against doughnut consumption. It could cause a severe drop in Church attendance if the only snack foods allowed were sauteed kale and pickled beetroot!

So this sunday I will dash between services trying to avoid small children with a doughnut in each hand and sugary smears across their faces....and I will try to remind myself that I don't need to eat a doughnut because their are better things I can do with the calories.

And then I will go celebrate the end of Lent by having my first Dr. Pepper since we broke up in February. Doughnuts are optional for me....but celebrating Easter without a D.P.? Inconceivable!

Announcing the Death of Jesus of Nazareth - Aged 33

Died: 14th day of the month Nisan in Jerusalem.

Preceded in death by Jacob bar Joseph who raised him as his own son.

Survived by his mother, Mary; brothers James, Joses and Judas, and his sisters.

Jesus of Nazareth was born in Bethlehem of Judea.

His family fled to Egypt when he was two, seeking political asylum.

They returned to Nazareth in Galilee after the death of Herod the Great.

Jesus was apprenticed as a carpenter to Joseph, and worked in the family business until he turned 30.

He was baptized in the Jordan River by his cousin John.

He spent the next 3 years living as an itinerant rabbi, with a small school of 12 disciples.

He devoted his life to serving the least, the last and the lost, wherever he found them.

Despite repeated warnings, his teaching, his work and those he chose to call "friend" drew unwanted attention from the authorities.

The family wish to make it clear that his arrest and immediate trial took place without due process. The charges of blasphemy and of being a threat to national security were not corroborated by a single witness.

He died as he lived: extending forgiveness to those responsible for his execution.

He will be greatly missed by his family, his friends-"the sinners" and by the poor.

The family extends gratitude to Joseph of Arimathea for covering the funeral expenses.

How to Read a Poem

How to Read a Poem: Beginner's Manual

First, forget everything you have learned,
that poetry is difficult,
that it cannot be appreciated by the likes of you,
with your high school equivalency diploma,
your steel-tipped boots,
or your white-collar misunderstandings.

Do not assume meanings hidden from you:
the best poems mean what they say and say it.

To read poetry requires only courage
enough to leap from the edge
and trust.

Treat a poem like dirt,
humus rich and heavy from the garden.
Later it will become the fat tomatoes
and golden squash piled high upon your kitchen table.

Poetry demands surrender,
language saying what is true,
doing holy things to the ordinary.

Read just one poem a day.
Someday a book of poems may open in your hands
like a daffodil offering its cup
to the sun.

When you can name five poets
without including Bob Dylan,
when you exceed your quota
and don't even notice,
close this manual.

Congratulations.
You can now read poetry.


Pamela Spiro Wagner