The words to this song by Samuel Barber:

Sure on this shining night of star made shadows 'round, kindness must watch for me this side the ground. The late year lies down the north, all is healed, all is health. High summer holds the Earth, hearts all whole. Sure on this shining night I weep for wonder, wand'ring far alone for shadows on a star. On this shining night.

This song is one of those mysterious things that has touched me to the depths of my soul. I cannot put into words what I feel when I hear this song. I have tried for 20 years to put those feelings into words. I can listen to this song over and over for hours. And everytime I hear it I have the same indescribable feelings. Surely, it is a "G-d" thing. ( I am using the Jewish spelling here- which is done out of respect for the awe and wonder of the Supreme being.)

I considered not writing anything and just posting the video. But I just had to say something. I want to know if anyone else has something that does this to them? To what do you attribute this?

WHY?

So- I am getting ready for this Open house/Boutique which I have been planning for months- and along comes Sojourner the Inquisitor!

"What the heck are you doing this for? What is it in the big picture- it's not like you are going to make tons of money or anything like that. And everyone already has all these parties and crap to go to. And so many people hate December and Christmas and all this hoopla... and you don't even consider yourself a Christian anymore... so what?"

Okay- questioning Scrooge! Just bring me to my knees why don't you. But here- I will try to answer some of this for you. First of all- I love to make jewelry..and well, I can't keep all of it. That would be ridiculous.

Second, I want people to know why I make jewelry. I want them to see that it is about sharing my Spirit with them- opening people's eyes, if you will, to the connections we have. And in that same spirit, I donate a portion of my proceeds to causes that I believe to be worthwhile, further expanding the spiral of connection.

Third, I love to share my home and food, and self with others. I love to bring people together from all the pieces of my life, and for one weekend, sew the pieces together in a big beautiful quilt. It will warm us all for a little while, and hopefully the memory of it will warm us a little longer.

And then there is Tracy. My neighbor across the street, who emailed me a few weeks back to tell me she has stage 4 lung cancer. I called her this week to see how things were going, and she told me how she wants to call some of her lady friends in the neighborhood and bring them together at the Open House, and asked if that would be ok. She said " We haven't gotten together in a long time". And in her voice I heard...and maybe this will be the last time for me. So- Sojourner- I want to bring people together for what may be their last times. The Advent Scriptures talk about "The end of days" this week. We are all waiting for our own end of days. Maybe we can help each other fill our end of days with love. That's all- really- that's all the whole thing about is love.

Last week, Cheri, over at Blogthismom, wrote a lot about Prop 8 in CA. I read all of it. She sent me a link to JointheImpact.com where they were organizing a national protest to be held simultaneously in as many cities and towns across America as would participate. I went to the site and found out that Omaha had, indeed, organized to participate.

So- I contacted my friends to pass the word along and made my plans to participate. I worried a bit... this is the Midwest, after all, a pretty conservative place. I have had names and insults hurled at, me in my time. I have seen protesters at Pride rallies. I have had friends beaten up outside gay bars. But we have never flinched. I participate in Pride every year, I have marched in the parade since the first year- when I was still in the military and marched with a paper bag over my head! So- I wasn't about to sit this one out.

My partner and I drove to the campus of U.N.O. at 11:45 am on Saturday, and met one guy and his wife carrying a Rainbow flag and an American flag. I was already moved. But thought- well, maybe we will see 25 or 30 protesters. And I was sure there would be counter-protesters as well. Omaha, NE 11.15.08

But there were already a few people on the bridge as we made our way there with Tom and his wife. And the folks from Channel 7 were there. And soon we could see others making their way from their cars, 2 or 3 at a time, at first. We stood atop the walkway that crosses the main artery of Omaha, outside the campus of UNO, to the largest and most beautiful park in town, in front of a large Catholic church, where perhaps 5-600 cars per hour pass by on a Saturday morning. There was a blustery, icy wind blasting us, and a few flurries were about.

By noon there were already more than 25 people up there on that bridge- with signs and flags, and banners. People were still coming, a steady trickle of men, women and children, bundled to the teeth, smiling and greeting each other warmly.

At first, one or two cars every ten minutes would honk and wave. But by the time the crowd on the bridge grew to 150 strong(!), 2 to 3 cars a minute were honking loudly, drivers and passengers giving thumbs up and waving wildly. Once in a while someone would give a thumbs down, I saw one person flip the bird, and one guy hollered "fuck you faggots!" which was disheartening. But the overwhelming majority of people passing by were supportive, and that moved me to tears! And- no counter-protesters. If you want to know more about this issue and about why we protested. Head on over to http://blogthismom.blogspot.com/2008/11/why-protest.html

Consistency

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) -con⋅sist⋅en⋅cy   /kənˈsɪstənsi/ –noun, plural -cies. 1. a degree of density, firmness, viscosity, etc.: The liquid has the consistency of cream. 2. steadfast adherence to the same principles, course, form, etc.: There is consistency in his pattern of behavior. 3. agreement, harmony, or compatibility, esp. correspondence or uniformity among the parts of a complex thing: consistency of colors throughout the house. 4. the condition of cohering or holding together and retaining form; solidity or firmness. Also, con⋅sist⋅ence.

Well, if there is one thing you can say for me it is that I am consistent. I have had one post a month since June. Well, maybe, just maybe I will break the pattern this month.

There is something to be said for consistency. Consistent people are always right where you expect them to be. You won't get too many rude jolts from them, because their behavior doesn't vary much. Then again, some people might consider this boring. I dunno, I kinda like not getting too many rude jolts in life. They're not so good for your heart. What do you think? Boring? Or just plain reliable?