Stubbornly sticky snow

The snow we got the other day that stuck to every branch, twig and wire is still sticking! There has been no wind or melting to dislodge it. This is very unusual. Here is the scene going down our driveway:

And futher on:

Remarkable developments

Followers of this blog know that the Guilford Community Church has been operating without a pastor for the past five months. The Sunday services have been led by a variety of lay persons, and the three lay leaders plus rhe Church Council have done the administrative work. There has been minimal pastoral ministry, but when Tom Ragle died, for example, both former pastor Lise Sparrow and I took on aspects of that role with the family. But during these months, a committee has been looking for an interim pastor - not a new settled pastor, but an interim, because our relationship with Elisa Lucozzi revealed that the church really had not made clear what its priorities were in terms of what it wanted and needed as a pastor, which is at least partly why she ended up leaving last August - actually, being asked to leave, because she was not the pastor many people wanted or expected. So the church has some soul-searching and work to do before looking for and calling another settled pastor, and that is what interim pastors are for - guiding the church in that process. We were told it might not be easy to find an interim - they are in short supply. But we got lucky. Somehow, a former interim pastor here at the GCC, the person who immediately followed Shirley and me when we retired in i997, Allyson Platt by name, got wind of our need. She was very much liked when she was here back in 1997-98, and I think she enjoyed being pastor here. She was contracted at that time to come for only one year, which turned out to be too short a time, because the settled pastor who followed her, Norene Carter, only stayed one year. But that was clear only in hindsight. In any case, this time, Allyson and the search committee got connected, and by golly, she is going to be our interim, and this time how long she will stay is TBD - "to be determined." It happens that she is in Sante Fe, NM, a long commute! She has been helping to care for a new grandbaby. But it also happens that she was planning to come back east about right now, and had made arrangements to live with a friend in Keene, NH, just 20 miles away from Guilford. So she doesn't even have to look for housing - which was a concern because the housing market in Brattleboro is hopeless. The other coincidence is that she attended Southern Vermont College for a time, I don't know when, but that is where I was on the faculty for about 16-17 years. And I went there because when I was the Executive Director of the Vermont Higher Education Council, the President of the Council was Tom Gee, who was President of Southern Vermont College at that tie, and Tom became a good friend. So when I was ready to leave VHEC, Tom invited me to come to SVC tomjoin the faculty. Well, Tom and his wife, Sue, moved to Santa Fe a few years ago, and Allyson knows them. Knows them Well enough that Tom sent me a picture of Allyson and himself with the note, "Look who I have sent back to you."

Allyson Platt and Tom Gee. ********************************* Allyson's ministry as interim back in 1997-98 was summarized by me in an Epilogue in Safe Thus Far, a history of the Guilford Church. Here is an excerpt: "Without doubt, Allyson Platt was an inspired choice as interim minister. Under her leadership the church grew and thrived in every way. She gave particular importance to the role which stewardship plays in the life of faith and sought to educate the congregation in the meaning of stewardship, not only of financial resources, but of the skills and talents inherent in the congre- gation as well. She organized "Koinonia groups," i.e., small groups within the church, which met to help people get better acquainted, to evaluate the various ministries and missions of the church and to explore possibilities for the future. She brought to the pulpit an outstanding gift of biblical exegesis and preaching, as well as an honesty and directness in addressing difficult and controversial issues. She also brought a wonderful sense of humor to her ministry. She recalled one Sunday on which she was making an announcement which concerned Peg Curtiss, who happened to be absent that day. She meant to say that Peg "was not present that day because she's being installed as President of the Emblem Club," but somehow it came out as, "she's . . . pregnant!" She laughed as heartily as everyone else, and probably wished she could see Peg's face when she got the news. She organized a calling and caring committee which received training in pastoral care. Growing out of this was a series of healing services in December of 1998. At one of these services, she arranged for a "healing quilt" to be invested with the love and prayers of those present by the laying on of hands, and the next day the quilt was taken to Dinah Breunig in the hospital in Keene where she was recovering from spinal surgery. On an earlier Sunday, before Dinah's surgery, the congregation had spontaneously risen and gathered around Dinah and her husband, Fred, laying on hands, praying and singing, "We're going to lift our Dinah up . . ." These acts of love and caring were deeply appreciated, and are characteristic of the way in which the Spirit can move in the Guilford Church. Allyson Platt brought both change and continuity to the life of the church, and as a result, the fears that the church might decline after the retirement of the Crocketts were completely set aside. The church flourished in attendance, in financial support, in more committed discipleship and in the outpouring of the Spirit." All of this is quite remarkable, to say the least. Allyson's first Sunday as interim will be February 18th - coming right up!

OMYGOSH!

The view out the window - this is what we woke up to this morning! Several inches of wet snow clinging to all the branches. I'm surprised that we still have our power. This is the kind of storm that brings down branches. This probably means Ellen will not be going out to knit with the ladies this morning.

