Year-end reflection on 2019

I want to share briefly some the highlights of the year 2019 with my friends. I know they are busy, so I understand they may not have the time to read this. However, for those interested, here are a few moments that stand out.

Our most exciting news was the purchase in November of a 2011 Jeep Sport Wrangler with about 27,000 lilies on it. Is low mileage and reasonable price made it perfect for our need to have a reliable beach car-second car, and from what Suzanne has now decided is our church car. We sold the SUV quickly.

Some of our other exciting news is on the technology front. The story begins with a simple savings. We saved about $100 a month by going to only Internet from Spectrum, which we can do because we pretty much watch only movies on Netflix and Amazon Prime. I got an Apple Watch Series 4 in March. I have thoroughly enjoyed it. This purchase meant that when I was ready, my next computer would be a MacBook Air, which I purchased in the Fall. The switch from Windows to Mac has been easy, especially since Microsoft Office for Mac is so easy to install and use onedrive. We purchased iPhone 11 for Suzanne, and its camera is a large improvement. I save the best technology news for last. We also purchased a 65 inch Sony Bravia OLED optimized for Netflix and the appropriate Sony DVD player for 4k quality DVD. The picture is amazing. We have Amazon Alexa for music in home and SiriusXM for music radio in the Ford Focus. 

In addition, we have enjoyed friendships and meals with several persons. Bill and Joyce have been good friends. So have Cato and Susan. We have enjoyed Palm Harbor UMC, Pastors Dave, with whom I had a wonderful lunch, and Cathy, and the Bible Buddies class. The class is studying Romans, which of course I love. I like to think I have helped.  The class went to Rumbas in Oldsmar, which was a very good time. I go to the Wing Men on Tuesday, a group of guys that meet at Sonny’s Barbecue. 

We had a wonderful time at Ruth Eckerd Hall to see 111 years of Broadway. In March, we say Stayin’ Alive, a Bee Gees group that was awesome. We saw Modern Gentlemen in March at Ruth Eckerd Hall, not as good as the other events were, but still a good time. We saw the musical Titanic at Francis Wilson Playhouse with some friends. 

In a similar vein, some movies we enjoyed were Bohemian Rhapsody, One Upon a Time in Hollywood, Best of Enemies, Avengers: End Game, Ad Astra, The Joker, Richard Jewell, Harriett, Downton Abbey

Of course, continuing relationships with family and friends from a distance keeps us discovering new things. We had a nice visit with Kayli, Suzanne’s granddaughter, when she came in March. Greg and Alice Conrad are friends from Crawfordsville who come to this area for part of the winter. He loves to golf. We went to an Astros-Phillies spring training game in March. We also met Darryl and Linda Lane from Logansport, but who also have a home in North Port. We met at the Beach House. My sister Lynn, Hallie, and Mia came for a too-short visit in April. We have discovered Safety Harbor, a nice little spot east of us on Sunset Point. We got to see a group of Manatees there. It was wonderful to have Suzanne’s son Tim here for almost three weeks. I continue telephone conversations with Chuck Britt, and of course, with sons Michael and David.

I have had a strong interest in sports and fitness throughout my life. It continues in retirement. On the struggling side of health, I began and ended the year with congestion that benefitted from Mucinex. I also needed a root canal in January. The dentist visit continues to be expensive. I developed tennis elbow that hindered me in the middle of the year. My primary care physician finally suggested it was time to stop resting it and start playing. Suzanne has done well, but still struggles with her levels of energy. On the positive side of fitness, I have found a wonderful tennis partner in Angel. He and his wife, Brenda, have become lunch partners occasionally as well. Nice walks on Honeymoon Island as well. I have continued with LAFitness and my routine of exercise: arms and shoulders weight-lifting, core and legs, and back and chest weight lifting. I do my yoga Sunday and Monday, my rest days. I still do some running. I have met a group of guys from Top of the Word who play Stickball in the part near where I live. It has been a great time on most Friday mornings. I had to deal with my plantar facia again, which slowed me down as well. I did have a very good visit with the primary care physician. I have had several bike rides to Clearwater Beach. I want to do more. Blood work was all good. Even my cholesterol which tends to be high was okay. In this area,

On social media, I have a twitter feed and a Facebook page. I occasionally post political, cultural, and other articles of interest. I will not get into such matters here.

The United Methodist Church is going through a great deal right now. I have written my reaction to General Conference in February 2019. I remain convinced that the UMC could chart a course that separates it from other mainline Protestant denominations and embraces a genuinely orthodox, Protestant, and evangelical that would have a global witness. I suspect that it will embrace the decline of other mainline denominations, further isolating it from Christian tradition even as it identifies itself with the Progressive political left. 

In July, it was a privilege to assist Pastor Cathy with communion in the absence of Pastor Dave. 

I have continued in a reading group by telephone with Glenn Knepp and Lynn Eastman. We studied Hans Urs von Balthasar Theo-Drama. We read Veli-Matti Karkkainen and his five volume work that took the global religious setting seriously. It was nice to eat with Lynn Eastman and his wife at the Columbia House. We read John Haught on Theology of Nature. We read Teilhard Phenomenon of Man. I read Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics rapidly this time, amazed that I missed so much. I have been trying to plug up a hole I sense at the end. Since Barth did not finish his project, the sense I have is that I need to at least chart the direction I think Barth was going. I am satisfied with what I think IV.4 was going to be. I am still pondering Volume V. I finished reading Church Dogmatics in a relatively short period in April. I tried to read one part-volume a week, but slowed down when I got to the Doctrine of Reconciliation, which was also the time when I got a bit sick. Read great book on Lord’s Prayer and eschatology by David Höhne. Good study of Ethics of Freedom by Jacques Ellul. John Webster was insightful on Barth’s Ethics of Reconciliation. Eberhard Jungel, God as Mystery of the World, is likely the best theology book I have read in a long time. He is a student of Karl Barth. My other retirement project has been to review Bible studies and sermons and construct articles based upon lectionary passages called Lectionary Pondering. I have continued to learn from my younger self, which I have enjoyed. Toward the end of the year, I started reflecting upon the stages of my life. I am not obsessing over this one. Nostalgia is not a good path travel. At the same time, I like to think I am learning from my journey a bit more.

Suzanne and I are grateful for the opportunity to live in Clearwater, FL. We have regular walks in downtown Dunedin and Safety Harbor. We enjoy this life. I like to think I have communicated some of that enjoyment in this brief reflection.