Year-End Reflection on 2024

          

The year 2024 has been a consequential year for us. I will save that part to last. A song says, “We are just ordinary people we don’t know which way to go.” Another song, Landslide by Fleetwood Mac, has a couple of turns of phrase that, taking them out of context and applying them to this year, seem applicable:

 

I climbed a mountain and I turned around
And I saw my reflection in the snow-covered hills
'Till the landslide brought me down

Can the child within my heart rise above?
Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?
Can I handle the seasons of my life?

Well, I've been afraid of changing

But time makes you bolder
Even children get older
And I'm getting older too

 

         I turned 73 this month. Many people reach this decade of life and have physical issues that bring them to doctors regularly. We have avoided that. I am thankful for the physical health I enjoy. There are times when I am working out that I feel like I did when I was in my forties, and I was running and doing well then. I am thankful for how Suzanne and I have matured together and are still very much in love with each other. She continues to cook healthy meals. 

We like our TV shows and movies at night. I especially liked: Bad Sisters, The Six Triple Eight, Your Friend, Nate Bargatze, Carry-on, Abigail, The Resident, Fear the Walking Dead, A Biltmore Christmas, Stuck in Love, The Mezzotint, The World’s Fastest Indian, Dark Winds, The Menu, John Wick: Chapter 4, Black Mass, Northern Exposure, Suits (excellent series), The Whale, From (TV series), Red, The Surrogate, My All-American, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, Secrets & Lies, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, Fury, Inside the Mind of a Dog, In Plain Sight, Sugar, Presumed Innocent, Your Honor, The Night of the Hunter, Brief Encounter, I Am: Celine Dion, The Gentlemen, Fallout (excellent take on video game and dystopian future), Ripley, Rust Creek, The Catcher was a Spy, Masters of the Air, One Day (an interesting almost philosophical reflection), Napolean, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, The Holdovers, Oppenheimer, Sound of Freedom, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Killers of the Flower Moon, Young Sheldon, L. A. Confidential, Carol and the End of the World (philosophical series)

         Suzanne and I are still enjoying Pasco County in Florida. Steve and Glenda have good friends to us in our stay at Fairway Springs. We enjoy Farmer’s Market that Generations Church has on first Saturday of the month. We have gone to a few of those free lunches that people our age are invited to, usually related to funeral arrangements or to investments. 

Our sons, Randy. Tim, Michael, and David, remain in Indianapolis. Tim and Randy are in trucking jobs, David works for a non-profit advocacy group based in Washington DC and contacts some of the powerful senators and representatives in Congress, and Michael works for PNC and is thankful that parts of his job he can help people. I have had some good conversations with Michael and David on the telephone. Tim and his girlfriend Kelly were here in April. I am thankful that a friend in Indianapolis, Craig, continues to keep up with me. We survived the two hurricanes this year with minor damage to the fence at the house and no flooding. 

         

A notable change in our home came at the end of August
when we purchased a standard poodle puppy, now 6 months old. We are learning what it is like to have a two-year-old around the house, always saying “No” to the dog. She has introduced me to a morning walk of about a mile before I go the fitness center. Yes, it is frustrating at times, but we can also see what a wonderful addition she is and will be. We still have Sofie, our silky terrier. 

At the Chapel

Pastors Kyle and Jaye

We continue attending the Chapel at Trinity, Florida. If you were to read the theological statement for the church, those who know me would realize quickly that my personal theology would not align well with that of the church. Yet, its focus upon relating people to Jesus Christ, its honoring of the Word of God in music and preaching, its attraction of a generationally and racially diverse community of faith, and its continued growth in the four years we have attended from three worship services on the weekend to four on one campus and two at another and another campus coming, has attracted me. We have enjoyed their First Wednesday worship events. At the beginning of each year, they have a prayer and fasting for three weeks, during which they open the worship center for private prayer and communion, which I have found meaningful. We have been attending with two persons from Palm Harbor, Bill and Joyce, and often go out to eat on Sunday with them, although we usually to the Saturday night service as well. In that time, the church has added a fourth service on the weekend and has expanded by adding a campus in Port Richey and will add another campus in Odessa. We enjoy the lead pastor, Pastor Q, very much, but enjoy the entire communication team, as well as Pastor Jay as worship leader. It has been such a joy to see in action a congregation that is doing ministry in the way I have read about over the years as an active pastor. This is one of those growing, independent, evangelical, Baptist-oriented congregations United Methodist pastors often read about. As one analyst put it, Baptist thinking is the default position of many of the growing evangelical churches. I will admit that when we first attended, I was looking for the pastor to say something that was out there theologically, but I have yet to hear it. He gave a series on the Ten Commandments. I have both a series of sermons and a long study of them, but what he shared was remarkably close to what I had done. The only time I cringe a bit is the few times during the year he says something like “this Baptist church.” However, this year he has also had some good moments when he included the phrase that went something like, “I am referring to sanctification here,” and it was an effective way to talk about it, as well as pleasing my Wesleyan-Methodist soul. I am on the Events Team, which is enjoyable both for the people we meet and in being behind the scenes. The church has communion once a month, and I have enjoyed being part of the team that puts the elements and tables used for the weekend services back in their storage area. It has been a pleasure to have some acquaintance with the pastoral staff, especially Pastor Kyle, who carved out some time for a coffee with me in September. 

