Thursday, December 14, 2006

Comfort Ye My People

Hard, hard week. A mother of three in our congregation dropped dead of an apparent heart attack this past weekend. Her oldest child found her slumped over the computer in her home office. (Let this be a caution to us all . . .) She was exactly my age and her two older children are exactly my kids' age. We didn't know the father very well: she came to church on her own with the kids. It's emerging that there are serious questions about his ability to cope on his own as a single dad. Please keep the whole extended family in your prayers.

On a lighter, almost surreal note: We have Parrots! Yes, really. This morning our preschool director came running in to tell us that a flock of wild parrots had landed in the trees near the playground. Unbeknownst to me, Southern California is home to thousands of wild parrots, descendants of pet parrots who flew the coop, so to speak. No one in the office could remember seeing them here in our town, though. They are bright green and red. Very Christmasy. I saw at least a dozen. By afternoon, they seemed to have gone. Maybe they will come back.

5 comments:

more cows than people said...

blessings and strength, pcit, saying a prayer for this family and for your congregation and for you.

Jules said...

Blessings all, and comfort.

I'm just not sure what to make of the parrots.

Anonymous said...

Prayers of comfort and peace for the family, and for you as you minister to them.

Having wild parrots show up is very cool!!!

Unknown said...

I am so sorry to hear this; what a terrible shock!

Anonymous said...

God be with those children and with their father.

One of my congregation was delivering meals on wheels yesterday, and found one recipient who had killed himself. He used to work for her family business. One of her grandchildren recently tried to kill himself. A six-year-old grandchild has two inoperable and malignant brain tumours.

Yesterday I talked with a woman who's spent her life being abused, being blamed for it, and being abused again by the blamers.

A number of my women friends think that their anger must indicate some medical problem they're having.

I'm pretty cranky myself, having learned yesterday that my husband feels very ill-used that it's more difficult to schedule my doing all family errands in Denver, now that I'm in Wyoming pastoring five days a week.

And lectionary has me working on a sermon on joy. Which I lost half of this morning when my computer went naughty.

Thank you so much for the parrots! I am going to use them in my sermon. :)