lent – Page 2 – St. Mary's Episcopal Church

We’re All Aging

St. Mary's Homepage Announcement, Newsletter, The Annunciation March 18, 2022Annunciation, lent, lenten reflection, reflection, weekly reflection

Lenten Reflection, Friday, March 18

By: Eleanor Wellford

Life is getting somewhat back to the way we remember it being at St. Mary’s! We’re now offering Sunday worship in both Little and New St. Mary’s; we’re having Sunday School again, either inside or outside; we had a parish supper with Carrie Schaeffer as our amazing Lenten speaker; and we had our first parish breakfast – complete with Ralph’s and Bill’s world-famous cinnamon rolls. Both meals were where they were supposed to be: seated and in the Parish Hall. And starting this Sunday, the Forum will be back and led by David.

Something else happened last Sunday that wasn’t widely known throughout the parish. Eldergarden met for the first time since early 2019; and the work that was started and then stopped so suddenly because of COVID will soon begin again.

What is Eldergarden? It is a ministry of aging at St. Mary’s church and was started by Sydna Street, Jane Covington, and Peggy Talman Brockenbrough, when all three of these “Founding Mothers” were facing issues common to an aging population – health, death of loved ones, changing living situations, and grief associated with loss. Although they leaned on each other for support, they realized that what they were learning from their experiences could benefit others in our parish who will at some point face similar issues. Thus, the Eldergarden ministry was born.

“Aging is not for sissies” is certainly true and so is this bit of wisdom: “Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine!” Aging is all about change and no generation escapes it. It’s how we honor change, especially as it relates to aging, that is important and included in the ministry of Eldergarden.

As our current leader, Suzanne Munson Jernigan, said in our meeting last Sunday: “We all have expiration dates! We just don’t know when they are!” And that’s why preparation is so important. Beginning in the fall of 2022 and throughout the year, Eldergarden will be presenting speakers and workshops which should benefit those who are growing older or who are adult children of parents who are making important decisions about their future. The first series in the Fall will address “Choices for Living: Decisions for Retirement Years”.

We’re all aging. It’s part of this wonderful gift of life that God gave us. And thank God we have choices in how we live it. Let’s find out, together, what they are!

A Sermon for the Second Sunday in Lent

St. Mary's Podcast, Sermons March 13, 2022March 18, 2022david may, lent, sermon, Sermons

Sunday, March 13, 2022

By: David May, Rector

Out of the millions and millions of memories we must all have in us, there’s something miraculous about the way that some keep rising to the surface out of that ocean of experiences. Over the years, I’ve come to pay attention to the memories that – out of all those millions and millions – stay with you, that abide. We all have them. Some of them are painful, some joyously radiant, some just plain confusing. But whatever they are, the ones that stay with us, I think, are trying to tell us something about our lives. Memories that abide with us aren’t just in the past. Somehow, they’re still now.

One of mine is from a summer at the beach at Mattituck, Long Island. One morning, my dad said to me, ‘we’re going sailing this morning’. There was a little sunfish that came with the house that we could use. So, my dad dragged it to the water’s edge, put up the mast and the sail, clipped in the tiller and we pushed out onto the water through the small, lazy waves. The sail caught puffs of wind, and began to push us sideways. Then the sail swung around, and we got pushed sideways the other way. My father said, ‘oh, forgot to put in the centerboard.’ He picked up the slender, flat, smooth three-foot center board and said, ‘watch this!’ He pushed the centerboard down through the narrow slit of an opening in the cockpit and with a thunk as it locked into place, something magical happened. The little boat instantly got it’s footing, we stopped drifting sideways, the sail snapped taut with the wind, and the boat leaped ahead in a straight line. I am pretty sure we both went wow! When I think about it today, I still go wow!

Some memories like that aren’t just in the past. They’re also now, telling us something about our lives now.

My First Communion

St. Mary's Homepage Announcement, Newsletter, The Annunciation March 11, 2022Annunciation, lent, lenten reflection, reflection, weekly reflection

Lenten Reflection, Friday, March 11

By: Amelia McDaniel

I was a child when the new Book of Common Prayer was put together. One of the major changes made was that children were invited to the Eucharist. No longer was Confirmation the “admittance” to the altar rail. All baptized children were included in the feast.

I attended a small church near Kentucky Lake in the summers. Father Ray Lord, or Father Lord, was our priest and he and my mother decided that at the age of five I was ready to participate in this new option. For several weeks, Father Lord and I dutifully worked our way through a booklet where he asked me questions and I drew pictures and “wrote” my responses with my “emerging reading skills.”

The day of my first communion came. It was the Feast of St. Peter and the service was to be held outdoors at a family friend’s lake house followed by a big fish fry. Just before the service a storm rolled in and the skies opened up. So it was that I took my first communion while kneeling on sculpted green shag carpet in front of a dining room table. The power was out and it was dim. There is a blurry photo I have of the day. You can see me, towheaded with a Dorothy Hamill haircut with my grandmother and godmother standing beside me smiling.

It is a prized photo for me. Not because it really shows much of anything because it is so blurry, but because I remember that moment as clear as day. I can smell the musty storm air and the feel of the carpet on my knees. I can smell the bitter sweetness of the wine and recall how new that was to me. Mostly, I remember feeling that I was being included in something bigger than myself. I remember that my family was proud of me. (That was until I went sliding down the big grassy hill in the rain in the white dress my mother had made for me.)

Being able to participate in the Eucharist is one of the practices that forms us without too much fanfare or explanation. The mystery and power of this gift to us from Jesus will never be fully understood or explained, no matter what your age. This is the feast for all of God’s people and that includes the little ones.

So, we want to introduce St. Mary’s little ones to this feast through an interactional learning workshop. David and I will lead an instructed Eucharist on Saturday, March 19 for children (ages 4 – 5th grade ideally) to learn about this sacrament. We will begin by baking bread together in the kitchen followed by an instructed Eucharist in New St. Mary’s. If you have wondered about how to introduce your children to communion, this is a great opportunity to learn together. Please reach out to me if you are interested in participating.