Monday, April 28, 2014

Undie Sunday - Who Knew?

We are all broken people, heading inevitably to our deaths. Yet we find there are moments of beauty, grace, and light. It is for this very reason that we carry on in the journey.

My “word” for this year is grace. I seek to find everyday graces and have found them more often than naught, in the hard places.

I have found grace through watching my friend and her family mourn the death of their beloved twenty month old grandchild through drowning, all the while honoring his memory and the other side of the family in love and respect.

I have seen the dignity and grace of a fellow blogger who fell and broke her hip five weeks ago. This happened during the awful snow and ice the mid-west was experiencing. As she was leaving the facility where her mother and father live she fell on the ice. She was there ministering to her mother who is in the throes of Alzheimer’s. The facility is an hour away from her own home. This past week her dearly beloved spouse had cardiac bypass surgery. She commented in her blog, “I think we have become the people we use to feel sorry for.”

I have seen items posted on Facebook that have served to encourage me in my Christian walk and it has filled my heart with grace and inspiration.

Yesterday, I observed grace, everyday grace watching the elderly, the middle aged and the youth as they packaged 7,000 pair of underwear and socks for a local school, a ministry that supports the marginalized and the Salvation Army. Yes, it was grace in action filling a need we sometimes don’t consider.

The principal of a local school related how a young boy could not sit still through his reading class. He was moving around and wiggling and could not sit still in his chair. He was sent to the principal’s office. She asked him what the problem was. He quietly said, “my pants don’t fit right.” She looked him over and replied, “they look fine to me.” He lowered his head and said, “I’m not wearing underwear. I don’t have any.”

Doesn’t that beg the question, how many other children does this happen to? The principal called our church and we partnered together with the other two ministries and began to collect the items during the Lenten season. Undie Sunday it was titled. Out of the 7,000 pair/pieces of undies and socks, 50% of the children’s items will go to the school with the other to be divided between the other ministries. The adult items will be divided up between the two ministries with the bulk of it going to the Salvation Army as they serve the homeless population.

Yes… there is grace even in underwear.

Wishing you everyday grace,
Tamara 
P.S. James 1:27 Good News Translation

27 What God the Father considers to be pure and genuine religion is this: to take care of orphans and widows in their suffering and to keep oneself from being corrupted by the world.

Sunday, April 27, 2014

Silent Sunday

Found on Pinterest - no credits or attribution, so I'm calling it "Devotion"

Thursday, April 24, 2014

An Unfinished Life

Mark Spragg wrote a novel in 2004. It was titled “An Unfinished Life.” It was also selected by the Arizona State Library as the One Book Arizona selection. The State Library did promotions such as this to increase the love of reading and literacy in the state of Arizona.


At the time, I was a prison librarian and was able to get a number of copies of the book as well as the Leader’s Guide at no cost. I wanted to facilitate a book discussion group. This title was (and continues to be) an extraordinary tale of love, forgiveness, and of a complex, prodigal homecoming. Fitting, I thought, for a prison.

I advertised the event in the library and utilized a sign-up sheet. Imagine my surprise when all ten slots filled up. The inmates then signed names below, just in case someone was moved, released or dropped out.

I learned early on not to ask, “have you read the chapters for this week’s discussion?” These men were adults and my job was only to develop a love of reading in their lives. It was not to make them feel guilty or “less than” for not reading the required chapters. It was my hope that reading would become a discipline they would continue upon their release from prison.

I often told the inmate patrons that getting lost in books could and would help them to “escape” the confines of prison (if you will). Who doesn’t recall the transporting effects of feeling the sand under your feet while reading Johann David Wyss’ “The Swiss Family Robinson?” After all, it was about a shipwreck; a deserted island; a single family wondering if and how they can survive. As a child, I could get so lost inside a book that I would not hear a family member trying to get my attention (to set the table for dinner as an example). Perhaps it was selective hearing loss.

We had great discussions about the book and it was exciting to see them show up every week, book in hand to sit and discuss the week’s highlights. Sometimes they saw more depth of the characters than the leader's guide brought out. Most amazing to me, was the diversity of the group. Multiple races, multiple belief systems, yet here they were reading a work of fiction based upon life, loss and the simplicity of living the rugged life of the ‘cowboy way’ in Wyoming.

