Wednesday Wanderings in Queenston

Episode Transcript

(00:01):
Well, hello everyone. I'm justchecking the meter because I just recorded a
podcast and it didn't pick anything up, and it was a really good one.
It was a really, really goodone. I don't know if I
can capture the same words. Iam parked along the Niagara Parkway, one
of my favorite places on the planet, at a little lookout so you hear

(00:24):
cars going by. There's a ladysitting at the bench. So I can't
do this. I'm gonna stay inthe car. It's kind of warm,
so it won't be a long one. I just went up to line eight
and picked up some peaches and nectarinesfrom my dear friend Donna's farm and decided
to come back along. Well,it's not along, it's out of my
way. I went to Queenston,which isn't too far from there, and

(00:48):
I love the little Anglican church there. It's old, it's like from the
early eighteen hundreds. It's Brock Memorial, which is unusual because it's not named
for a saint. It's named forGeneral Brock from the War of eighteen twelve
ero right. The big monument RockMonument is just up the hill from it,
and on the top of the scarpment, and so I arrived and this

(01:12):
big truck goes right in front ofme onto the grass, and realize that
they're doing some work. They're they'redoing some stuff with the plants, but
down the window because it's a littlebit of loup. And there's a couple
who are they're looking after the flowersand they're trimming the bushes. I mean,

(01:33):
it's been it's like the tropics herewith all this rain. My backyard.
The lawn is at least eight incheslong, and there's no time,
there's no place. It's been impossibleto mow it because it's like raining.
Don't away, fly, good Lord, attacked by a fly. So it's
been. It's been a little rainyand a little humid and a lot hot.

(01:56):
So this is the first opportunity they'vehad. Now, I was an
Anglican priest for over twenty years.I know these people. I don't know
them personally, but I know thevolunteers in a church group are like gold.
And they saw the opportunity and youknow, it was time to mow
the lawn and get everything looking beautiful. And they chose a very hot day

(02:21):
and they were both very uncomfortably warmso I drive up and I parked and
got out of the car with mycamera because I love taking pictures of the
stone building. And the woman washorrified. She said, oh, no,
you came to take pictures and everything'sin such a mess. And I
said, that's okay. I comehere often. I just just you know,

(02:44):
I come here to contemplate or todo a podcast. And I'm really
glad that you know you. AndI complimented them, said you're doing a
beautiful job, and it's so warm. And her name was Dona ourselves.
She said, have you seen theinside the church? And I went no,

(03:05):
And she said would you like to? And I said yes. Now
I am a church nerd. Ihave been in most Anglican churches in the
Dioceis of Toronto. I love churches, and I especially love old rural churches.
Oh my heart. So we walkin and I'm getting preclumped again.

(03:29):
There's a certain smell of an oldbuilding, an old church building. It's
not it's a bit musty, butit's because it's been closed up and the
sun's pounding on the door. Right. It's candles, and it's paper,
and it's the smell of prayer books. And hymn books, and it's so
familiar to me. I don't thinkI realized until that moment how much I

(03:58):
miss a church like a building.I'm part of a beautiful church right now.
We don't have a building, andI don't want a building, because
it costs a lot of money tosupport a building. But it was that
emotional, physical, sensual. It'sa century sensor rething. And it was

(04:21):
like you know how you see amontage of all the details of something in
somebody's life. It was every churchI've ever been in, and gorgeous church,
Oh my gosh, very much likeSaint Paul's and Lindsay only on his
way, smaller scale, beautiful oldwindows. And I got it researches,

(04:42):
but I think their main window isGeneral Brock, not Jesus, General Brock,
and Saint Michael with a shield andhis sword is beside him. That
makes perfect sense. We're of eighteentwelve, the troops and all that kind
of thing, Saint Michael with them. So I'm gonna have to do some
research on that very kind woman,and I did. I said, oh,

(05:09):
this is beautiful, and I toldher that. I told her I
was retired Anglican priest, and againI forgot the power of those words,
because suddenly I am like the honoredguest. I you know, I spent
twenty years trying to get myself offa pedestal, because people do that to

(05:30):
you. It's not that they worshipyou, but they hold you in such
high regard for the most part thatyou know they they respect you. That
respect is it comes with the caller. I try to tell my clergy this.
They don't have the experience of beinga leader in a church community,

(05:51):
and there are times when people donot like you, but for the most
part, you know how she change, She shifted and she said, oh,
well, then I don't have toworry about you and here alone.
It was. She stayed with meanyway, because we were chatting, and

(06:12):
I took a couple of pictures,and I promised I'd go back in the
fall for one of their services.They have a one priest, and I
told her about our church and howwe're online. You know that we're very
closely connected with the Anglicans and allthat stuff that give us a pedigree.
And I realized how lucky I amto have had that experience of being in

(06:36):
a community with so many Anglican parishes. Church community is it's a beautiful thing
when it works right. And I'vealso had the wonderful experience for almost twenty
years of being in the community CatholicChurch, which we're building. We're building

