Beautiful Day

MOM IS HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ahhhh. I am overwhelmed today. Went to LW with my Dad [1st service]. There was an unspoken joy filling the place today especially. Different folks asking how we were feeling. 2 comments really got to me. Pastor Steve [LW's senior pastor] walked out to Dad & said: "How's my girl doing?". [btw Pastor Aaron, thanks for keeping LW's staff up to date on Mom's progress!!] Judge Kennedy, walked up & said well, there's the Noll brothers. I've missed hearing that, haven't heard something along those lines since my Grandfather went home to Jesus. [I'll tell that story sometime]
Then we walk in, & worship begins with: Joyful [as in Joyful, joyful we adore thee...]. PERFECT. I could hardly sing, we then sang Beautiful One, & How Great is the Love. Found myself changing the words near the end...
"Jesus, my faithful King
with an overjoyed heart I sing
how great is your love
how great is your love
oh, my savior..."
I later have had this song in my heart as well: Thankful Heart by Petra

...and for you all. Out there across cyberspace. Thank you as well, for your prayers. For joining me on this long journey.
I felt like singing from the rooftops....[Beautiful Day by U2]
take care all of you out there...& may tomorrow be just as beautiful...

Father God,
oh once, present, & future king
of all
Jesus,
my debt payer
lover of my soul
healer of my soul
oh Great Spirit of the Everlasting
journey-er with me through days
both dark & light
Thank you
a billion times over
thank you
for giving me my mother
for saving her
for bringing her home to us
love
B

speachless [or, now my feet won't touch the ground]

from facebook:

If you heard a scream @ 11:00am today, that was me.
MOM COMES HOME SUN 11:30, THIS SUN. YEAH, WOO-HOO, THANK YOU EVER SO MUCH YAHWEH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!I've been telling everyone. Not to seem too campy, but I have a line from "Life in Technicolor pt 2" by Coldplay running through my head today: "...gravity release me, oh don't ever hold me down, now my feet won't touch, the ground..." As well as a worship song we sing @ LW: Chris Tomlin's "This is Our God"
"...He brings peace to our madness
comfort in our sadness
this is our God...
so call upon His name
he is mighty to save
this is our God
...Jesus
Lord & savior
This is our God..."

so.... um, I'm slightly ecstatic. have energy like I've been mainlining Mtn. dew for... oh, about 4 days strait. I don't think Christmas gets me this excited.

Bridge to eternity

...what can I say
oh God?
how can words
language
tell you how glad I am
that you want me in your life
that you built eternity
for us to enjoy together
some days
it's so dark here
thank you
for telling me
over & over
that the darkness
will expire

Jesu
thank you
for dieing for me
for all those I love
for rising again
for killing death
for
single handedly
building
being
a bridge to eternity
a nail scarred hand
reaching out
from forever
thank you
for being such a paradox
the one & only real, true son
of the one, true, uncreated God
dieing to make us
sons of this same
magnificent, high King-God
heirs, with you
of the undefeatable kingdom
thank you for loving your enemies
[for we all were @ one time]

thank you
Father God
Redeemer Jesus
for giving us
your Spirit, the comforter
to hold us till you return

Thank you Spirit
for walking this
difficult road with us
speaking to... yourself
on our behalf
in your own
unknowable language
guiding us
in the way everlasting

love
beyond the end of the sky,
B

[...or, to be brief, oh God...
thank you
for being you,
and loving me]

a short update

...well, Mom is slowly recovering. She seems tired when I arrive. I tell her it's ok to sleep... but she fights it anyway. I never imagined feeding my mother. It's becoming a bit of a habit over the past few weeks. Only because she's tired. She holds my hands a lot lately. She, like my wife, loves that I am perpetually "warmer than the average person". For the record, I do wear a coat from time to time. Just not as often as most people. Anyway, I want to post a poem...however, I am in the middle of writing 2 of them. 1 to my wife, and another about...[how do I describe it?] "shedding your false skin [s]". Sometimes we hide so well, we actually hide from ourselves. So it's centered around a chameleon. I have that in the title, somewhere. So, I should go for now. I'm trying to better regulate my sleeping & waking.
take care, be inspired, enjoy fall -I am.

B

Saw some cool tributes to Steve Jobs today. An apple with a bite out of it, among flowers. Another with "Bye" carved out of it in cursive. I was struck by the facebook thumbs down. Yep, death 9,999,999 people dislike this. My favorite was a 19 year old from Japan. He took the apple logo & where the bite was missing put a silhouette of Steve Jobs' face.
I'm a writer, I guess. and I love mp3 players, because I love music.
So I'll put it this way.

Thank you Yahweh, for inventing Steve Jobs.


oh... & as I had a very "ransom note looking" post last night. I'll clarify
Mom is in Rehab now. She is doing well there. she got to set outside here, on a beautiful day. Walked a bit. And did well in physical therapy today.