When we had finished our five week group discussion, each of the inmates submitted a “formal” report on the discussion group that was submitted to the Arizona State Library as well as their own comments about the book and program. I located a DVD that was made from the book. I rented it, advertised it though out the library and prison yard. It was produced by Robert Redford and he also starred in it as well as Morgan Freeman and Jennifer Lopez. I set a date to show the movie to the population, with hopes the reading group would show up. Indeed they did!

Now mind you, I didn’t show movies in the library often, and when I did it was for educational benefits. There was always a lesson plan and a Q & A sheet the inmates had to answer and submit. When the inmates would “ditch” before filling out the reports, it was often months before I would show another movie. It wasn’t’ entertainment – it was education. I always did a cursory count of how many were there viewing the movie. That was compared to the number of reports I received back.

Sometimes I heard my clerks in deep conversation with other inmates saying, “She told everyone straight up reports were required. Because they weren’t turned in there won’t be a movie for quite a while. You did this to yourselves.

At the appointed time the Reading Group entered the library and one-by-one they sat down to prepare for the movie. Ultimately, what happened was one-by-one they got up and left at various times during the movie. Without a doubt, each one of them had a look of disappointment and dismay on their faces when walking out. One of them looked at me and said, “This is garbage! It isn’t anything like the book!” I told him, “Well then, you got it!” “Got what?” he said. “That there is a vast difference between the written book or a novel and what Hollywood try’s to sell us,” I replied.  He smiled and nodded in the affirmative.

By the way, I just went and checked Amazon and this movie had a 4+ star rating! And we thought it was poorly done as compared to the book! Education is always a wonderful thing.

Wishing you everyday grace,
Tamara

Proverbs 27:17 (NIV)
 17 As iron sharpens iron,
    so one person sharpens another.





Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Holy Week and Loving Like Christ


On Saturday, April 5th, I spent the day with the Church Lady, B. and another 4th Day friend M.J. at a an immigration prayer vigil. To date, the Obama Administration has deported 2 million people, and two-thirds of them would probably qualify for immigration reform. That means we've spent $16.5 BILLION removing people who may not even deserve to be deported! But that's a topic for another day and another post.

The next weekend, April 12th, a tragedy befell my dear friend, the Church Lady and her family. I could barely understand Church Lady when she called me that Saturday evening, through her angst, through her tears. I had to repeat back to her what I believed she was saying and then sat in stunned silence.

It was a horrible tragedy. It was an unthinkable catastrophe. Their 20-month old grand died tragically in a drowning accident. How does one recoup from such a tragedy? It will take time. And grace. Much grace. It will also take more of the dignity this grieving family has already been displaying.

This coming Saturday, I will be traveling to attend the funeral of this Grand Child. I will stand in solidarity with the Church Lady. I will honor this families grief and acknowledge their extreme loss.

It is Holy Week. I wonder how a loss of this nature could come to pass. You see, I call her the Church Lady because she is in ministry. Yes, she is a pastor and she serves others. God? How can this tragedy be?

As Easter approaches; I remember Christ’s agony in the Garden during my own prayer time. I recall his disappointment over one who betrayed him and one who denied him. And yet he loved. I recall his disciples could not keep watch with him and fell asleep. And yet he loved. I am awestruck by Christ’s great love and in spite of my own failures he loves me! I ran out of words to express my love and gratitude towards him, and soon I began to think of other things.

I think about those looking for work. I pray the right job would open up for the right person. I pray for my friend’s (the Church Lady) loss and for the family's emotional well-being. I often wonder what I can do to help in a real and tangible way. Perhaps I can extend my prayer by following through with action. I can write an uplifting note or card to someone who is ill or going through a tough time. I could provide a meal for someone in crisis. I could take a person who is homebound shopping and then out to lunch. I can even make a phone call to someone who has been placed upon my mind and heart.

Anything I (we) do to improve the well-being of another person can be a way of “being Jesus to the world.” I merely have to wait to hear the Lord speak to me. Admittedly, he does not speak audibly to me, but I am keenly aware of him moving in my Spirit with his gentle (and sometimes not so gentle) nudging.

Please remember this dear woman, the Church Lady in your prayers. Even so, ~AMEN!