Northern Roots

Saturday night we went to the Northern Roots concert at the BMC. It was fantastic. The first group to play was called Triga. They are a Boston-based trio composed of Anna Breger,from Vienna, who plays an unusual instrument - the Nyckelharpa; Eric Boodman from Montreal who plays the fiddle, and Yaniv Yacoby from Boston who plays Irish Bouzouki. They created an almost other-worldly sound that I could have listened to all night. The program described them as having roots not only in Swedish Nyckelharpa music and Irish Bouzouki but also "Quebecois fiddling and Baroque improvization." That's a rich tradition.

Triga: Yaniv, Eric and Anna, from a publicity shot.

Yaniv and Anna in Saturday's concert - part of a Finale that involved everyone.

The amazing Nyckelharpa.************************* Another group was Eight Feet Tall, a four-person group with two instrumentalists: Dan Accardi, accordian, and Armand Aromin, fiddle; and two dancers: Rebecca McGowan and Jackie O'Riley. They were fabulous too. The dancers were doing a more gentle type of Irish step-dancing than one usually sees, the name of which I don't remember, but it was quite lovely.

Eight Feet Tall in a publicity shot.

Armand and Dan.************************* Other performers included Amanda Witman, vocalist, who is local, and has worked a lot with Tony Barrand; Jake Greico, flute, and Cedar Stanistreet, fiddle; and Lissa Schneckenburger and Laurel Swift, fiddlers.

Amanda.

Jake and Cedar.

Lissa.

Laurel.******************* It was a great evening of music.

A bit quieter time

The last ten days - since my last post - have been a bit quieter than usual. Part of that has been the weather - icy conditions, raw, windy, cold days - good weather for staying home. This has given me the chance to listen to UNC Tarheels Mens' Basketball Games on the radio - and they are on a winning streak - they have won their last seven games, I think. They are undefeated in ACC Coference play. But I have also gone out a bit. I guess the highlights have been (1) A meeting concerning the Abenaki tribes in Vermont; (2) A Session with Holly King for massages; (3) A Guilfod "small choir" sing for Nancy Ragle; (4) A Dummerston Music Committee meeting; (5)some time at the Planet Fitness gym; (6) A session at the Putney Cares Foot Care clinic. The Abenaki Tribe meeting was interesting and unusual. It was held in the Westminster-West Church, and I went with John and Cynthia. I actually got dropped off at their house while Ellen went to Amherst to meet Katie for a UMass women's basketball game. I talked with John, we had supper together, and then went to the meeting. The reason for the meeting was this: the Quebec Abenaki tribes, who are officially recognized by the Canadian federal government, are making quite a media stir. E.g., a headline from Vermont Digger reads "A Canadian tribe maintains that Vermont’s groups are not Indigenous and, instead, are appropriating their identity and culture. Research from leading scholars supports Odanak First Nation’s assertion, though the Vermont groups dispute it." There are four groups in Vermont (the Elnu Abenaki, Nulhegan Abenaki, Koasek Band of the Koas Abenaki Nation and the Abenaki Nation at Missisquoi) who are recognized by the state as being Abenaki, but they have not been able to get U.S. federal recognition as tribes. “We are who we say we are,” said Rich Holschuh, an Elnu band member who lives in Brattleboro and chairs the Vermont Commission on Native American Affairs, the state panel tasked with supporting the four groups. “I don’t know how else to put it.” The meeting I attended was led by Rich Holschuh, and there were several other individuals there who claimed to be Abenaki, but no one was there representing the Canadian Odanak tribe. It is a very complicated issue. How does one "prove" one's connection with Indigenous peoples who lived in the past? The Vermonters who claim that connection are fluent in the language, customs, rituals, etc., of the Abenaki, but their genealogical "evidence" is more tenuous. This is complicated by a unique Vermont situation, an early 20th century eugenics movement in Vermont which sterilized "inferior" groups, including, it is claimed, indigenous peoples, causing them to "hide," i.e., disclaim being Abenaki. Rich Holschuh spoke eloquently, as did others. There seem to be valid points on both sides. I am inclined to accept the Vermont groups as having some right to claim Abenaki identity, as the state of Vermont has done. There doesn't seem to be a lot of advantage to be won by making that claim, though there is some. There also may be some advantage to be gained by the Canadian tribes if they can "erase" the Vermont Abenaki. though that is controversial also. It was a fascinating study in "identity politics" for sure.

Rich Holschuh in center.************************* The other events were fairly routine: I feel good after my massage, but it isn't relieving the shoulder pain the way Angelina did. But I think it may be helping in a more general way. The sing for Nancy was lovely, and Ellen also brought soup for Nancy, who seems to be doing as well as can be expected after Tom's death. The Music Committee assigned me three Sundays to lead the choir between now and the end of May: March 24th (Palm Sunday); April 14th and May 12th. Mary agreed to give me whatever help I need. I can handle the mental aspects of leading, but the physical dimension is challenging. The foot care clinic was a big help - I was overdue for some nail clipping and corn and callous care. I oow have a date for the end of March. Today is a TarHeels game against Florida State, a Deacon's supper at the Dummerston Church, where we will be joined by John and Cynthia, and a Northern Roots Concert at the BMC - Northern Roots is led by Keith Murphy and has a lot of folks in it we know. Tomorrow is Bible Study after church, and Fred Breunig will join us to talk about how we can "live" what the parables are teaching with regard to the homeless in Brattleboro. Our next parable is The Leaven (Matt. 13.33; Luke 13:20-21) which we may or may not get to Sunday. It is only one verse long, but is packed with interpretation issues.