15,000 candles in 4 hours

Unusual physical labor

       On a personal level, I have maintained a good physical fitness routine. As one person put it: “You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it will be yours for the entire period this time around.”’ I have long been one to think of mind, body, and spirit as intricately connected. This has meant going to Crunch, which is 3 miles away, doing so 6 days a week. I focus on arms and shoulders one day, back and chest the next, and core legs the next, and then repeat. I do yoga every day, which helps with flexibility and balance. I have HIIT routine at the end of each day to get my heart rate up. I have met some good people there, both members and trainers, who have been helpful in fine tuning what I learned a long time ago with P90X videos. I am thankful that many persons have witnessed to me that I am an inspiration to them and am an encouragement to keep going. A couple of young black men particularly touched me in taking the initiative to say this. “Don’t you ever stop,” said one, and my response was that I have been exercising since I was 18. It is in my DNA now. They touched me at that moment because i have longed for healing in racial relationships, and that might be part of how it happens. 

         I had the privilege of being a mentor for a female study at Asbury Seminary, which we met on zoom, since she was in West Virginia. Her theological interests and interest in writing was a good match.

         The book group has continued to meet by zoom. Glenn, Tim, Lynn, and Chuck have been such insightful readers of some wonderful authors. These have included Hannah Arendt on totalitarianism and stimulated some reflections on Karl Marx, Renee Girard, and presently includes Paul Ricoeur on forgiveness and philosophical anthropology. I still maintain a web site that shares my reflections on the books we read: https://wolfhartpannenberg.blogspot.com.

         I completed a study of the Old Testament, apocrypha, and pseudepigrapha up to the first century AD. I hope it will become a book at some point.  They are part of my updated reflections on the lectionary texts. This led into a study of the synoptic gospels. I have been finding Bultmann, History of the Synoptic Tradition and Joachim Jeremias, New Testament Theology, as well as the study of the parable by him and C. H. Dodd, and a couple of books on the Son of Man sayings, to be illuminating. Of course, I have preached and taught these gospels many years, but it has been a gift to bring it all together. 

         I continue to update my lectionary studies: https://lectionarypondering.blogspot.com.

         I have two books published, one on the Church Dogmatics of Karl Barth and the other derives from my spiritual formation experiences in the Indiana Annual Conference, a book that explores spiritual formation and ends with a collection of brief prayers that I hope will be helpful to those who want to nourish their relationship with God. I have an author home page that invite you to explore: https://sites.google.com/site/georgeplastererhomepage/Home. I am working on a third book that will complete my reflections that arise out of my spiritual formation experiences. It should come out by the summer or fall of 2025. 

         This was a presidential election year. It had unique qualities that I am sure I have not witnessed in my lifetime. If you are interested, you can read my reflections here.

Now, for the hard part of our year. There was something alluring about buying a home. Most of it was the sense of place where we could settle down, get established, and root ourselves in a community. There is a wonderful philosophical series, Carol at the End of the World, in which, in episode 9, she is searching for the perfect wave on which to surf. She never found it, but she realized that the only thing different was her. She was searching for something that did not need to be found. It is quite human to search for something to give life a sense of fullness, significance, and meaning. 

          When we bought the home, we were searching. Financial stability was part of it, but the purchase symbolized much more than that. However, our experience of buying a home in New Port Richey was not a good one financially. The remodel Suzanne did, and the work done by the handyman, was all good. Our neighbors were wonderful. I did get briefly involved in the HOA but resigned in the summer. This was because we needed to sell the home in which, when we bought it, we thought would be the home we would spend the rest of our lives. To put it simply and directly, we were led to believe that taxes would be at one level, but after living there a year, taxes went up $800 a month. I submitted two lenders, and both came back with the same estimate on taxes, so it is the way business is done in Florida. Further, it was likely that with the two hurricanes the next shoe to drop would be an increase in insurance. It became more than we could afford. Neither of us wanted to go back to work to stay in the house. I had an acquaintance at Crunch who had told me he was a part-time realtor, and I joked with him if he knew of a good realtor. He said he did, but not him, but rather, his girlfriend. I did not think we would be able to sell because of how briefly we owned the home, but although it took five months, and many showings, the home sold for more than we bought it for. The result financially is that we are renting at Trinity Club and have reduced housing expenses by about $1100 a month. 

Michael D. Powell, Look, Listen, Love, and Live said the following about the significance of learning in our lives:

 

1. You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called life. Each day in this school you will have the opportunity to learn lessons. You may like the lessons or think them irrelevant and stupid.

2. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial-and-error experimentation. The "failed" experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiment that ultimately "works."

3. A lesson is repeated until it is learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can then go on to the next lesson.

4. Learning lessons does not end. There is no part of life that does not contain its lessons. If you are alive, there are lessons to be learned.

5. "There" is no better than "here." When your "there" has become a "here," you will simply obtain another "there" that will, again, look better than "here."

 

         We learned much through this experience. I am sure that had we done more due diligence in researching this purchasing a home we could have avoided this. Had we had a home in the north that we sold and in which we had equity, it might have worked. However, the one time we bout in the north was not a pleasant experience either. I get that if one is young, it would be worth the investment, but as a retired couple, with modest means, it was not a wise financial decision. It would be easy to be bitter about a few things. Just because a realtor is on the Dave Ramsey web site and goes to your church does not mean the realtor is looking out for your interests. That was a harsh learning. However, bitterness is not a way to live. It is not worth the time or energy. We learned some things about purchasing a home in Florida. It is unlikely in the highest degree that we will ever do that again, but if we did, we would know the pitfalls. 

Beyond that, we learned somethings about ourselves that we should have known before we bought. To put it humorously (Steven Wright): “Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.” To put it a finer point on it, in The Once and Future King by T. H. White, he notes in The Sword and the Stone, Ch. 21, “The best thing for being sad…is to learn something. That is the only thing that never fails. … There is only one thing for it then — to learn. … That is the only thing the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting.” Most of the learning we have about self and world is through some pain. He also observes in The Ill-Made Knight, Ch. 13, that such lessons, such knowledge of the world, cannot be taught to the young. They are for the middle-aged and even older. When young, some of us can have a seriousness in our approach to life because we want to get it right. As we mature, we might realize how rarely we get it right, so we might as well relax and learn what we can. The wise person in the little book Jonathan Livingston Seagull said the reason we are is to love and to learn. At our age, we are still learning.