Wishing you everyday grace,
Tamara
Church Lady's ID picture for Facebook

Wordless Wednesday


Saturday, April 12, 2014

And Throw Away the Keys

One of the biggest travesties in our society today is private prisons and the “lock them up and throw away the key” mentality. 


In my state of Arizona, private prison is a booming business. Why? Lobbyists and government officials who own stock in said corporate prisons.

Many of the higher ranking prison officials who have retired from the state prison find their way into the privatization sector hired as administrators. We would call that “double dipping.”  It’s not illegal nor is it immoral. 

What I find morally wrong with the privatization of prison is the warehousing of human souls. Our state pays the private prison industry per bed, whether it is occupied or not. 

Private prisons do not provide the programming opportunities that the state facilities do and inmate “jobs” are not as readily available. This means the inmate population has more free time, unstructured time. More time to get into trouble.

When our nation began using penitentiaries to incarcerate offenders, it was very different than today’s standards and methods. Just breakdown the word penitentiary or reformatory and seek its true meaning.


Penitentiary = penitent

pen·i·tent [pen-i-tuh nt]

adjective
  1. feeling or expressing sorrow for sin or wrongdoing and disposed to atonement and admendment; repentant; contrite. 
noun
  1. a penitent person. 
  2. Roman Catholic Church. a person who confesses sin and submits to a penance. 
Related forms
  1. pen·i·tent·ly, adverb 
  2. non·pen·i·tent, adjective, noun 
  3. un·pen·i·tent, adjective 
  4. un·pen·i·tent·ly, adverb 
Synonyms
remorseful, rueful, sorrowful.
penitent (ˈpɛnɪtənt)

— adj
feeling regret for one's sins; repentant

— n
a person who is penitent

Christianity
  1. a person who repents his sins and seeks forgiveness for them 
  2. RC Church a person who confesses his sins to a priest and submits to a penance imposed by him 

Reformatory = reform

re·form   [ri-fawrm

noun
  1. the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt,unsatisfactory, etc.: social reform; spelling reform. 
  2. an instance of this. 
  3. the amendment of conduct, belief, etc. 
verb (used with object)
  1. to change to a better state, form, etc.; improve by alteration,substitution, abolition, etc. 
  2. to cause (a person) to abandon wrong or evil ways of life orconduct. 
  3. to put an end to (abuses, disorders, etc.). 
  4. Chemistry - to subject to the process of reforming, as in refining petroleum. 

verb (used without object)
  1. to abandon evil conduct or error: The drunkard promised to reform. 
Related forms
  1. re·form·a·ble, adjective 
  2. re·form·a·bil·i·ty, re·form·a·ble·ness, noun 
  3. re·form·a·tive, adjective 
  4. re·form·a·tive·ly, adverb 
  5. re·form·a·tive·ness, noun 
Synonyms
correction, reformation, betterment, amelioration, better, rectify, correct, amend, emend, ameliorate, repair, restore.
 
(Definitions provided by dictionary.com)

Do we see any true reform happening within the confines of current prison sentencing? Do we see any actual amends to the victims of crime other than the assessments the courts impose?

In the Arizona state facilities inmates were required to raise funds to go towards victim rights programs. How was this done? Funds were raised by selling the inmates items they normally could not get in prison, i.e. a “pan pizza” that cost $5 would be doubled in price and the inmate would pay $10 to get a pizza or maybe a container of ice cream that cost $2.50 would sell for $5.00. This is well and good if the inmate has 1) funds to purchase the item and 2) likes the item being provided.

It is like getting “the goat” from here to there: the goat is attached to a cart. A carrot is attached to a pole. The carrot is dangled just out of reach above the goat’s head to get it to move towards the carrot thus propelling the cart as a means of travel. This depended upon two things: you had something to entice the goat and that the goat was attracted to the item.


Please understand, I am not comparing inmates to goats or vice versa, just the similarity between the two actions. How do I know these things? Nineteen years of working for the Department of Correctons provides me with a bit of knowledge and expertise.

Does an administratively “required” action such as this actually cause the inmate to think about the victim they left in the wake of their crime? I don’t think so. It gives the inmate an opportunity born out of selfishness to have or receive an item they normally do not have a chance to receive.  

