Things are moving along nicely at Opal’s Farm. Many thanks to Ms. Smith’s Dunbar High School seniors who came out to help harvest and work the beds! We love our volunteers; especially the young people who come to work and learn about urban farming.
Giving Tuesday is one week from today.
Please give to Opal’s Farm on this special day of giving. Your donation to Unity Unlimited, Inc. and Opal’s Farm grows (quite literally) to bring fresh, healthy produce to area food deserts and neglected neighborhoods.
Giving Tuesday may be global but it’s never been more important to give to your local community. Every dollar you contribute to Opal’s Farm helps end food insecurity (a nice way of saying hunger) right here in Fort Worth; your neighbors and your community.
You can give via our Facebook Page, Opal’s Farm, or through the Unity Unlimited, Inc. website, www.unityunlimited.org
Thoughts From the Porch: A gorgeous Fall day greeted me this
morning as I stepped out on the porch. Every day is gorgeous in my mind, but
this morning was especially bright and inviting. My “porch time” has included an
email series I’ve been receiving from the Center for Action and Contemplation.
I’ve always appreciated Father Richard Rohr and I hope you will appreciate
today’s meditation as well.
Richard Rohr’s Daily Meditation
From the Center for Action and Contemplation
Week Forty-eight
Economy:
Old and New
The Gospel Economy
Sunday, November 24, 2019
Jesus said to the host who had
invited him, “When you hold a lunch or dinner . . . invite the poor, the
crippled, the lame, the blind; and blessed indeed will you be because of their
inability to repay you.” —Luke
14:12-14
I’d like to begin this week’s meditations
by contrasting two economies or worldviews. The first economy is capitalism,
which is based on quid pro quo, reward and punishment thinking, and a
retributive notion of justice. This much service or this much product requires
this much payment or this much reward. It soon becomes the entire (and I do mean entire!) frame for
all of life, our fundamental relationships (even marriage and children), basic
self-image (“I deserve; you owe me; or I will be good and generous if it helps
me, too”), and a faulty foundation for our relationship with God.
We’ve got to admit, this system of
exchange seems reasonable to almost everybody today. And if we’re honest, it
makes sense to us, too. It just seems fair. The only trouble is, Jesus doesn’t
believe it at all, and he’s supposed to be our spiritual teacher. This might
just be at the heart of what we mean by real conversion to the Gospel
worldview, although few seem to have recognized this.
Let’s contrast this “meritocracy,”
punishment/reward economy—basic capitalism which we in the United States all
drink in with our mother’s milk—with what Jesus presents, which I’m going to
call a gift economy. [1] In a gift economy, there is
no equivalence between what we give and how much we get. Now I know we’re all
squirming. We don’t like it, because we feel we’ve worked hard to get to our
wonderful middle-class positions or wherever we are. We feel we have rights.
I admit that this position
satisfies the logical mind. At the same time, if we call ourselves Christians,
we have to deal with the actual Gospel. Now the only way we can do the great
turnaround and understand this is if we’ve lived through at least one
experience of being
given to without earning.
It’s called forgiveness, unconditional love, and mercy. If we’ve never
experienced unearned, undeserved love, we will stay in the capitalist worldview
where 2 + 2 = 4. I put in my 2, I get my 2 back. But we still remain very
unsure, if not angry, about any free health care (physical, mental, or
spiritual) or even free education, even though these benefits can be seen as
natural human rights that support and sustain peoples’ humanity. All too often,
we only want people like us to get free health care and education and bail outs.
Brothers and sisters, you and I
don’t “deserve” anything, anything. It’s all a gift. But until we begin to live
in the kingdom of God instead of the kingdoms of this world, we think, as most
Christians do, exactly like the world. We like the world of seemingly logical
equations. Basically, to understand the Gospel in its purity and in its
transformative power, we
have to stop counting, measuring, and weighing. We have to stop saying “I deserve” and deciding who does not deserve.
None of us “deserve”! Can we do that? It’s pretty hard . . . unless we’ve experienced
infinite mercy and realize that it’s
all a gift.
Gateway to Presence: If you want to go deeper with today’s
meditation, take note of what word or phrase stands out to you. Come back
to that word or phrase throughout the day, being present to its impact and
invitation.
[1] “A gift economy, gift culture, or gift exchange is a mode of
exchange where valuables are not traded or sold, but rather given without an
explicit agreement for immediate or future rewards. This contrasts with a
barter economy or a market economy, where goods and services are primarily
exchanged for value received. Social norms and customs govern gift exchange.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gift_economy)
Down On the Farm: Fall has finally hit North Texas for real. The last few mornings were cool enough for long sleeves and the afternoons just warm enough to shed the flannel shirt and soak in the October sun. The turnips, radishes, and beets will be making their appearance at Cowtown Farmer’s Market next Saturday. The okra is still going strong (3 five gallon buckets this week so far!). Every time I think the purple hulled peas are ready to pull up another round of them appear. We’ll also have plenty of butternut squash.
I love the farm and wish all of you could experience it the
way I do. Watching something grow, serving others, creating something wonderful
in the middle of the city I love – all these things are amazing. I can’t
believe I get to do this every day.
I was wrapping up for the day when I found another reason that I love Opal’s Farm so much. I had pulled the pump up from the river and was about to head back to the “barn”. I was about to out the tools in the truck when I noticed how still and peaceful the evening was. The river was punctuated with tiny circles as fish fed on the various insects flying too close to the water. The evening sun was beginning to sink in the west and rays of sunlight hit in ways I had previously failed to notice. Even the noise of cars on the nearby interstates seemed almost non-existent.
