Musings on a winter's day....

There is nothing like nursing the flu on a Sunday morning in the dead of winter in the Northeastern part of North America.  The snow on the ground and on the roof deck  is in layer upon layer like a crazy iced Napoleon pastry, and is now slowly melting to reveal the wet and glistening surfaces beneath.. The ice floes from the upper Hudson have broken up into frozen chunks of ice melting as they slip into more and more salted waters. The Sanitation Department has plowed my surrounding streets, but the traffic has been slow and sparse. The gulls have returned to the air, scouting the  left over remains in the parking lot of a nearby brewery/bar where young revelers partied into the wee hours last night at a hot rock concert on a rather frigid night.  The cab company and the local train system carried most of them away before I awoke this morning. 

So it is pretty quiet here in St.George.  Even the normal gathering of freighters and tankers has diminished greatly due to the freezing water temperatures and the dangers of swiftly moving ice. The only real movement on the harbor appears to be the ferry as is plies its way from here to Manhattan with it's plaintive foghorn announcing its departures and arrival. I am keeping warm drinking hot tea and wearing my sweats seated with the ever-ubiquitous box of tissues at hand to assist with the occasional bouts of sneezing that comes with this year's flu taking some time to think about my past week and the juxtaposition of events and occurrences that meld in my mind.

Now, normally I would be away this week enjoying someplace somewhat warmer than here.  Over the years I could be found cruising to  Bahamas, Jamaica or Mexico along either the Pacific or the Gulf Coast.  One year we sailed out of New Orleans and spent time in the tropical lands of Belize, Costa Rica, Mexico and Guatemala.  I have stayed with friends in Cancun several times. Or I have flown  across the Atlantic to Ireland, London, Paris or Spain. This was done mostly while I was employed full time at the New York City Department of Education.  Those week long trips during Presidents' Week were hard earned and most needed.  There is nothing that even compares with the long school stretch between January and Spring Break in April.  The early darkness and bone-chilling cold of New York can bring on the seasonal depression of anyone who is genetically disposed to it...such as those of us descended from Northern European stock.  There is a reason the suicide rate in Scandinavian countries rises in mid-winter. Now, that I am no longer working full time, I can afford to travel in the off-season, which I do. 


This past week marked the beginning of the penitential season of Lent, the time of fasting and preparation for Easter.   Tuesday of this week is known as "Shrove Tuesday", "Fat Tuesday" or Mardi Gras in the European tradition that sees revelers tossing beads, dancing and parading in the streets of  places as far apart as New Orleans and Rio de Janiero. One year I was in Athens  for this reveling week, and can attest to the fact that the Greeks are no shrinking violets when it comes to celebrating on that night. Dancing on tables and throwing plates were important components of the event.  We, thankfully, sat on a balcony watching the activity at a safe distance. On this past Shrove Tuesday, we rather sedate Episcopalians settled down to an annual Pancake Supper event where we eat pancakes and sausages, drink tea and coffee and imbibe in a sherry or two.  We then burn left over palms from the previous year's Palm Sunday and crush them into a fine powder to use on the next day, Ash Wednesday.

For the third year in a row, I have trudged down to the ferry terminal at 7:00am and placed myself in front of a coffee shop located in the terminal and distributed ashes to folks heading into Manhattan to get to work. This was the first year I worked in tangent with some of my Lutheran colleagues who were on the opposite side of the terminal. We were there for two and a half hours and distributed ashes to 503 people.  Now, this practice is not universally embraced by clergy.  Some of my colleagues have strong feelings about distributing ashes in a non-liturgical setting, and I understand both their concerns and respect their opinions. But, I would invite them to try it once.  Many of the folks who stopped by thanked us for being there so early, and for giving them  an opportunity to get ashes before they go to work.  Others asked if this meant they did not have to go to church, to which we answered resoundingly "NO. If you have the opportunity to go to a service, do it."  Still others asked us to pray with them, which we did on an individual basis

Now I know I probably picked up my current flu from someone on Wednesday, but...that's life. I think I will survive...just have to keep drinking more tea.