Unexpected snow

I don't remember seeing a forecast for snow today but we got it. Holly texted wondering if i was coming to my appointment for a massage today, given the weather, and she offered a time tomorrow. So I took that. But Ellen had to deliver some food to Arthur and Emma - they have a new baby, Iona. So we came out. It isn't too bad. So far, anyway. Right now I am at Andy and Robin's house where I used their WiFi to upload the recording from Sunday's Bible study into my Google Drive Account. Here is Inoa and Authur:

Arthur holding Iona.************ Arthur, by the way, was on CBS Sunday Morning in a feature on the Rich Earth Institute, where he works. Interested? Here is the link for that: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2uJyHJ3gIQ

Men's Breakfast

Saturday morning I came to the Mens Breakfast at the Guilford Church with Jerome. Ellen drove us. By some amazing plan, there were the same number of men present as there were seats available. There were waffles - four different kinds. One with chicken - a Southern treat; a Belgian one with fruit and whipped cream; a regular one with butter and syrup, and a fourth with sausage gravy, brought by Ellen. There were also scrambled eggs. I had everything! A full breakfast! Here are some ]hotos taken by Dwayne Johnson, who organizes the event.

17 men aroud the table.

Me, Peter Falion and Brian Remer. These past few days have been full as usual. We went to a memorial service for Ede Thomas at the local UU church last Monday. I sang with Ede in the Blanche Moyse Chorale for over 30 years. She also directed the choir at the UU church. I went to after-concert parties in her home many times. A fun person to be with, always. The service was full of music. Her daughter and three granddaughters are a group that perform a lot and we have heard them many times at the Common Ground Fair. They sang, the UU Choir sang, the Chorale sang, there were many testimonies.

Ede Thomas

Ede's family playing at her service. Last evening we went to the Latchis Theater to hear a concert by the Brattleboro Concert Choir, a group we used to be a part of, but we "retired" a while back because we just didn't feel we were able to sing well enough any more. It was an unusual concert, It was built around local groups doing social justice work with the homeless, refugees, the poor, minorities, etc. Nine contemporary composers had been selected and the chorus sang a song by each which expressed some aspect of this work. During the intermission, representatives of various groups talked about their work and there were information tables in the lobby where you could talk, ask questions, get pamphlets, etc. The songs chosen were often quite demanding, some quite powerful. I think my favorite was a song by Isaye Barnwell, titled "Hope."

Brattleboro Concert Choir at Latchis Theater last evening.

Long overdue vent repair

Friday a repair-man from Durling Cleaners in NH came and installed a new vent for our clothes dryer. It should have been done years ago. i didn't get a photo of the old setup. It was old and had a lot of problems. It desperately needed cleaning out of lint. It was probably a fire hazard. Here is the new vent:

Earlier Friday I saw Dr. Van Dyke. My lungs sound better. That is good news! Maybe the mullein tea is helping! And Thursday I had a session with Holly King, a massage therapist recommended by Angelina. It felt good but was different from what Angelina did. We'll see.

Epiphany party

Last evening we had an Epiphany party - we wanted to invite more people than our livingroom can seat, so Fred and Patrice Breunig hosted in their much more spacious home. I think there were at least 25 people there. It was primarily a singing party - lesser known carols. People took turns offering a carol. There was a supper of soup, bread and sweets - 4 soups and many breads and sweets. A lovely evening - and a good turnout despite a forecast of snow. The forecast did prevent Mary Cay Brass and Katie Tolles from coming. It started snowing before we left but we had no trouble driving. But church is cancelled this morning. Terry Sylvester got a nice picture of John and me.

Here's what it's like outside right now:

Last Night concert

New Year's Eve we went to the Brattleboro Music Center to an annual concert put on by the Amidon Family: Peter, Mary Alice, their son Stefan, his wife Zara Bode, their son Desmond, and friends Keith Murphy and Becky Tracy. It was a wonderful concert. Jerome and Nancy came with us. It had a lot of variety and some great songs.

Becky Tracy, Mary Alice, Peter, Zara, Stefan and Keith.

Backy, Stefan, Desmond, Mary Alice, Peter, Zara, Keith.

Becky, Stefan, Desmond, Mary Alice, Peter. New Year's Day there was a Shapenote sing at the Church but we didn't go. Tuesday we went to Northampton to see Ben Feinland, who was home from Philadelphia, and also saw Max and a bit of Tamar and Julie. We had a lunch together at the house.

Ben and Max. ***************** Today we are at John and Cynthia's to listen to a Piffaro concert with them using our computer and their sound system. It was beautiful - a south Germany concert with a soprano soloist and the Piffaro early instruments.