We discovered that we like renting. It is convenient to submit work orders and others take care of it quickly. The amenities here are genuinely nice. In fact, I have changed the place I work out. It is like having my own gym, although occasionally our new neighbors are there, of course. They even have monthly gathering, such as wine tastings, for the residents. As was said on episode of Northern Exposure, some people are owners and some people are renters, and we have decided that we are renters. 

I question the reliability of what I feel. When we moved to the Dunedin area in 2017, both of us said it felt like home. When we toured Fairway Springs, both of us had that feeling that this home. 

Having a place for ourselves and our stuff is important, but not as important as creating a healthy home. A house can become too expensive, it can collapse, it can be abandoned. Losing a house does create some sadness. It is a large investment. When something goes wrong there, a family will go through much upheaval and dramatic changes. The family might go to a new house, but it will take some time to make it a home. Yet, I must say that Trinity Club has already been feeling like home.

The feeling of home in this earthly life is something that we carry with us. It evokes something of the desire for what Charles Taylor made the title of his book Cosmic Connections.  He means by this an experience shot through with joy, significance, and inspiration, which he thinks is a human constant. The desire suggests a higher and deeper than the everyday world around us. It hints that there is something more, that a well-lived human life is more than the abundance of the things one possesses. Such moments cannot prove the existence of this higher or deeper order, but they suggest that the hope for it results in a surplus of meaning that a simple rational or mathematical approach to the world would suggest. Thus, we delude ourselves if we think any place here is truly home. That feeling may well be an anticipation of the home God has prepared for us in eternity, in the loving fellowship of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. A song often sung at the Chapel:

 

Praise the Father

Praise the Son

Praise the Spirit

Three in one

God of glory

Majesty

Praise forever to the King of Kings

 

We look forward to 2025 with much optimism. Part of that, admittedly, is the financial freedom that we are moving toward. We begin with high hopes for next year, given our new financial situation. My hope is to get my third book published. I also hope to finish by study of the synoptic gospels and continue my study of the rest of the New Testament. We will need to keep focused upon training our standard poodle. We need to finish moving into our apartment, most of which is the second bedroom and putting up pictures. On the fun side, we hope to share more trips to the beach. 

Another song I love, but which I hope you can read as prayer for you:

 

So come on my soul, oh, don't you get shy on me

Lift up your song, 'cause you've got a lion

Inside of those lungs

Get up and praise the Lord

Oh, come on my soul, oh, don't you get shy on me

Lift up your song, 'cause you've got a lion

Inside of those lungs

 

For any who read this, we wish you the best for the coming year. God be with you.

Hurricane Helene

Hurricane Milton

Sioux Falls Restaurant

Pipe tobacco and cigars from his establishment

David, Kari, Henry, Edith, Alice, Lewis

 

2022 Year-end Reflections

 

 I wish you the best of the Christmas and New Year season. I like to reflect upon the year, so here are a few.

Even in retirement, it is good to have a routine. I my case, that means making coffee when I arise, and doing the yoga I learned from P90x2. Suzanne and I usually have a walk of 1.5-3.0 miles in the morning. We go regularly to the Farmer’s Market in Dunedin and the 3rd Friday event at Safety Harbor. Monday and Thursday are my usual weights day at Esporta. I continue on a slow study of the Old Testament with the Jewish Study Bible and my past studies, doing so in an historical manner. I have also been going through old files that I have kept since College and Seminary. It has been a joy to see that I was a good writer and thinker. My thinking today is quite similar to my younger self. I had already been persuaded by people like William F. Buckley, George Will, Walter Williams, Thomas Sowell, and Milton Friedman that keeping the federal government as much out of civil society as possible was best culturally and economically. I already had a positive view of the Enlightenment because of Duane Thompson and I had been exposed to both Karl Barth and Wolfhart Pannenberg, two theologians who will influence by thinking for the rest of my life. Thus, it does not surprise me that much of thinking is consistent since my mid to late 20s. On Tuesday, I still meet with the guys from Palm Harbor for lunch. I do my Bible study and lectionary study in the morning. I will do other reading and study during the day. I am studied a BF Westcott through a paper I did Seminary. Worked on papers I presented to Fred Layman at Asbury in 1978. The evening is our time to have a meal together and watch some television. Among the books I read: Albert Camus, The Stranger, The Plague, The Rebel. My book study group read the theological works of Jurgen Moltmann, which was a good re-read for me: Crucified God, Theology of Hope, Church in the Power of the Spirit, and The Trinity and the Kingdom. Read John Cobb Christ in a Pluralistic Age for book discussion. The three of us meet for a zoom conversation. Finished book The Fullness of Time: Jesus Christ, Science, and Modernity by Kara N. Slade for book group. Book discussion involving Catherine Keller. I finished Transforming Christian Theology by Philip Clayton. I enjoyed re-reading Philosophical Fragments by Kierkegaard.

Here is a good reminder of what reading is so beneficial:

We glean what we need from it as we go. In each reading of a book or poem or play, we may be addressed in new ways, depending on what we need from it, even if we are not fully aware of those needs. The skill of good reading is not only to notice what we notice, but also to allow ourselves to be addressed. - Marilyn Chandler McEntyr

A writing project to which I have committed myself is a reflection on the progressive political movement. The articles provides an overview of my reaction to what the Pew Research Center identifies as the concerns and ideas of the progressive. To provide some context, I intend to write an article next year in which I will offer my considerations of the populist right and the God and Country conservative. I would note that there is no place in the Pew research for either Nazi or Communist, which may well be shibboleths of both sides. In any case, I invite your reactions. 

