Three Sisters

 

Dear Friends

A few years ago during a road trip which included Oregon, Kathleen and I stopped in a town called Sisters. It was named after the nearby "Three Sisters" peaks.  Early settlers sometimes referred to the trio of volcanic peaks as “Faith, Hope, and Charity”.

Last Sunday, it was a joy to be with my three sisters at St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church in San Juan Capistrano---(from left to right in picture are Susan, Debbie and Mary Bek.) The occasion was the church’s 50^th anniversary. Susan continues as Director of Music. She also taught at St. Margaret’s school from its founding and directed an annual Christmas Lessons and Carols service involving children and youth of all ages.  For this anniversary, she and her friend Diane put together a wonderful concert before the service, in addition to the service hymns, anthems and solos. At 81 years old, she moved gracefully between the piano and organ, all the while keeping an eye on her friend who was directing the choir and a small ensemble of musicians. I was recruited to join the bass section.

Among the blessings I have as we approach Thanksgiving, is the joy of having three sisters in my life for so many years. I could write several paragraphs describing their special gifts, and, of course, special memories with each one of them. But it is enough to say for now, that each one of them has always shown me a deep faith, hope and charity, beyond measure, by their words and their deeds.

How could I be so lucky?!!

John 

Shoulder Surgery Alert

 Dear Friends

Pardon me if this is TMI, but next Tuesday, August 26^th, I am scheduled for arthroscopic shoulder surgery to repair a tear in my rotator cuff.

Not to be mistaken for “Tommy John” surgery, this will be “Fr. John” surgery (baseball fans will get this). According to my TV Prevagen ad pharmacist David, I will be under general amnesia during this telescopic surgery and then will be wearing a swing for six weeks before starting PE.  (Clearly, David has been forgetting to take his Prevagen!)

Among other reasons, I am motivated to do this for my grandchildren. I want to show them how to sing and do all the motions for “Head, Shoulders Knees and Toes”. I want to hold them and not worry about sharp pains while we are singing “The Wheels on the Bus” at the moment “The People on the Bus go Up and Down, all through the town.”

I am also hoping to qualify for the 2026 Senior Miniature Golf Olympics being held in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, (the Miniature Golf Club capital of the world), rather than just putt around the house. After surgery, my doctor said I should be head and shoulders above the competition.

John

P.S. While I will appreciate your prayers for a successful surgery and a full and speedy recovery, also pray for Kathleen. While she is already masterful at multi-tasking while caring for our beautiful 23 and 7 month old granddaughters, this will be a time for an extra measure of strength and patience, with her one-armed assistant as a temporary patient in the house.

  

 

Cruelty v. Compassion

Dear Friends

Timing triggered my latest letter to the editor, published yesterday online by the LA Times. Shortly after I heard his alligator “joke”, I was walking at Santana Park and passed the bench with the message about compassion (pictured just above). I wrote the following letter and e-mailed it to the Times as soon as I got home:

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To the Editor: At my nearby park, there is a “hope and healing meditation path” that includes benches with encouraging messages. One has these words about compassion: “We can never really know what someone else is going through. However, we can listen with our hearts and be open to the depths of others’ pain.”

That message caught my attention during my walk because I had just seen the President of the United States joking about people trying to outrun alligators at his new detention center in Florida (“Trump tours Florida immigration lockup and jokes about escapees having to run from alligators,” July 1). I’ve seen one commentator describe “Alligator Alcatraz” as “performance cruelty.”

Clearly, the president missed a recent Los Angeles Times op-ed with the headline “In an era that celebrates cruelty, embrace subversive kindness.” Clearly, he hasn’t seen the message about compassion on our park bench in Corona. And sadly, his habit of making cruel remarks and his lack of compassion has spread to many in his administration and beyond.

John Saville   Corona

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Blog continues here: 

As we celebrate Independence Day, I don’t know how we measure the soiling of the soul and character of our country that our current president is responsible for, because it keeps seeping from the top down and is spreading all around. 

Issues are always up for debate. But character should not be, because character affects the words we speak and the actions we take. I think we are underestimating the deep and lasting effect of his cruel words and actions, which so many people have come to easily embrace, or ignore because they have normalized it.

There is so much more to reflect upon in response to what is going on right now. In the meantime, a couple of verses from this coming Sunday’s second lesson from Paul's letter to the Galatians, offers hope and advice for us, as we press on amid these challenging days:

“So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up” (6:9)

“So then, whenever we have the opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and especially for those of the family of faith” (6:10)

John

Where were you?

 

Dear Friends

Three priests walked into a bar….. Just kidding.

Three priests walked onto Disneyland’s “Rise of the Resistance”. Not kidding!