October Afternoons
It occurred to me how blessed I was to be in that moment, in
that place. There, right across the river from downtown Fort Worth, I was in a
place of amazing beauty and stillness normally reserved for places far from an
urban center.
It’s my hope you’ll join us at Opal’s Farm. Please go to our
website, www.unityunlimited.org and
sign-up today. Fall is the perfect time to experience the farm – not too hot,
not too cold – and we’d love to see you.
As always, you can also use the website to donate to Opal’s
Farm. We have much work to do finishing Fall and getting ready for Spring. We
can’t do it without your help! See you soon!
Thoughts From the Porch: It’s finally Fall in Texas. I was
greeted by temperatures in the forties, a crystal-clear morning, and the song
of birds that haven’t been around our area since last year. I haven’t put pen
to paper or keyboard to screen in a bit. I had a tinge of disappointment when I
realized this is the first October entry and there were only a couple for
September.
It’s been a difficult couple of months. Margaret went to the
hospital on Labor Day, came home two weeks later, and is back in the hospital
again. The only good news is that this time it’s for a broken leg. We were
heading to the porch when Maggie decided to bolt out the door, knocking her
over, and breaking the tibial plateau. Apparently, this a rare break and she’ll
have to keep pressure off the leg for the next twelve weeks. Leave it to us to
try and be unique…
Anyway, my trips are once again between home, hospital, and Opal’s Farm. It’s an all-to-familiar cycle I hope to break (no pun intended Baby!) soon. We’d certainly appreciate your prayers…
I found this gem in my morning meditation. Dorothy Day was
the founder of the Catholic Worker movement. She spent her life ministering to
“the least of these” – addicts, the homeless, the marginalized, and broken
people. She often wrote in her diary of the temptation to give up. She also
wrote of the reason that kept her going.
“Yes, I see only
too clearly how bad people are. I wish I did not see it so. It is my own sins
that give me clarity. If I did not bear the scars of so many sins to dim my
sight and dull my capacity for love and joy, then I would see Christ more
clearly in you all. I cannot worry much about your sins and miseries when I
have so many of my own. I can only love you all, poor fellow travelers, fellow
sufferers. I do not want to add one least straw to the burden you already
carry. My prayer from day to day is that God will so enlarge my heart that I
will see you all, and live with you all, in his love.”
Her honest look at herself – “the unwed pregnancy, her
quick temper and often biting tongue – that allowed her to show grace to
others.” (Phillip Yancey, What Good is God?). When I practice brutal
honesty with myself I too, find grace much easier to extend to others.
I’ve often heard others quote Jesus, “Let he who is
without sin cast the first stone” but all-too-often I fail to put those
words into practice. When I do, however, I find a peace I never dreamed
possible.
I have no idea why this posted as “Auto Draft” but here’s the real headline…
Thoughts From the Porch: Last night filled with great music, hot coffee, and a chance to check the emails filling my inbox from the last few days. It may not be most folk’s idea of a great Saturday night but it’s fine by me. To sit and get caught up, especially in air-conditioned comfort, is a golden opportunity indeed.
I get a LOT of emails. Most get a quick scan and deleted but
there are a few newsletters I read religiously. Pet MD sent their weekly
update. Anything benefitting our fur babies is of utmost importance. We strive
to be the best pet parents possible and always look for helpful tips to keep
our pets in good health.
As a writer of content and copy I know the value of a great headline. This week’s Pet MD had one of the best I’ve seen – “What Should I Do If My Dog Ate Weed?” It got my attention right away. I’m not sure I would’ve been asking that question publicly. I did notice that it said weed and not “my” weed. You know, just in case…
To be honest, I never thought of asking that question, but apparently, marijuana toxicity in dogs is on the rise; especially in states where it is now legal. Although I no longer indulge in THC (I’m in recovery, not judging), I imagine I would be mildly pissed if my dog ate my weed. From what I understand, the dime bag is a thing of the past…
How do you know if your dog ate your weed? According to PET
MD, “Clinical signs include:
Incoordination
Sensitivity to loud noises
Low heart rate
Dribbling urine
Dilation of the pupils
Low or high body temperature”
I would personally
add to the list empty packages of Oreo cookies and Hostess Twinkies scattered
about the house, a lack of motivation to chase the squirrel ten feet away, and an
abnormal fascination with the television. Just saying…
During my
younger and far more foolish years I had a Golden Retriever who once ate half a
pan of THC-infused brownies (where they came from, I’ll never tell!). Had I
known the potential for life-threatening illness I might not have had such a
good laugh (after my initial anger over the lost and somewhat expensive
brownies, of course). The THC made her quite content to lay on the edge of the
porch and watch the cars pass by. I assume she enjoyed the rest of her evening.
I know I did.
If I’d known
then, what I know now…
Fortunately,
my dog survived her momentary intoxication without any ill effects. In fact,
she slept it off until the next afternoon. However, I did notice she was
unusually attentive to the sound of storage baggies opening. Had I known about
weed toxicity back then I might have been a bit worried, but all’s well that
ends well…
The take-away from all this is don’t get your dog high, no matter how much they enjoy it, either intentionally or unintentionally. It’s not good for them. Store your weed (and your cookies) out of reach. Keep your weed and your pet safe and secure.
gregoryjoel.com 