Toward the beginning of the year I connected with some folks with whom I want to Miltonvale Wesleyan College in 1970-72. That school is now part of Oklahoma Wesleyan in Bartlesville. We had an enjoyable zoom meeting. It was nice to see folks have done well. The goal was to get us to come to the 50-year reunion, to which I did not go. We could have driven, but I confess it is difficult to get us out of Florida and sometimes out of Pinellas County. 

Toward the end of the year I undertook a writing project of a theological reflection on the biblical texts related to the Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany season. It has been rewarding and challenging. If you take the time, you may find some surprises, but I have sought to be faithful to the Barth notion of giving priority to the  word of God.

I am continuing the path toward publication. I was encouraged by the response to the prayers I posted on Facebook, so I am pursuing their publication, which would include an introductory reflection on prayer. I anticipate having it published early next year, first submitting to the Upper Room, and I have one more suggestion if that does not work. 

Toward the vision of publishing several books over the next few years, I have developed a web site that will be my primary vehicle to sell the books. 

As most know, the United Methodist Church has been going through some major changes, and I offer my response here. I am supportive of the move toward the Global Methodist Church, but I do retain my ordination papers with the UMC. 

In the Fall of 2021 I got curious concerning what COVID had done to other congregations. We visited Countryside Christian, which clearly was still suffering in attendance, but they had wonderful music. We visited Generations in Trinity as well. Although attendance was good, it was not attractive to us. We visited both because we had heard so much about them. We visited the Chapel in Trinity in November of last year and have kept going, largely because of the music, in my case, as Pastor Jay is excellent in that regard. I saw Pastor Kyle preach in person before I saw Pastor Q in person. Pastor Q is a creative, energetic pastor. I am still intrigued by how this congregation has had such a large attendance through COVID. I am also intrigued that they model on the staff what they want to see in the congregation and do not make a big deal of it. Thus, the staff is white, black, and Hispanic and it is young. They have been clear that their target audience is young families, but in the process have attracted Suzanne and I because we like to be in a church that has some numbers and reflects the diversity of the community. We are energized by having youth around us. The aging of the UMC has long been a concern. Thus, to see a congregation be so attractive to young families is a blessing. It can be done. My focus is writing and publishing, so I have no itch to be behind the scenes, but I am intrigued. I say all this to stress that I still have a connection with PHUMC through the Wings group. Pastor Kieth has been gracious to me and he is faithful to the word of God and his desire to bring people to a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ. As I state in the above link, even if my attendance has changed, my ordination papers have not, and I remain concerned with the UMC and the Global Methodist Church. Given the path of my involvement in denominational, moving from non-denominational, to Wesleyan, to UM, to non-denominational, I guess I have an ad hoc relationship to them.  

On February 23, Tinker, our Maltese since in 2013, when she was five, died on this day.  She is a cherished memory by both of us. She came with Ellie while we were in Logansport. She was the pet of one of Suzanne’s customers. When Ellie died in 2018, we were sad. But it seemed like her death allowed the cute personality of Tinker to merge. She always awakened in the morning with such liveliness. We heard the pitter patter of her feet on the floor. She was so excited to get her food. She would get a treat when she pottied on the pee-pad. She learned that she could fake it by going to the pad and standing there, it was around a corner in our apartment, and then come excitedly to get her treat. It was so cute. She did her best to keep up with us on the dog-walks we took. At the end, we had a buggy for her. She could hardly walk. She would go to a  corner and stare. She could hardly stand. She would like being held for  a few minutes, but then want down quickly. She was a wonderful addition to our family.

I worked for the Phillies organization for four months, since the Clearwater Threshers are part of that system. It was fun. Met some good people and enjoyed some baseball. However, standing that many days in a row was just too much so I needed to stop. 

Annie

We had the privilege of bringing Annie to our home in 2008. Suzanne saw her at the pet store in Crawfordsville, IN. We knew our standard poodle, Toby, was near his end. Someone wanted to just give Annie away. She was a wire-haired fox terrier, but she was the runt of the litter. She touched Suzanne’s heart, and when she told me about her, I said, “Why did you not get her?” She immediately went to the store and Annie was still there. 

It was not long and we called her 3-second Annie. It seemed like 3 seconds  was about as long as her attention span was. She always ate as if she was in a race to win. She loved playing catch. She loved her walks. When in Logansport, we had a back yard and could just let her out. She did not roam much beyond the yard. One time she caught up with a ground hog, and that was the end of that little critter. She slept with us at night, of course, and always snuggled up to Suzanne’s back for part of the night, would get under the covers and then get out, and eventually land at the foot of our extra-sized bed. If we were on the couch, she would want to be with us. She had to put up with a lot. She started out as the only dog, and at one point was one of five. She adjusted, largely because she made it clear she was the alpha dog of the group. She would sit with me like a person for me to rub her head and belly. When guests came, that person became her person, as she would sit in the lap of the person and of course always give a little nudge with her nose if the person stopped petter her. She loved people, to the point where it seemed like she would have gone home with them. She assumed everyone she met thought she was adorable and wanted to pet her. Sometimes she was not sure about other dogs, especially if they were bigger than her. She usually gave a warning growl. She developed a habit of barking at Suzanne and I when we hugged. We never did figure out what that was about. When she could no longer go for a walk, we put her in a buggy and took her with us on our morning 1.5 mile walk. 

She went down hill quickly. Her joints no longer cooperated. She wandered around the edge of our apartment. She had trouble squatting to do her duty. It seemed as if she whined just sitting there. She no longer wanted to sit with us. She stared into corners and tried to get behind chairs and couches. I would hold her and sometimes her entire body shook. At times, she seemed in pain. Very much unlike her was that we would hold her briefly and she would want down. Occasionally we saw the alert and lively dog we have known and loved, like when we hugged and she barked, when she got around bigger dogs and she growled, when we came through the door, or when she ate. On June 13, 2022, we became an empty nest again. We were so fortunate to have her in our lives and as part of the  family.