Kathleen and I were celebrating the 1^st week anniversary (May 8) of our 49^th wedding anniversary (May 1^st). We had seen near the park entrance, two priests with what appeared to be a school group. We didn’t expect to see them again.

But a couple of hours later, we discovered that they were in the same “Star Destroyer” in the row right behind us! How? During the ride, I heard a voice behind me say “May the force be with us” and of course I turned around and said, “And also with you”. There were the two priests! We had seen them in another part of the waiting line but don’t know how we all ended up in the same vehicle!

As we got off the ride, I asked if we could take a picture, because no one would believe this story. I introduced myself as a priest and added quickly, “An Episcopal priest” as Kathleen was with me and we were wearing anniversary buttons.

We shared with each other that we had seen the white smoke from the Vatican chimney on our phone screens while waiting in line. An hour later, just after getting off another ride, we saw Pope Leo XIV being introduced.

And then, as were leaving about 10 hours later, we saw the two priests from Clovis again, sitting near the exit, and so we had the chance to say good-bye!

The “It’s a Small World” ride was closed for renovations. But we had a small world experience of our own in a park full of thousands on our own!

And needless to say, we will not soon forget where we were when the new pope was elected.

John

P.S Another very special part of this day was seeing and spending some time with friends Sarah Jones and Jose Hernandez! 

 

                                                    

 

                                                              

 

 

Listen to Lincoln

Dear Friends

President’s Day this year falls smack in the middle of the time between Lincoln’s Feb. 12^th birthday and Washington’s Feb. 22^nd birthday. While history connects them both to important prayers, let me share one which is known as Lincoln’s Prayer for our Nation. (I’m proud that it is included in the Episcopal Church’s Book of Common Prayer). Though offered so many years ago, it speaks clearly and urgently to us today:

Almighty God, who hast given us this good land for our heritage: We humbly beseech thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of thy favor and glad to do thy will.

Bless our land with honorable industry, sound learning and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord and confusion; from pride and arrogance and from every evil way.

Defend our liberties and fashion into one untied people the multitudes brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues.

Endue with the spirit of wisdom those to whom in thy Name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home and that through obedience to thy law, we may show forth thy praise among the nations of the earth.

In the time of prosperity, fill our hearts with thankfulness and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in thee to fail; all which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

So on this President’s Day, I would suggest we pray with and listen to Lincoln!  May this prayer be lived and come alive by all we think and say and do to help this nation heal.

John

Nothing to apologize for

I have submitted the following as a letter to the editor. 

Since it may or may not be published, I am sharing it with you now.

Responding to the sermon delivered by Bishop Mariann Budde during the National Prayer Service, President Trump's angry tweet ended, “She and her church owe the public an apology!”

With respect, I would like to ask our President a couple of questions and add a comment.

Did you listen to her whole sermon about the three pillars of unity---respecting the dignity of every human being, telling the truth and living with humility?

Did you hear and feel her heartfelt final words, spoken gently to you? They were a simple, sincere ask for mercy on those who are afraid right now. The bible tells us to “speak the truth with love” and that’s exactly what she did.

Most people feel the need to apologize occasionally. You should try it sometime. But in this case, as a member “her church”, I cannot apologize. Your disrespectful, tone-deaf tweet to her does nothing to help build the unity you claim to want for the country we all love.

John Saville

Corona, CA.

A Camellia Grows in Corona

 

Dear Friends

The headline on the front page of the LA Times on the morning of January 10^th was stunning. Above a devastating picture were these words:

                          “EVERYTHING IS BURNED DOWN”

Just three hours after I saw that picture and read that headline, I received a text including a picture; our second grandchild had arrived! A beautiful flower named Camellia had joined her sister, named after a beautiful bird called Rosella (an Australian parrot). (This picture was after she came home).

The name Camellia has several meanings including “love”, “devotion”, “a spirit of depth”, “self-reflection”, “inner strength”, “loyalty” and “humility”. In Latin, camelia (one l) is a feminine name meaning “helper to the priest” and a form of camellia, the evergreen shrub with gorgeous flowers that bloom in winter. I hope Camellia will experience and carry forward some of these meanings in her life.

“A Tree Grows in Brooklyn” is described as “a tale of perseverance and vulnerability about a young girl as she grows up in the slums of Brooklyn, New York, and faces an unforgiving world and learns to thrive in it” But for now, with a thankful heart, I will be watching A Camellia Growing in Corona.

I cannot imagine the heavy burden and deep grief that so many are carrying after the fires, not to mention the wondering, "What now?" I pray they will find and be surprised by signs of new life and new hope, and thrive once again.

John

P.S. We were notified by a cousin in Florida that a Camellia Festival opened the day after Camellia was born. It's hard to see but it included this prize winner named Camille!