Day 4

Day 4, August 6         

Clear sunrise this morning from the porch swing with coffee and prayer.  The water lilies blooms are emerging more and more during the daylight hours.

Both toilets suddenly would not flush.  They acted like they were stopped up.  I knew that was a sewer problem and could be a big problem if not fixed soon.  When you gotta’ go, you gotta’ go!  I found a place where I had phone service and sent a text message to the homeowners to see if there was a trick I didn’t know about.  Then I found a plumber’s snake in the workshop and a couple of “clean outs” with access to the sewer line.  One of the two provided immediate relief and the toilets are flushing again.  I went to the place for phone service and there was none this time.  I went to the other side of the house and, bingo, the location where I could find service had switched.  I sent a “never mind” message saying I had found the snake.  The homeowners were not in a good reception place either on only got the “found a snake” message so they phoned.  That connection worked.  We may need to “root” another clean out that is buried in a secure location (I don’t know where it is).

Ron said he had dreamed about this problem at the house.  It has happened before.  I had been thinking that something I missed while being on sabbatical was the many opportunities to fix things.  We have old cars, old appliances, old furniture, etc. and there is always something to fix.  I am handy and like to do that.  BUT, be careful what you wish for!

I finished reading The Next Story, Live and Faith After the Digital Explosion.  It wasn’t about tech and how to use it but about the effects it is and may be having on us as individuals, families, congregations, etc.  Adaptations are inevitable.  We still need live them as followers of Jesus.

When I get tired of reading, I spend time sorting through piles of papers I brought with me, organizing files again.  I’m organizing computer files too.  That is sort of like a game.

On the journey with DB, I remembered that he was a German Lutheran.  He says that after the Morning Prayer that is decisive then you must go and work.  The Protestant Work Ethic can be problematic if we sense our worth only in our work.  Personally, I find it hard to sit still when there is always some work to be done.  Maybe the morning silence and prayer can heal that.