Big news was another grandchild as David and Kari have their 4th child Lewis William. David has had a major job change working for a child advocacy group in Washington, DC. He has been able to stay in Indianapolis thus far. We have had some good conversations around his job, which involves working with both Democrat and Republican in order to get pieces of legislation passed. 

In July, I finished input of my papers and class notes from 1970s classes into computer, appropriate conclusion with a class on Aesthetics from Duane Thompson, of blessed memory. Part of the old files I have been reading included essays from a philosophical quarterly I subscribed to in the 70s. Been nice to find appropriate places in my current studies to put notes on them. Part of the goal was reduce the amount of my stuff, but the other part was an appreciation for the studies I have done in the past.

In August, we met a couple at the Westfield Mall, Jim and Barbara. It has been an encouraging r

elationship. They are devout Christians. He has a back
ground that   includes advertising. He has been encouraging me to get my books published and has advice on developing a web site and using social media to promote them. In November, we had Thanksgiving Dinner with them. Another couple we meet with regularly is Bill and Joyce. Often, we go to church and then out to eat. 

In November, we had some difficult news about a friend. Our friend Susan died. The last lunch we shared with Cato and Susan she coughed through much of it. She was very health conscious and was a yoga instructor at LA Fitness. They had to cancel the next lunch and I did not see her again until Cato asked for prayer at her bedside. She was still alert and could talk a bit. A few hours later she would die. 

In December, Tim and Kelley visited. It was a wonderful time with them. 

My hope for next year is to publish two books, one a book of prayers and the other on discipleship. I recently sold five of my books involving the Church Dogmatics of Karl Barth. That is not a lot, but I am glad the book is reaching a few people. If the right person with the right review happens, it might catch on as much as a book like that can. At this point, it is an encouragement to keep going. It is for those interested in Barth but do not want to read the entire set of Church Dogmatics. I think it offers a good summary. In the background is a book that reflects theologically upon the lectionary texts of each season and a book on the development of Old Testament theology. I enjoyed ministry. This is one part of that ministry that I enjoyed sharing in sermons and Bible studies. I count it a privilege that I have gathered notes in such a way that I can put together books. My hope is that one will get a bit of sales and maybe generate sales of others. I plan on continuing to write occasional articles involving political matters. I am staying away from posting quotes in that area that seem to have some truth in them. Such articles are my attempt to keep my thinking sharp and develop writing skills. The blog on which I post them is Plasterer’s Pondering. I invite you to check back occasionally, read recent articles, and let me know what you think. I continue publishing reflections upon the lectionary texts at Lectionary Pondering. The major update I intend to do is a theological reflection on each season.

Our hope next year also involves getting a standard poodle. We loved our Beau and Toby, and whenever we see one we know that is what we want.

Our final hope, and it is a big one, is to find the right home in which to live the remained of our lives. When we moved here we were uncertain if this was the part of Florida in which we wanted to live. However, we have decided that is the case. The next few months will be like having a job again, but it is an important decision, so will take our time. 

Part of the evening routine is watching movies and TV series. In the first half of the year we watched past seasons of shows we liked. We enjoyed watching the X-Files and its movies, all the episodes of Seinfeld, House, Lost (2004-10, and I was so glad, especially the final season. It was like watching the first time. So many things I missed. In many ways a fitting end), and Yellowstone. We finished Fringe on Amazon prime a favorite tv show from 2008-13 on FOX. I found myself so grateful for Ana Torv, Joshua Jackson, and John Noble. We saw Blacklist season 9 2022, a series we enjoy very much.

Regarding House, Yes, “everybody lies,” which suggests that we should all be careful in our relationships. We need to be careful of ourselves as well. We can lie to ourselves as well as others. In addition, the recurring theme that nobody changes is an interesting one. I have focused much upon the challenges that each of stage of life involve changes, a letting go of the past and an embrace of the next stage. Pastors talk much about transformation. Yet, as I have taken time to reflect upon the successive decades of my life, I see so many similarities between who I am now and who I was then. Are there some basics about us that do not change? Of course, the show raises the question of the highly talented person for whom the institution will bend over backward to keep in the fold, no matter how outrageous their behavior might be in other areas of life. I was also struck by House is one fascinated by the puzzle. He was willing to test and experiment until he found a solution. It was an intellectual puzzle to him, even though he was dealing with the health and life of people. I am not that extreme, but I will admit that a part of me is in the character. I am fascinated by intellectual puzzles. I keep reformulating what I have learned with the goal of trying to arrive at a more satisfying solution to the puzzle. In my case, the intellectual puzzles are philosophical and theological, but the orientation is similar.

We finished the first season of Knight Rider. Te Ata is worth seeing on Netflix. We finished 24:Live Another Day and Bridgerton Season 2. I finished Severance on Apple TV+ a show concerning work life balance and much more. Finished Season 2 & 3 of Servant by M. Knight Shyamalon on Apple TV+. Finished Season 7 of Flash. We watched Midnight Mass on Netflix. If you want an interesting take on vampires, this is for you. An excellent show on Apple TV+ is Blackbird a good true crime series. We enjoyed Season 1 of Blood and Treasure and Echoes. The Expanse was a good Syfy show. No matter how great the technology humans still find ways to mess it up. Resident Evil is a good dystopian syfy. We finished Lost in Space 3rd Season. I watched it because of good memories from childhood. It wasn’t as fun as the early version even with its technology. Knightfall was a take on the Knights Templar, not simply history but close. Medici the Magnificent 2019 was a good presentation of that history. Violence was part of daily life. Pope was corrupt. If you want a nice explanation of quantum physics Everything and Nothing is good. We unfortunately watched the NBC TV show Shades of Blue, enjoyable at first, we had enough interest to see it through for its 3 seasons, 2016-8, but I would not recommend. We finished Bosch:Legacy an excellent crime drama. Cabinet of Curiosities was a good set of horror episodes. We saw a documentary, Jupiter Enigma on Amazon Prime. We watched In Plain Sight Season 1. We finished Season 1 of Sherlock, which aired in 2012 on CBS. We finished Crown Season 5 on Netflix, about the English royal family. It has left me wondering why the English have a monarchy, given their dysfunction.

