Isaac and Friends

"I remain just one thing, and one thing only, and that is a clown. It places me on a far higher plane than any politician." Charlie Chaplin

Reformation Sunday

On this Reformation Sunday, a few of my favorite Martin Luther quotes:

"We old folks have to find our cushions and pillows in our tankards. Strong beer is the milk of the old."

"If I am not allowed to laugh in heaven, I don't want to go there."

"Pray, and let God worry."

"Some plague the people with too long sermons; for the faculty of listening is a tender thing, and soon becomes weary and satiated."

"There is no more lovely, friendly and charming relationship, communion or company than a good marriage."

What is Beautiful?

How do we define beauty? Where do our perceptions of what is beautiful and what is ugly come from? Here is a powerful new commercial from "Dove" that is part of their "Self Esteem Fund" that addresses these questions. Click here to see the video.

Clowning in Church

Isaac enters Church

As mentioned in previous blog, I donned clown make up for the first time after a long hiatus this past Sunday. Here are some photos of the event. The skit was about managing all the resources God has given us.

Isaac requests a piece of cake from Merry HugglesIsaac InvitesIsaac prays

Isaac and friends celebrate Holy Communion

Clowning Around!

I put on clown makeup yesterday. It had been awhile. It had been so long that it reminded me of the first time in 1977. It smelled the same. It felt the same. The same stirring of excitement deep in my spirit. The same sense of adventure. The same awe as I looked in the mirror and watched the transformation. To be serious about clowning is to die to oneself. The makeup is a death mask in that way; one allows those physical clues of identity to disappear. To become a clown character is to experience a rebirth. The birth of a part of me that is not always visible. The part that is more playful more childlike, and more vulnerable then the way I usually present myself to the world. I remember reading once that you shouldn't "paint it on the outside if it doesn't exist on the inside". To become a clown is to give yourself permission to turn the inside out. There is a misconception that a clown hides behind the makeup. In my experience, nothing could be further from the truth.
Maybe that is why people react in such strong ways to my clown character. His vulnerability invokes their vulnerability. I felt like I really connected on a deep level with people yesterday. It felt good. It felt right.

"The Bridge"

I really like this song, "The Bridge", from the CD "The Captain and The Kid", by Elton John. What does the "bridge" symbolize?
Courage? Faith? Risk? Death? The future?
Here are the lyrics to this song that some critics are calling "Elton John's best in years."
What do you think "The Bridge" symbolizes?
You can listen to the song at AOL by clicking here.

I've seen the bridge and the bridge is long
And they built it high and they built it strong
Strong enough to hold the weight of time
Long enough to leave some of us behind

chorus: And every one of us has to face that day
Do you cross the bridge or do you fade away
And every one of us that ever came to play
Has to cross the bridge or fade away

Standing on the bridge looking at the waves
Seen so many jump, never seen one saved
On a distant beach your song can die
On a bitter wind, on a cruel tide [repeat chorus]

And the bridge it shines
Oh cold hard iron
Saying come and risk it all
Or die trying [repeat chorus]

Leaves, Frustration, Anger, and Insight!

"Leaves. Huge, orange maple leaves. My backyard was blanketed in them. And they weren’t mine. They couldn’t have been mine because there weren’t any trees in my backyard. They were my neighbor’s leaves; they had fallen off of his trees and blown over onto my property. And since they were on my property, I now had to clean them up." writes Douglas McCoy in his marvelous story; An Autumn Observation. Click Here to read the rest of this article.

Life!

"This life, therefore, is not godliness but the process of becoming godly, not health but getting well, not being but becoming, not rest but exercise. We are not now what we shall be, but we are on the way. The process is not yet finished, but it is actively going on. This is not the goal, but it is the right road. At present, everything does not gleam and sparkle, but everything is being cleansed." Martin Luther

Autumn Prayer

A prayer for autumn from "Guerrillas of Grace" by Ted Loder.

O Extravagant God,

in this ripening, red-tinged autumn,

waken in me a sense of joy

in just being alive,

joy for nothing in general

except everything in particular;

joy in sun and rain

mating with earth to birth a harvest;

joy in soft light

through shyly disrobing trees;

joy in the acolyte moon

setting halos around processing clouds;

joy in the beating of a thousand wings

mysteriously knowing which way is warm;

joy in wagging tails and kids' smiles

and in this spunky old city;

joy in the taste of bread and wine,

the smell of dawn,

a touch,

a song,

a presence;

joy in having what I cannot live without-

other people to hold and cry and laugh with;

joy in love,

in you;

and that all at first and last

is grace.