November 3rd, 2006
Here I sit with sore knees and a very sore back. I have been collecting fallen leaf stems from the walnut trees around so as to have a supply of flower stems for next year. Do not ever look down on Naomi in the Book of Ruth. Gleaning is HARD WORK. This all leads to another story believe it or not.
On September 22nd, 2006, in Live Journal, I told of my (mis)adventures gathering sticks to carve at faire.
I ended that story with a whine that went something like this: "remind me again why I do this?"
I wrote that on a Friday. On Saturday, mid-day at faire, standing within sight of the cross behind what is listed as "Lions Grove" on the faire map, I was approached by a child who was all but dragging her mother behind her.
"Here he is!" she kept repeating. "He is the one who carved the flower".
I started carving a flower for the child, expecting the usual request of "may I have one?".
Then it happened.
When I tried to hand the child the flower, she exclaimed "Not for me!", pointing to her mother.
So I gave it to the mother, who then told me about the day after 9/11.
The day the respirator was turned off on her husband and she became a single parent of multiple children.
The Mother tells me "Just to be somewhere" she brought the children to the Kansas City Renaissance Festival "that weekend",
"and someone carved me a flower",
(this is the point I remembered my whine on Live Journal)
"and it meant so much to me".
Don't ask for a reminder of why you do "something" if you are not willing to endure the tears it may cause you and others when that request is fulfilled. I found that out. The nearest behind the scenes area was up the hill past the roasted nut seller. I went there till I could control the tears.
Then I thanked God, rather sheepishly I must add, and went back to "work".
Stories that happen "about" brother william
November 9th, 2006
After spending a weekend with a good friend at a wood carving show in Belleville, I came to realized that I was not the "Here he is!" person at all.
In 2000, there were two of us carving at faire and it was the wizard, not I who spoke with this lady and carved a flower for her.
This does not take anything away from the lesson for me. It was, and is still, hard for me to realize that a simple carved flower can have such attached meaning.
Last night I went to Youth In Need's 2006 "Thanks for Giving Reception" and got to meet a lot of people who do so much more than I could ever do...
I enjoy giving. Giving is hard work, and with much thanks to my better half mistressniniane for putting up with me and reigning me in when I go overboard, I will continue to do so.
Endeavor to persevere as it were...
Accipe Spiritum Sanctum (receive the spirit)
Page last updated September 2nd, 2009