We do not watch many movies at the theater. We have gotten used to waiting for them to be available streaming or DVD. We watched the Terminator series again, and enjoyed Terminator Genesis. Free Guy deserves mention. Adam Project on Netflix was good. We watched Dune which was very good as was The Card Counter.  We watched Everything Everywhere all at Once, which might have been ok if it were 1:30 long but not 2:15. A movie much worth seeing is Clint Eastwood in Cry Macho. A nice dog story is Saved by Ruby. The Night House was a good one as well. Watched Protégé on Amazon Prime and the Lucky One and Against the Ice. Old is an M Night Shyamalon movie we watched on dvd. We watched Venom: Let there be Carnage, which was funny. Watched Many Saints of Newark, a prequel to the Sopranos. We saw the western Old Henry, which would be well worth your time. Since I have tried to keep up with the Halloween series, we watched Halloween Kills. We watched 24:Redemption as part of our plan to watch the 24 series. We watched Marvel movie Eternals. We saw 2019 movie Just Mercy a true drama of one on death row proved innocent with clear racist implications in 1989s Alabama. We enjoyed movie King Richard. I liked horror movie Antlers. We watched The Last Duel. We saw Top Gun Maverick at the theater and for character development and realistic aviation, well worth seeing. A movie worth your time on Netflix is Hustle. We watched Dr Strange at theater. If you like Marvel stuff it was good. I find it difficult to track with why one power works and another doesn’t. The Elvis movie was excellent. Even if you do not like his music you might like this movie. Cyrano we saw on dvd a musical worth seeing. Nightmare Alley was an excellent movie we watched on dvd. We watched Terminal List on Amazon Prime, which was a good action movie. We watched Persuasion, Catch and Release, and The Gray Man. We saw West Side Story 2002 and were disappointed in the singing and the way they changed the end. A poor effort by Spielberg. The 355 is an interesting spy film. The Burning Plain is a subtle psychological drama worth the time. Major Grom Plague Doctor was a fun Russia film. Death on the Nile was the best Agatha Christie film I have seen. We saw Thirteen Lives in Amazon Prime a true story about a rescue of some boys in Thailand.  No Clue was a cute subtle humor detective story. Infinite is a movie we saw on dvd and was mildly interesting syfy. An interesting movie was Below the Fold. It is slow crime movie. Uncharted was fun. Scream was fun for me if you liked the original you would like it as well. The Lost City was silly and fun, starring Sandra Bullock. Finally saw The Batman on dvd, I am not usually up for a 3 hour movie but it kept me interested. Prizefighter was a good story about early 1800s boxing. Dog is a good story about army canine adjusting to civilian life. The Netflix movie Lou is a good Bad Robot production of adventure and drama. The Bombardment was a movie about an air raid in Denmark during WWII that hit a hospital instead of a military target. Mr Harrigan’s Phone was a good Netflix horror movie. The Champion was a challenging WWII account of a polish Jew in a concentration who could fight in the ring. Discovered we didn’t see Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azerbakan a 2004 movie. Reminded me of what I liked and disliked about that series. We watched the 3 Hobbit movies 2012-4. This was to prepare for Amazon prime prequel Rings of Power. We saw Under Suspicion 1992 movie, which was a suspense movie we liked. We saw a documentary Seeing the Beginning 2017. We watched Enola Homes 2, a nice spin-off from Sherlock Holmes; Father Stu, a sad story, but meaningful and worth seeing; Jexi 2019 was a fun show about a smart phone that takes over a young man’s life; Causeway on Apple TV+ was a slow one about a female injured soldier; Where the Crawdads Sing is an excellent murder mystery and character study which is apparently a true story. Since they have a similar theme, I mention here an an interesting 4 episode show, The Inside Man, illustrating quite well that any of us could be murderers, given the right circumstances. Both shows reminded me of how easy for most of us to say that we can obey the command not to murder. We think we never could, and I am in that category. However, Jesus did stress that the internal issue in this commandment is anger. I do not want to press it too far, but the idea that all of us have the capacity to do so if placed in what for us would be an extreme situation is an intriguing one. We watched a movie, All’s Quiet on the Western Front, a long and well-done movie. Worth seeing. We watched In the School of Good Evil, The Wonder, Jurassic World: Dominion. The Edge of War was very good history; Love Hard was a good romance movie; Bad Guys is a good animated film. We enjoyed a few Holiday classics like It’s a wonderful Life, Scrooged, and Last Holiday. We watched many nice, sentimental, holiday moves on Netflix and Amazon Prime. We watched Emancipation on Apple TV+, which was excellent, so disregard some of the rating numbers. Prisoners is a 2013 movie that had an interesting twist on vigilante justice. I would not recommend Beast. We have been watching Christmas movies, but I won’t bore you with the ones we watched on Netflix and Amazon Prime. We watched When He Didn’t Come Home a 1998 movie based upon a true story of a murder. We went to the theater to see Black Adam, which was a superhero movie that has good character development and storyline. We watched the new Pinnochio movie on Netflix, which was an excellent animated presentation of the story. We enjoyed About Fate on Amazon prime and Thor: Love and Thunder on dvd. Glass Onion: Knives Out (2022) we enjoyed very much. The Invitation (2022) was a good suspense until the vampire part.  A 2017 movie, Thor Ragnarok, was ok for the type of movie superhero movie it was. Push (2009) was a decent SyFy movie. 

