a prophetic voice-

Being a chaplain at a nursing care facility is unlike any other ministry I have ever done. There are days when I wonder what in the world I am doing here, when I question if what I am about has any significance whatsoever to anyone . And there seem to be few guidelines to provide a light along the path, few resources available which address ministering to a population made up mostly of elders, of aging people in varying stages of physical and/or mental deterioration who are sometimes fully present, but at other times are wandering in worlds known only to them. And yet, as I consider what I have just written, I wonder if ministering in this place is really so different from being a pastor in other kinds of parishes. Though the majority of the people in the pews are “all there” mentally and mostly there physically, I wonder just how truly “there” they are as, Sunday after Sunday, they sit in the same spot, speak to the same people, repeat the liturgy (mostly from memory), sing famili

  R espiration Meditation Breathing in,      I am filled with hope. Breathing out,      I let go of suffering. Breathing in,      I invite healing. Breathing out,      I dwell in peace. Peace enters Conflict leaves Healing fills Love goes forth In          out Deep      true Love rides my breath Hope fills my heart Healing fills my body Peace blesses my life The holiness of the breath Brings me fully into This new day. Morning blessing May this day be filled         with light May this day be filled         with hope May compassion fill         my heart and wisdom fill         my mind May wonder fill         my eyes and harmony fill         my ears May the path I walk be filled         with true companions                   and May every moment's joy fill         my awareness with wonder         at the amazing gift of         just being alive May this day be blessed         as I walk on Holy Ground.      

It was on my trip north on Sunday that I saw it- a beautifully restored 1957 Ford Fairlane in sky-blue and white. It caught my eye because the '57 Fords were a special favorite of mine, with their sleek lines and gentle fins, both eye-catching and uniquely their own. I remember the one owned by my dad; how I loved to drive that car! And the one in the Starbucks parking lot in Charlottesville, VA was reminiscent of those long-bygone teenage days in Dad's '57 Ford. Imagine my consternation, though, when I saw that the car before me displayed an "Antique" license plate. Antique? Really? I thought something had to be at least 100 years old to be considered "antique". But here was a car which I remembered well, being classified as an antique, that classification being verified by the official VA "Antique car" license plates on both its front and back bumpers. (Yes, Virginia still requires plates on both the front and back of the car, one of the fe