Take care out there,
B

My facebook post tonight:
Hello everyone. Mom has finally moved to rehab. It was a good day here. She is adjusting to her new surroundings. She's a bit sore. It was a kind of rough day for her. So visiting might be best held off for a few days. Till she gets situated. Thanks again for your prayers, & encouragement.

I posted a while back about a favorite Rich Mullins song. Here it is.

I posted on facebook tonight a song that fit how I felt yesterday:
U2 Some Days are better than others

Sorry this is sketchy.
I don't really feel good. So, this'll be it for tonight.
B

My facebook post tonight:
Hello everyone. Mom has finally moved to rehab. It was a good day here. She is adjusting to her new surroundings. She's a bit sore. It was a kind of rough day for her. So visiting might be best held off for a few days. Till she gets situated. Thanks again for your prayers, & encouragement.

I posted a while back about a favorite Rich Mullins song. Here it is.

I posted on facebook tonight a song that fit how I felt yesterday:
U2 Some Days are better than others

Sorry this is sketchy.
I don't really feel good. So, this'll be it for tonight.
B

to hide... or not to?

Well...1st Mom: [from facebook]
Mom is still in the hospital tonight. I'm bummed, to be honest. She's doing well. Mick went in for me tonight. Said she walked for a little, with her walker. I'm told she will be moving tomorrow. I'm not sure I believe it now. I kinda want to just hear that in the past tense at this point. We talked for a little on the phone, but she was groggy, so I left her to sleep. Prayerfully tomorrow there will be forward movement.

2nd.
I was surprised by someone saying I was hiding. I don't feel like I'm trying to, anymore anyway. I was intimidated, at first, with sharing in general.
I've been meaning to..."prepare you all". I put my name in for a contest, online. Never thought I'd win...so I also didn't think about what I'd be agreeing to, if I did. I did win. So, sometime around the end of Oct. beginning of Nov. a picture of me will be on a website. This is the custom of the site. To post pictures of previous winners, with their winnings. I think I've found a unique way to do it. And, yes, I thought of posting a pic of my hands holding my prize... it just seems too lame. I'm going to let them post my name & picture first. When this happens, I'll link to it.
It will be the 3rd time I've been pictured somewhere public.
The first time, was on TV. Not even 30 sec. I'm decorating a tree. Behind local Wgal 8 TV personalities, Kim Lemon & Doug Allen. [I think it Was Doug Allen with her]
The second was a magazine cover. I can say, with much certainty, that most of you have never even heard of the magazine. Hoard's Dairyman was the magazine. The picture was taken at Empire Farm Days, in "upstate New York" as they say. Mom or I probably still have it somewhere.
So this will be the third. Why hide? I've asked myself that since recent listens to Zooropa, the song, from the U2 disc of the same name. In which Bono sings:
"...I've been hiding,
what am I hiding from?..."
I guess I'd have to tell you of some dark days in my life for you to "get it".
...yet...
Those days... are long behind me now. So I guess if there has been any mystery to who I am, it'll be over when that picture shows up. I'm not scared really. Maybe I should be. Something else my Mother said once comes to mind as well.
"he who has nothing to hide, hides nothing."
And... now I feel like I've gone to great lengths to say nothing really. Except that I've won something, there will be a picture of me holding it [you may or may not be impressed]. You will be able to see it.
Till then enjoy the leaves, I know I will...
B

Sunday supper

Looks like Mom will go to rehab tomorrow if there is a bed available!!! The Doctor said there is no "medical need for her to be in the hospital anymore"! YEA GOD!!!! So tomorrow or Tues. she will be moved. She did have a slight fall today. So she is sore. More so than she has been. She's still looking good. I am so ecstatic!
Oh... & I have a poem in Inklings called Unique.You can visit Inspire[d] the arts @ LW by clicking on it. on the right hand side is inklings. Click on the cover & read down through. Enjoy, I especially enjoyed this one for some reason. So, as L.L. Barkatt has on in & around Monday... this is a "Sunday edition".

Inklings
I set here
on a Sunday evening
gazing at the colorful cover
reminding me
of the season
we are moving toward
I laugh
as I remember
earlier hearing
an artistic co-worker & friend
say
"Brian's is on pg 23"
to my Dad
and we laughed
Mom will read it later
during her last or second to last day
at the hospital
as I open it
the timer goes off
I open the sliding glass door
walk out, open the grill
and lay supper on it
on tin foil
re-set the timer
add flavor
close the lid
and get back to the booklet
ooo, an Anne Lamott quote
nice
I continue page skipping
reading of poems
about worship
a story about a hike
[realizing I'd love to go
based on the writer's description!]
-ops! timer is going off again!
I skip page 23 altogether
[as I'll remember it when I read it again]
I read
I stop & check or flip supper
I read of Sabbath Location
and my mind wanders to the
Sacred Path under construction
calling to mind some of the pix
I've seen of it
I nod in agreement with the writing
ohh, the grill smells good!
suddenly
I am interrupted for the evening
supper is done
and I'm not!

by b. e. noll