If you want to know more, here is a listing month-by-month beyond what I have mentioned. I will include some random pictures, but Annie and Tinker are in a lot of them.

In January

Henry Owen gave me a telephone call on his 9th birthday. 

In February

The war between Russia and Ukraine has begun. I have much hesitation in supporting any war. Since Biden and those who follow him have referred to me as a conservative who loves my country as represented in its founders and constitution, as verified in the Civil War, as expressed on the international scene in WWI, WWII, and the Cold War, and as verified again in the Civil Rights movement — they refer to me as racist. 

I continued going through old files, mostly from the 1970s and 1980s and including some ordination papers.

The Joe Rogan matter was odd in that he is no conservative, but was still attacked by the Left as they sought to get Spotify to take him off. To its credit, Spotify did not do this. for the crime of talking to those who don’t endorse “right think” on COVID-19, Rogan, whose podcast “The Joe Rogan Experience” reportedly averages around 11 million listeners, is apparently unfit for polite society. Before the month is out, the CDC will endorse what was heard on the show.

We were at a Super Bowl party of 40 and under who loved the halftime show btw.  

Submitted my 2021 taxes on the last day of the month.

In March, I had my final dental appointment on a dental plan I have been following by my dentist since last year. I would like to think I am all caught up in that area. I played tennis with new friend Canaan. We went to the Craft Beer Festival in Dunedin. had some fun listening to Irish music around St. Patrick’s Day, usually while exercising. On St. Patrick’s Day I worked at the baseball stadium in Clearwater, since they had a special day for Phillies fan, many of whom took vacations to see Spring Training games, but who did not see any due to the strike. I was hired as a ticket taker. I am working for the Phillies who have their spring training in a beautiful stadium in Clearwater. Baseball was an important part of my early life. Great people to work with. Blue Jays, Tigers, and Yankees were the first opponents but only the last felt like a real game. Tigers and Yanks followed the next week. 

We have had some nice walks in Dunedin with our dog Annie. Walking at the Breyley’s has included feeding the ducks that have become part of the pond life. We saw an impressive rainbow this month. We went to International Mall a couple of times. We always like that visit.   

Good time at lunch with friends at Tarpon Turtle. Breakfast at Sandpiper in Dunedin, a new place for us that we liked a lot. It was wonderful to see a young man from Easter Europe who was our neighbor but moved to Orlando. He is Milot. Nice visit at Starbucks. He shared about having a serious car accident and the impact upon his life. It is wonderful to have this type of relationship with him. He is a naturalized citizen now. Nice telephone conversations with Craig Andrews and with my youngest son David.

In April, I was still working at #Phillies Spring@Training. I met Mike as coworker whom said could be my brother. Worked at kids center and loved it. I also started working with he  Threshers as well. I have met some wonderful co-workers and have a great boss. Threshers games had some fun promotion on Friday with dog night and Saturday with Star Wars night. Fun times. Nice dinner with friends at Glory Days. Got oil change for our Nissan 350Z and our Jeep. Nice lunch at Zimcari with friends. Another dinner with friends at Glory Days. Nice long phone calls with Craig Andrews and son David. Nice walks with Suzanne and fitness center. Some extra time swimming, sauna, and Jacuzzi. Suzanne and I had a nice talk with the Aetna home visit nurse. I posted my reflections on the Season of Easter lectionary texts. Nice talk with son Michael for his 42nd birthday. I talked with Rev Bill Clayton on the phone. He has been a colleague and a blessing. Nice time with Angel and Brenda at Tarpon Turtle and walk at Phillipe Park in Safety Harbor. Book discussion of Church in the Power if the Spirit with Glenn and Lynn. Nice time with Bill and Joyce at LBC in Palm Harbor. Great work outs this week. Good bike ride to Dunedin. I started reviewing the hard copies of papers I wrote in college and seminary in the 1970s. It has been a treat. At the end of the month, I briefly worked a Bands at the Stadium event, but my part, the kid zone, was rained out.

In May, I continue publishing a prayer for each day. We saw a leather neck turtle trying to get through the fence . Nice time with friends at Christos in Trinity. A great time at Clearwater Beach. Nice talk with son David. Nice time with Bible Buddies and PHUMC. Good time with the guys at Glory Days. I have been working at Baseball field in kid zone this week. Threshers have done well. Black Honkies is a popular local band and played after game on Friday. Great fireworks on Saturday. Great book conversation on Moltmann Coming of God. We saw a large biker group on the roads. Threshers had a dog night as people could bring their dogs. They played the Team from Ft Myers which iOS a Twins affiliate. My studies include Psalms from Assyrian period, a study of life after death in Bible I did in 1980s, and study of holiness movement I did in 1970s. We celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary this month. I had a nice talk with Suzanne’s son Tim and My son David. Surprise talk with a District Superintendent from Indiana about a former church.  Struggle with disaffiliating. Good time with the guys at Glory Days. Nice talk with friends at Bacon Street Diner at Mall. Worked a few hours at college baseball championship. Great to see enthusiasm from the fans. Great exercise week with some good bike rides. Finished typing into a document a study I did at Seminary on holiness movement in 1800s.

