FOR THE LOVE OF A GOOD.....CAR

I'm in Love with My Car, Gotta feel for my automobile

Get a grip on my boy racer rollbar,

Such a thrill when your radials squeal.

Queen, Night at the Opera - I'm in Love with My Car

Man, that is still such a good album, I mean CD, I mean digital track...whatever. Was good in 1975, still good today. 

But I can relate. That is my 99 Honda CRV. And I really do love that car. She is manual and lots of fun to drive. Not too big, not too small - just right for me. She's got a lot of miles on her though.

Over 300,000 now. And the emergency break doesn't really work, and the doors stick in the winter and the heating/cooling system can be dicey. Actually, sounds a lot like me! 

I hardly get to drive her anymore as it has seen two kids through University. They whisk my car away and I only get to see her periodically when they come home for a visit or holiday. I hop in, adjust the seat, hit the clutch and away we go. 

Years ago, when the Honda really was still in my possession, we drove up to Toronto to meet my daughter and her friend. We parked the CRV in a parking lot somewhere and hopped on the subway to spend the day downtown. It was just after Halloween so we had a bag of candy in the back. Perhaps that was a mistake....

When we got back at the end of the day and headed out to the parking lot, no CRV. I wandered around and around in disbelief until my husband stopped me, looked me straight in the eye and made me understand the car had been stolen. We took the train home and I cried (not good with goodbyes, including vehicles).

Not only was my car gone but my Duncan Sheik CD that I had to special order from the States!!! And the Candy!! 

Thus began the process with the Police and the Insurance Company. The police said you can kiss that baby goodbye. The Insurance was starting to get things in order for us. There is a time frame (I think about 6 weeks) and then they hand you over a cheque. My husband was nearly frothing at the mouth, thinking of what he would like to replace my little CRV with when, lo and behold, the day before the time frame is up, the cops call and she has shown up a few blocks from where we had left her. She is battered, dirty and scratched but no worse for wear. And the candy is gone. But my CDs are still in there! 

To this day, I don't know where that CRV went but she came back to me. Maybe she loves me too. You can't beat a good car. 

THE BIG PICTURE

I'm putting a preach disclaimer on this blog. I may even slip into some Christianese. So if you are not into God stuff, just hit the back button. I won't be offended. We Christians pride ourselves on not taking up offence (that's a bit of an inside joke).

I'm nearly at the end of my Lent journey, only 5 days to go, and wanted to review what I've gathered thus far through numerous discussions with God. If you read my blog on the beginning of my Lent process, one of the goals was to hear more clearly.

So.... a few things.

God is not always into telling or showing me something in the conventional manner. Jesus was not very conventional. He did not "fit the mold" when he showed up on the scene and that riled a few feathers.
He may be communicating to me in a way that makes me scratch my head and say....really???
God told Isaiah to "Go, and loose the sackcloth from your waist and take off your sandals from your feet," and he did so walking "barefoot and naked." (Isaiah 20:1). Ok.....do you know how long Isaiah walked around in the buff? Three freaken years. Here is the man of God, who hears very clearly and obeys (key point) and from an outsider's point of view, the man is truly crazy. God was trying to point out in a very unconventional way that the enemy was acoming and about to walk them all off with nothing, barefoot and naked. That would be like God telling someone to walk around wearing a Superman outfit and a whirlygig cap to point out we have put our faith in superheroes that are idiots. Think the person you find crass that curses like sailor could never be hearing the voice of God? Think again.

Sometimes, He's just not saying anything. All I'm hearing are crickets. Here I am, trying very hard to be spiritual and deny myself so I can hear His still small voice.
"Hey! What the heck? I'm trying to get some direction here!!! Why aren't you saying anything!! Why can't I hear you??"
The still small voice finally speaks up and says "Because you don't want to listen to anything I have to say...."
Ouch.
Jesus instructed his disciples when he sent them out that if a town did not receive them then wipe the dust off their feet and leave. Basically they would be wasting their time and energy, throwing pearls to swines, as it were.

He asked me to tell Him all my hopes and dreams. That seemed pretty redundant to me as I assume He already knows them. But still, when my son was little I would insist he would tell me what was bothering him (even when I already knew what it was) just so he would communicate it himself. To me.  Cause he was just not very good at that kind of thing.

He reminded me, over and over, that He has the best in store for me, the very best. So spill the beans kid and lets see the bucket list. So I did. All the way out there material things, all the emotional, physical and spiritual needs. And He wants me to not be afraid to bring these up. Does that mean there will be pretty new toys showing up at my doorstep tomorrow? Maybe, and maybe not. We are all interconnected and God works in this weird prismatic way so anything that happens to me can affect numerous other people as well, and you have to take that into account.

Finally, that He sees the big picture and I never will. I can't and don't understand everything that is happening in this world or in my own little world. Comes down to trust you see. I get glimpses, might even see a change coming but not the whole deal. To quote C.S. Lewis "Remember, He is the artist and you are only the picture. You can't see it. So quietly submit to be painted."

LIFE IN FREEZE FRAME

If there was a fire and everyone (including the cats) were out safely and you could save 3 other personal items, what would you go back in for? For me, one of those things would be my photos.

I've always wanted to capture beauty and feelings. But it soon became apparent I was no artist in the drawing/painting sense. Clearly I was not going to accomplish my goal that way. So, I turned to photography instead.

My first real camera was a Minolta that my husband bought for me. That Minolta served me well for a good long time and I have reams of negatives stashed away. Next up was a Nikon which I still use today and now, along with the transition from film to electronic, I often snap photos with my IPhone. They each have their pluses and minuses and I'm not about to wax eloquently on them. The point is, I'm still trying to capture beauty, trying to capture a feeling or a moment.

If you take the time to look back over your history, freeze framed in photos, what do you think?
"That was a great time in my life!"
"I really miss spending time with ......"
"Eeggadds! I was young and stupid!"
Often, when a photo is snapped you think it is a terrible picture of you, but then you look back 5-10 years later and you think"how young I look, that is a great photo!"

So, here is a few photos I've snapped over the years, shots of people, place I love, really just me trying to capture beauty, or a moment, or a feeling.

My front porch of our house in Foxboro. We lived here for 12 years and I spend a lot of time here having my coffee, watching the thunderstorms roll in or enjoying a crisp autumn day.

My little italian Grandma on my Mom's side. She was about 91 years old here. Her response to this photo at the time was "I've got a big nose!" I love how this photo captures her years of wisdom, her sadness and just a touch of confusion.

Randi and Sheldon at Lake on the Mountain. Randi is about 2 at the time. In a few short months she will be getting married at this same location......geeze.....

Mornings at the cottage. Endless summer days of reading, sunning, swimming and playing.

Here are a few I shot this week. Still trying to capture a moment!

How Amelia spends her days until I get home from work....rough, I know

Sylvain, one of the many beautiful people who show up at a downtown Drop-In Centre I volunteer at.

Adrian, at the Boiler Room in Kingston.

The first couple photos were taken with my Minolta, the next were with my Nikon and the last were with my IPhone. But they all capture moments in my life that I've managed to capture for a brief second and somehow make eternal for not only me but for whoever else happens upon them.

Life.....it goes by fast.