Some other winter musings from Mama Cass and Co.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kcmwXUdDCE

Passing of the mantle

In last Sunday’s Old Testament reading we witness the changing of the guard as Elijah is taken up into heaven as his devoted student and witness, Elisha, remains behind to carry out the work of his master.  The reading, as it is presented to us in our Lectionary, ends with the twelfth verse, which is a  shame, because the thirteenth sort of sums up the action pretty well: “He picked up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan.”

That mantle had played an important role in the story, Elijah used it to strike the Jordan allowing them to walk across it on dry land.  It fell from the older prophet as he was taken up into a fiery whirlwind into heaven, and came to rest the feet of the younger man.

Now a mantle was an important possession.  It was usually made of wool or goat’s hair tightly woven and waterproof.  It was a kind of  cross between a hooded cape and a blanket, and was used as such by the early inhabitants of the Middle East  In the time of the writing of the Book  Of Kings, travelers were shown hospitality by hosts who provided them with mats upon which to sleep, but without blankets.  Your mantle was your personal overcoat and blanket rolled into one; it was an important piece of personal couture.

Since Elijah and Elisha the “passing of the mantle”, has been repeated innumerable times and in great variations. It reinforces the basic truth of life that generations stand in line with each other, the older folk ready to relinquish, and the younger ones eager to step up and assume responsibilities.

I remember my first year of teaching full time when I was struggling to figure out successful classroom management strategies and lesson planning.  I would close my eyes and think of successful teachers I had seen in the past and would think about adapting things that worked for them.  I imagined myself putting on the mantle of the teacher, an image that stayed with me throughout my career.  And when I moved out of the classroom to become mentor to new teachers, I would use that image with them again and again in order to build confidence and grit in their teaching performance.

This process of “passing of the mantle” also happens in ministries. Before my ordination to  the Diaconate, my husband and I coordinated parish groups and clubs to cook and serve at the Soup Kitchen in Stapleton on a monthly basis  After I was ordained, I knew I had to give it up, and I had groomed a married couple to take over for us.  The surviving spouse still does, but she is now ready to pass mantle on to the next generation and has wisely groomed her successor Have seen this process happening in our midst.  Younger parishioners stepping up into leadership roles. I can remember two members of our Vestry as Sunday school students.  We send off our older acolytes to college and younger Intermediate school students step up to replace them. The infants who were baptized in what seems like yesterday, are today in Godly Play and Rite 13 classes. Where does the time go?

The “Passing of the Mantle” is as old as time, and will go on through time. And like Elijah and Elisha, we need to know ourselves when the time is ripe for us to pick up the mantle and put it on, and when to remove it from our shoulders and put it down.  People’s interests, time constraints, familial and work commitments change, and these turns of events can affect the time and talent we are able to give to our church, and putting down the mantle can be as rewarding as picking it up.  As Elijah, one needs to groom others in the task at hand and be ready to let go to see the work brought to fruition, and like Elisha, others need to be at the ready, prepared and watchful to move the work forward.

May the Lord grant us the wisdom and wherewithal to know when to do each.  Amen

Seasonal Candy

Chocolate covered Oreos

Once or twice a month I do some work for my former employer, the New York City Department of Education, at their human resources building located at 65 Court Street in what we call "downtown" Brooklyn.  I put "downtown" in quotes, because if you look at a map of Brooklyn , this building located at Court and Joralemon Streets is really located in the northwest sector of Kings County, otherwise known as Brooklyn. The only real "downtown" that is near to it is a subway stop away in lower Manhattan.
On my way to the office is a interesting store that only sells seasonal candies.  It is called "It'Sugar", and it is always packed with kids and adults who line up every day to satisfy their "sweet tooth". The window displays are the real "eye candy" in the neighborhood, and the window-dressers do a meticulous job in creating temptingly delicious theme windows for every season. From January through December, they feature a candy or two for each season.  



Necco Sweethearts

   Having worked yesterday, I noticed that the February flavors of the month have arrived. Frilly heart-shaped red and pink boxes of hand-dipped chocolate covered Oreos sit nicely next to the classic Necco Sweethearts with their greetings: "Be Mine", "Kiss Me", "Call Me", "Let's Get Busy", and "Miss You".  If you are so inclined, you can get these in Spanish under the brand name "Hola!".  These candies have a long history as they were first produced in their present format in 1901. The company tried making them with "all natural" ingredients a few years back, but sales dropped and they are back to their original recipe.