In June

Nice time at Art and craft festival in Dunedin. Some good games between Threshers and Blue Jays. Threshers won 2 games in bottom of 9th one with back to back homers. I worked at Threshers games including a dog night and a Grateful Dead cover band and fireworks. Tough games against Palm Beach Cardinals. Nice time at PHUMC and at Wings group. I had a nice Father’s Day with calls from Michael and Tim and a nice gift of a ring from Tim that said, “Love you Dad.” He was aware that I have been getting into wearing rings.

in July

Good dental report for a change. Lynn shared with me the concern that of a doctor report my youngest sister Shirley had. She is in SD.

in August

Suzanne completed some gardening outside apartment. Our Nissan 350z needed a new top and we completed that process. We also voted in the GOP primary.  Nice talk with sister Shirley. Nice time for lunch with Bill & Joyce BurgerFI in Trinity. I finished going through my physical files from the past. I then went through computer files journal types of things 1998-2017. Nice time with Bill & Joyce at Aussie Grill. Discovered Community UMC in Vincennes has had a tough season of life. Sad to hear. I was present with merging 3 congregations and building a new church. It was a lot of work for all of us. The discussion with the secretary brought back many memories, most of them good. I asked about certain people, and they had left, most for the new church in town. Hard for me to imagine that congregation without those people. But got nice call from sister Shirley and good news on her health. Good time with guys at Sonny’s. Nice lunch with Bill & Joyce at Flapjacks, and Met a wonderful couple while walking in Countryside Mall. Look forward to seeing them again. new friends James & Barbara at Cosmic Donuts. Good report on my eyes. The doc saw a red flag concerning Glaucoma, but so far it looks good. Got a new iPhone 13 pro to replace my iPhone X. When Suzanne saw the battery length and the much better photo app, she wanted one as well.

new bicycle for me

Angel, Brenda, George, Suzanne

David as part of his work

George and Melot

Tinker and Ellie

Tinker and George

Susan, Cato, George, Suzanne

People said we looked alike

Angel, Brenda, George, Suzanne

Star Wars Night at the Baseball Park

In September and October

Nice lunch with Bill and Joyce on Sunday at Tiffany’s and with another friend coffee and huge apple fritter at Cosmos. Even some time at the sauna and jaccuzi. However, I did pull a calf muscle. The big news was the hurricane Ian, all is well. It went south and east of us. Nice talk with Paul Perry from Indiana. He always has a story! Wing Men group was good as always. Nice time at Cosmic Donuts with new friends. Wingmen at Wings Ect. Voted GOP, yes on the 3 Florida amendments, yes on Clearwater amendment, and for the Chris Latvala backed nonpartisan candidates. Went to Seafood Festival in Dunedin. Old bicycle gone and got an upgrade used bike. Nice talk with Michael my oldest son. 

November

We had a nice lunch with friends at Another Broken Egg Place. Nice talk with my youngest sister, Shirley, who got a good health report, and a nice talk with youngest son David. Went to Farmer’s Market with great peanut brittle and Wine and Blues Festival.

I am nursing a pulled calf muscle, so extra time bicycling and swimming. I added a few days of the cold. I do not like limits on my activity! I do want to share on the serious side. In addition, an accident with a person on a bicycle at our corner. New cookie place at Dunedin Farmer’s Market, Avery Bakes, and they are excellent. I have found several excellent cookie places around here lately. Nice time with Jim and Barbara at Cosmic Donuts, which has great apple fritters. We were at Tiffany’s with another couple. I had a good time with a group at Wings, Etc. We had a good conversation with our new friends Jim and Barbara at the Mall. Nice talk on the phone with Glenn Knepp about his move to a new church. Nice talk with youngest son David.  It got cold last week, but this week has steadily warmed. We had a nice time with a Jim and Barbara at Cracker Barrel for Thanksgiving. At the Farmer’s Market in Dunedin we found wood-roasted coffee.

December

I am focusing on Christmas decorations in the neighborhood. My granddaughter is showing off the necklace we sent for her birthday. I had some nice talks with my sisters Cindy and Lynn and, a nice talk with sons Michael and David, and a nice talk with my step-son Tim for my birthday. A visit to the eye doc went well. I received my flu shot. Nice time at Wings, Etc. with guys.

On the down side, along with still resting my calf muscle, I seem to catch a cold, use zicam, have a good few days, and feel the cold again, and use the zicam. Our Jeep needed an oil change and something about a rear lining that I did not understand. 

We were at the mall and I got a nice picture of Suzi. I have done my usual exercise with time at the pool, the fitness center, bicycle, and yoga. A Fitness Center has a grinch at a desk that brings a smile when I enter. I wrote a theological essay based upon the biblical texts for Advent. It was challenging, but led to some good reflections on eschatology. 

The big news this week is that I submitted a book proposal to the Upper Room for the book of prayers. We had a great time with Bill & Joyce at Rodie’s, an excellent place that we look forward to returning. We had a great time with new friends Jim and Barbara at Cosmic Donuts. A nice book discussion group, but since a UM pastor who active in ministry is moving, we spent most of the time on that. It was very good. As we have for quite some time, we had a great time at the Chapel. We also met a friend of Pastor Q who is a pastor at Harborside Christian at Haven House, a coffee house ministry in Safety Harbor. The setting of the coffee house was awesome. It was a haircut week.  A strong exercise week with yoga, biking, walking, fitness center, and pool. My study time has been devoted to a theological reflection on the lectionary texts for Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany. This is work that I hope will become a book.

It has been cold here, but usually for only a few weeks in February. It started getting Cold about a month ago and has been off and on since. However, today was the first I would describe it as bitter cold. My age is showing as well, as this cold has made my joints feel bad, but ibuprofen has helped. Tim is Suzanne’s son and Kelly is his girl, both being interstate truckers. We ate out with them a lot, discovering some new places for us. A nice, long ride to Clearwater Beach with Tim and Kelly. We had a wonderful Christmas Eve service.

  We had our first exploration into house market and it was not a good thing. We tend to be boring on New Year’s Eve. I have been reflecting some upon my hopes for the year. I imagine you have some and I encourage you to to pursue them.