Strathmerton Sunday AM

(SUNDAY, 8 May 2022)

I wanted to meet with any determined joyful followers of Jesus' way, if I could find any nearby. Thought I'd try the old method - churches. Nup, nearly all the buildings unused or sold up, apparently not needed for communities of Jesus followers any more. Except… the Catholic Church had a sign saying they meet here on Sundays at 9am.

9am… No one at the Catholic church, despite the very clear sign

Got a coffee from the Mailbox Cafe (takeaway only, all booked out for Mothers' Day). Had a chat with the General store folk I met yesterday. Got a potato pie and pastie from the Strathy Bakery, where the couple behind me looked at the sign on my backpack and we started talking…

I met Helen (from Elmore) & Ron ( from Echuca) who were up here for with Lions' club dancing last night, they gave me some hints on learning to dance… use You Tube, practice with a broom. They may have even seen me walking through their townships in the last week or so. Ron had even considered if he should ask if I wanted a lift.

After talking, they asked to sit with me in the bakery for a coffee, 

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where I did a line-drawing pic of Ron, 

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and he shouted me a coffee.

It turned out that Helen (Kneebone) used to live in Orange, and in Canowindra.. & has been to a concert of our friend Nerida Cuddy's at the Cravens, and had a coffee at the Cuddy's Perennialle Plants & coffee shop in Canowindra.

We talked about everything. Especially how much our previous approaches to topics or our understandings can affect what we see (& don't see) around us, and what words or customs mean. I told them how I was trying (not super successfully) not to use the word "God" much any more, but creative love - whose handiwork I see everyday in this amazing world, with  the amazing people in it. The word God, seems (for me, but maybe also for them?) to be stuck in a church building, or in some religious or brick & concrete, or controlling, mindset towards life.

Then afterwards, after I'd had a gawk at their campervan, and we'd said goodbye, they were the ones that modelled that parable (following or below, in the video, and poem) for me.

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OLD TO NEW WORLD VIEW

Despite that science tells us "This world is

not what it seems on outside, to the feel,

with layers upon layers forming things",

I still believe that our ol' world is real.

Our scientific story tells us that

despite what we all see here (think we "know"),

there's layers of "community" which mat

together, and which interleave.. (quite so):《1》

Inside, within each body, making up

the living ones, are individu'l "cells",

or living creatures that can be corrupt-

ed, or combined to make a host where dwells

the multicelled "community" we see

that's planted right before us "on" (or "in")

our ground of being. Even you and me.

And these can be disrupted or can win!

The ways that these communities would seize

things 'round about to aid their tiny parts,

to work together: shelter, feed, and ease

their life, to bring a thriving from their starts,

are called in this Our world "to feed", & "clothe

and shelter", self or fam'ly, other lives.

The old words from Our world that covered both

are "love", & then there's "peace"- which meant "life thrives".

But smaller yet, each body that exists,

of rocks, or gasses, animals or plants;

(and irrespective of "life" tagged to its

existence as an entity, per chance..)

is made of smaller atoms, molecules,

or other things that kind of are like "seas".

But smaller yet (these aren't just words of fools)

are forces "circling", balancing with ease.

Where either particles or waves "impart"

existence to those higher levels too.

But here we haven't even made a start

on bigger things, like Galaxies and U-

ni-verse, or other categ'ries rehearsed,

like Supernova, Nebulae, and Giants,

Dwarves, and other stars that shoot and burst,

to cook up compounds, elements and ions

from which all of the rest can start to "be".

Invisible dimensions in this way

we start to understand, and maybe "see"

within our "mind's eye" - as they used to say.

But still our story makes more sense, or less

of all dimensions we've encountered here,

since we were born - to order and to mess,

with this ol' world. - And this is where I cheer

myself as I move on, and others too.

The world we "started" in, that let us learn

about dimensions and these worlds that you

have just now been reminded of, don't spearn!

The story that's apparent: God made this

whole world with more dimensions than you'd poke

at with a stick, does not seem so remiss

and starts to look less like it was a joke!

"The best is yet to come", as AA found

in fact, through living in this re-al world.

And there's a higher power hanging round

to see if we would reach out and be curled

within the love of biggest Dad, or Mum,

and let the Great Creator's fam-il-y

look after us and grow us, and then some..

towards more of a nature that is free

to love back, as we have ourselves been loved.

And that's why most religions in this world

admire, and think good-life was surely gloved

within the life, that we have mostly hurled

our insults at, and blamed him for our faults

and misdemeanours, laziness, and such.

It's him I would commend to you. Us dolts,

we killed the model human God loved much -

the second Adarm (and would kill his Eve,

that God brings from him while he's "not around").

In jealousy and ignorance, we'd weave

a net to catch them yet, like beasts been found

and named. So if you ask me to I'll tell

the story of the glory of God "THERE",

who loves his kids, and wants them to do well,

take on creative love, and learn to share.

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《1》 physically enact this by interleaving the fingers from each hand with those of the other

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