(06:57):
from in new ways from you know, the roots are there, but now
we're driving it, we're listening,we're building, We're all about love.
We're letting love lead us. Andso you know, that's the two loves
of my life in that sense.What a beautiful church. So then I

(07:23):
went to listen back to my podcastand there was it's not as good as
the last one, but the feelingsare still there. Surprisingly, how lucky,
how blessed we are to have communitylike that. I wish everybody could
experience a good church community. Youknow, Yeah, they can be bickerying,

(07:46):
and there can be the pettiness ofit's all human, you know,
but when people gather together and theyworship, and they take on responsibility and
they're there day in day out tosupport and help each other, there is
nothing like it. Nothing, nothing, nothing, It's a gift. And

(08:07):
you know that's something that is hardto build when we're online. But I've
been chatting with my friends, thebishops and other clergy, seeing how we
can be relevant. It's a beautifulbuilding and they get twenty people worshiping on
a Sunday, and that's good.That's actually an increase. I've been you

(08:28):
know, I've done eight thirty serviceswhere maybe three people have shown up,
and you know, the ten thirtyis a bit more attended. But it's
you know, we're in an agewhere we just don't have the push to
go to church on Sundays, andthen we try to think about it another
day when we can, and peopleare so busy, take an hour out

(08:52):
with God, to take an hourout to worship and to it's not just
about being there, because you haveto. The rewards of that time spiritually
are incredibly huge. There's nothing likeit. There's nothing like people singing together,

(09:13):
praying together, having coffee together afterwards, catching up with one another.
That's built up over time. Thiswoman has been going to that church since
she was little. It's always beena part of her life. I know
these people, I know them,I've talked to them, you know,

(09:35):
I've prayed with them, and Ihave to say that that whole experience just
sort of through me, anybody who'spart of my church listening. It doesn't
mean I'm going back to the Anglicans, don't worry, but it was nice
to go back and a visit andto incorporate that into what we know now

(09:58):
moving forward in our little church.So I've got peaches, I've got nectarines,
I've got some wonderful pictures on mycamera and I just felt they need
to share. I don't know exactlywhat I've shared, but maybe something in
that has touched you too. Weneed community. We're so isolated, and

(10:24):
online makes it even more so.Right We often, you know, there's
the meme going around that people inviteyou out and then you're relieved when you
don't have to go. Right,Yeah, I'll go, and then you
know, Friday night rolls around.I'm so sorry I said I would we

(10:45):
really do talk. There's a lady. The lady on the bench is in
her pajamas, in her bare feet. She had a coffee. I think
she lives in the house across thestreets. She seems to be walking towards
the fence. She's wearing like EdithPrickly leopard skin pajamas. These are the

(11:05):
people that bought that house. Ginaand I. We're trying to manifest the
money to buy this house. Itlooks like nineteen sixties Dick van Dyke,
right, But maybe she isn't.She seemed that she was heading she was
walking on the lawn. Now she'swalking on the side of the road in
her bare feet on a hot day. Very strange. I don't know what.

(11:28):
Just keep watching her while I'm talkingto you. Yeah, community is
important, you know we Oh,yeah, she's going in, she's checking
her mailbox. So we have ourbesties, right, the silly people that
we go out with. It doesn'tmatter how much time has passed. It's
like you're always family. You're alwaysgonna have your small muscles killing you by

(11:52):
the end of the evening, oryou're gonna say and do strange things that
maybe you don't normally do. There'sthat kind of group that everybody should have
as part of their pose, andthen there's the new, newer acquaintances you
know that you can go and havecoffee with and catch up with their lives.
Our lives are populated with people wedon't always take the time to call

(12:16):
or zoom or catch up. AndI think with the poorer for it.
You know, if we push ourselvesa little, then we always have a
good experience. We think, oh, we should do this more often.
You know, it's like COVID hasput a little bit of a sleeper on

(12:37):
us, where we're not as atleast I find this. For me,
I'm not as anxious or eager togo out like I used to be.
Not because I'm afraid of picking anythingup or but you know, it's more
comforty at home. You know,I can do more things at home.
It's my comfort level. And Iam a raging all of us. I'm

(13:00):
a raging extrovert. So if that'shappening to me, I can only imagine
what's happening to my introvert friends.So put yourself a little bit. You
know, if you haven't seen somebodyfor a while, reach out, give
them a call. If you haven'tconnected with a family member, you know,
maybe it's time, or just somebodythat's been on your mind, try

(13:22):
to, you know, send thema note or an email, or just
invite them out for coffee. Anyway, Now it is really hot in the
car, and I put the windowdown, and there's a lot of traffic,
so it's getting louder. So I'mgoing to say goodbye and know that

(13:43):
I'm holding everybody in prayer and Iwish you a very good day. It
feels like it's a weekend, butit's not. It's Wednesday, so I'll
talk to you again soon. Takecare, co plus