Friday, July 26, 2002

M.I.A

Sorry, I haven't been updating lately, I'm just so tired. Not so much the "get some sleep" tired, but "spirit" tired.

I guess the sleep at night would help too. Seems I'm in a rut these nights. I lie awake, unable to sleep till sometime between 1 and 2 am, then I sleep for about 30 minutes and wake right up again and it's like I can't go back to sleep again!

Go figure. There is no more comfortable a feeling then my bed after a long day! But I can't enjoy it.

Holidays are coming up, I hope that helps...

There goes the dinner bell, better get going!

Friday, July 05, 2002

Today I went to jail

Today I married a couple, in the federal prison

It was a nice, small service, with seven guests, three of which came from the inside.

The couple has been together for a good chunk of years, and they are getting on in age. They know me from the visiting area where I meet with another inmate. They both have never been married before, and during the long check-in and search process, the poor bride was so nervous that she couldn´t even sign her name!

Three of the ladies who went in with us, met their spouses inside, at the chapel. It´s always moving to watch as these couples unite for a few moments of sanity. To be able to attend a service together, a friends wedding, is a huge piece of humanity. To sit beside your lover, close, holding hands, his arm around her shoulder. These are moments of togetherness stolen from the years of aloneness.

You watch them watch each other, drinking in the images, committing them to memory, this day will have to last a long time.

After the ceremony, we eat sandwiches and cake and coffee. The inmate has worked hard and saved a long time to be able to put on this simple spread. The couples move to different parts of the room, seeking some privacy to share a moment of time, and maybe a cigarette.

Soon it´s time to go, we must exit escorted as a group and give account for everything we brought into the prison.

The couples hug, holding on to each other, not wanting to forget the feel of the other. The smell of her perfume, the strength of his arms around her ... and then we leave, the inmates turn left and we proceed right.

The happily married couple separates again for another 5 to 10.

... and just before you say something about how he probably deserved incarceration, and how their love would be alot different on the outside, and maybe even what a fool she is, let me say I know all that, I really do know all that. But what can I do with this ...

"Don't forget about those in prison. Suffer with them as though you were there yourself. Share the sorrow of those being mistreated, as though you feel their pain in your own bodies."

or this:

"Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me."

Today I went to a fight and a hockey game broke out...

Ok, remember the "Gory Days" of the Philadelphia Flyers, circa. 1970's? Well, now you can see them in all their color, blow by blow. Check out this site BROADSTREETBULLY.COM

You can download the clips, get some Old Dutch chips, and take a trip down memory lane. Guaranteed to warm the hearts of any Canadian who ever collected hockey cards when they were a kid.

enjoy.

Thursday, July 04, 2002

To close for comfort

This one was to close for comfort. From our place you could see the fire and parts of the dry forrest exploding in flame.

Thank God it's over, and it doesn't seem that anyone, or any homes were lost.

Where oh where should my family go...

So, it seemed like a bit of a benevolent thing to do when I asked the family, where they would like to go for the "FAMILY VACATION" sigh. six different versions of holidays, and the largest group I can get to agree on anything is a total of 3 people. So it seems i can please three people at least.

being a dictator is just plain hard work.