Feelin' the Love Tonight

The first thing Uncle Jim asks me this morning is, "So, d'ya wanna birdcake?"  His nickname is Uncle Byrd (sic), and every morning he cooks up his special multi-grain pancakes.  After a delicious breakfast, I leave the house in a car that my friend Amy loaned me last night -- she said that she takes the bus to work anyway, so I might as well use her car for a couple of days.  I meet Libby at a coffee shop for hours of beautiful conversation -- I had been staying with her family, but they've got a second house guest and my hacking, all-night cough means that I really need my own room.  My conversation with Libby is accompanied by an amazing espresso macchiato that my friend Pat makes me.  Later he treats me to a cup of coffee ('cause I need the caffeine, thanks to the all-night hacking).  He also treats me to some conversation after finishing his shift.

Thanks to Amy's car, I am able to run some errands!  Also thanks to Amy, my lunch is leftover green curry tofu, mmm....  Thanks to Pat's generosity, dessert is part of a 70% chocolate bar. (Ingredients:  cocoa beans, sugar.)

My church has a special "service of prayer for healing and wholeness" tonight.  I walk in to the sound of acoustic guitar and voice.  Later there is a Scripture reading, then harp music, followed by a time of silence.  I lift up a work situation, my physical illness, a dear friend.  Before the anointing with oil, the leader prays, "Blessed are you, sovereign God, gentle and merciful, creator of heaven and earth.  Your Word brought light out of darkness, and daily your Spirit renews the face of the earth.  Your anointed Son brought healing to those in weakness and distress.  He broke the power of evil and set us free from sin and death that we might praise your name forever.  By the power of your Spirit may your blessing rest on those who are anointed with this oil in your name; may they be made whole in body, mind and spirit, restored in your image, renewed in your love, and serve you as sons and daughters in your kingdom.  Through your anointed Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, to whom with you and the Holy Spirit we lift our voices of thanks and praise."  And we all pray, "Blessed be God, our strength and our salvation, now and forever.  Amen."

We kneel at the altar to be anointed with oil.  We're a small group tonight, and those on the healing team know me -- I've gone to this church on and off since 1989.  Phyllis anoints my forehead and prays over me by name.

I leave the church, thinking of how lovely it is to be a part of the Church, to be able to walk into a place of beauty and healing where people know my name.  And how excellent it is to have a hat and long undies so that the 16-degree temps don't bite once I'm outside.  I drive Amy's car down to Highland Village, to see if I can figure out a present for Teri's birthday (I'd struck out earlier today).  Ah-ha!  I buy her the perfect gift, then walk into Barnes & Noble to get up-to-speed.  Christmas (and even some Halloween!) items are on clearance.  I leaf through a book by Stephen Colbert and struggle not to laugh out loud.  An endcap displays a book about boy band One Direction -- I'd first heard of them last month in Arizona, so I'm feeling in-the-know.  I pick up a combo-pack:  James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Dubliners, which Dave recently recommended.  (I glance through it first, to make sure that it isn't a bunch of crazy Irish gibberish, like I remember Ulysses to be.)

I drive back "home," marveling at how easy all this is -- a car that works well and that is for my exclusive use, roads that are clear and in good repair that briskly take me where I want to go, lots of radio stations to scan.  Once at home I heat up the leftover snow pea and baby corn wok mock duck, also thanks to Amy.  My aunt and uncle (brother and sister) debate where I should leave Amy's car so that my aunt doesn't hit it in the morning -- close to the garage or far back on the driveway?  They crack me up.  I move the car farther back in the driveway, hoping it's the right choice.

I sit on my aunt's bed and we talk about our lives.  Then I send off a few work e-mails that I didn't get to earlier today.  Thanks to Christmas presents from my Mom, I snack on a Lindt "intense orange" dark chocolate bar.

I am feelin' the love tonight.