Original Peeps

As a "thank you" gift from my granddaughter, I recently got an early supply of "Peeps", a classic

Easter candy of marshmallow shaped chicks encased in crystallized spun sugar.  Their classic color is yellow, but you can now get them in green, blue, pink and purple.  They are also making bunnies in Easter colors, but the chicks are still the benchmark as far as I am concerned.  In the past, they had a limited shelf life, and I have been known to freeze them.  I also admit to a penchant for slightly stale, and thus a bit hardened, Peeps.  I understand they have recently added ingredients to extend their shelf life and have new packaging.  I hate it when folks tinker with a classic, don't you?

My beloved Cadbury Eggs

And I am sad to say that this year a beloved Easter candy will NOT be in any Easter Basket at any of the Swanson-Redden clan households.  Those wonderful "Canbury Eggs" that we have looked forward to every year will no longer be available in the format we have come to love.  A rather large American candy manufacturer, Hersey's, to exact, has actually used the United States Court system to block Cadbury products from the US saying their products can be confused with Hersey's.  Well, gentleman, that is just not true.  Cadbury milk chocolate actually has more milk in it then do yours, and thus have a smoother and purer milk chocolate taste that is far superior to those made on this side of the Atlantic. Some of the Cadbury Eggs available in the US are made by Hershey, but in the NYC area, we can buy the British version at various Irish, English and Scottish purveyors who specialize in overseas comfort foods.  They will no longer be permitted to stock the Cadbury products made in Britain. I guess I will have to wait for later in the year when I am going to Europe; I believe I may have a lay over in Heathrow...you know what I will be buying!

During the summer months, especially at ball games and county fairs, cotton candy is indeed king!

This magical finely spun pink sugar confection is like eating clouds on a summer afternoon....absolute pure joy! It brings back lovely summer time memories just thinking about it!

Cotton candy is made by heating sugar and then spinning the liquefied sugar out through tiny holes where it re-solidifies into strings of sugar glass. Machine-spun cotton candy was invented in 1897 by a dentist (interestingly enough) and confectioner. It was first introduced to a wide audience at the 1904 World's Fair.  There is even a National Cotton Candy Day in the United States on December 7th.

Candy Corn

Into the autumn and winter new seasonal candies emerge. Halloween at the end of October, is kind of a candy free for all, and anything goes, but come November the one constant in the candy business has to be candy corn. Found in the United States and Canada, this three-colored candy – a broad yellow end, a tapered orange center, and a pointed white tip – mimic the appearance of corn kernels. Each piece is approximately three times the size of a real kernel from a ripe or dried ear.

Candy corn is made of sugar, corn syrup, confectioners wax, artificial coloring and binders.  It was never one of my favorites, but I guess it has its fans.


And of course, during the Christmas Season the candy cane rules. According to legend the candy cane was invented around 1670 in Cologne in present day Germany.  The choirmaster at the Cathedral, wanting to eliminate the noise caused by children in during the service on Christmas Eve, asked a local candy maker for some sweet sticks for them. In order to justify the practice of giving candy to children during services (!!..things do not change much, do they?), he asked a local candy maker to add a crook to the top of each stick, which would help children remember the Christmas shepherds. In 1957, an ordained a Roman Catholic Christian priest, Gregory Harding Keller, whose family was in the candy business, patented his invention, the Keller Machine, which automated the process of twisting soft candy into spiral striping and then cutting them into precise lengths as candy canes eliminating a 20% loss of the final product that had plagued his family's company for years.


In a few weeks it will again be Lent, a time when many of us attempt to "give up" something in order to prepare for the great feast of Easter.  This is something that Christians do as part of their spiritual practice.  Now I know that many of us would rather add something to our practice instead of  denying ourselves, but maybe a few less sweets is not a bad thing.  I would also commend to you all a bit of "Lent Madness", an interesting Lenten discipline that melds the lives of the saints with football brackets. Take a look here: http://www.lentmadness.org/about/