I do know of a number of wonderful things that were provided due to funding collected in this manner such as playground equipment for a park – all installed by inmate labor and furnishings for an after school program for a Boys and Girls Club. But again, how did this action benefit the victims of the inmates’ crime? 

Back “in the day” when they were penitentiaries – the opening to the institution the inmate would enter was low, so low they had to crawl in on their knees. It was a symbolic gesture to help the inmate realize the only way to redemption was through acts of penitence. It was also in these penitentiaries that inmates were introduced to education. They were taught to read – to read the Bible. One could say it was a real “Come to Jesus” time in their lives.

Victor Hugo said, “He who opens a school door, closes a prison.”


Society and criminal justice have changed and not necessarily for the better. Private prison corporations are, after all, set up to run at a profit. This begs the question – where is the justice? Why do we allow inmates to be incarcerated for non-violent offences? Why is there such overcrowding? How are other countries coping?

*Take a look here for a look at what's happening in Europe.

*And what happens if you have a jail with no one to put in it? Look what Sweden is doing here

*from Shannon at Finding Grace Within.

Wishing you everyday grace,
Tamara

P.S.  Matthew 25:35-45 (NIV)
Verse 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ 
Verse 45 "He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

Thursday, April 10, 2014

Rules for Better Living


Rules for Better Living

  1. Love the Lord with all your heart, mind, and strength… and your neighbor as yourself.
  2. Take a few moments to make yourself presentable.  Messy hair and an unwashed face is not an expression of beauty.
  3. If you think kind thoughts, you will express kind words. If you consider others before yourself, you will rarely have to apologize for bad behavior.
  4. Stand up nice and straight. The same goes for sitting!
  5. Be well prepared for everything you do.
  6. Have a sense of humor and never take yourself too seriously. Looking at your backside in the mirror is helpful.
  7. When uncomfortable at a social function, look for someone who looks the same.  That person will be grateful for your attention.  The popular folks will never miss you.

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Migrants, Immigrants, Sojourners


“The New Testament begins with a migration story, as Jesus traveled from heaven to earth to be incarnated as a marginalized child of a teen mother who was unwed at conception. He took the form of a human being and became the refugee, migrant, and, at times, the undocumented Christ of our salvation. Near the beginning of Jesus’ life, Mary and Joseph fled with him to Egypt as refugees. At the end of his life, he was crucified outside the gates of the city because he did not have the documents of a Roman citizen (Roman citizens were not crucified). He was undocumented. He was radically inclusive, peaceful, and hospitable messiah who ignored boundaries and welcomed all into his circles of love.”   ~from Immigration and the Bible, by Joan M. Maruskin

Notes from the Heart                                                 
~An Ode to Immigration                              
Tamara Farner-Swerline

I walked the gates of Eden, birthed children upon this earth and cursed the womb from which these lives progressed… flesh of my flesh, bone of my bone[1]
walking the banks of the Nile, the Euphrates, and the Tigress I cradled a civilization in my arms and nurtured them at my breast
I left my home and kinsfolk to settle new lands that teamed with opportunity, and riches, and welcome and when finding none became enslaved
I was an exile and sojourner in a foreign land all the while hungering for truth, and for justice, and for nourishment, and for a simple cup of water…
in the heat of the noonday sun, I lay beneath a towering saguaro and the manzanita tree in a silent desert wash while the wild coyote demands a pound of my flesh
merciful God… do you see what is happening to these your people?
“Holy Mary, Mother of God,
  pray for us sinners,
  now and at the hour of our death. Amen.”
[2]
this bread made of wheat gleaned from the floor of a barren field, crushed and ground by hardship, moistened with tears of affliction baked in an oven of adversity until its time had come to pass, offered now to you
“take and eat, for this is my body that was broken for you… “[3]  
this cup offered to appease your thirst is wine made bitter with tears of despair and the silent prayers of the widow, and the orphan, and the displaced stranger
 “this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for
  many for the forgiveness of sins…”[4]



[1] Genesis 2:23
[2] From Hail Mary a Common Catholic Prayer
[3] Jesus Christ in Matthew 26:26; Mark 14:22; Luke 22:19 and 1 Corinthians 11:24
[4] Jesus Christ in Matthew 26:28

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Semi-Wordless Wednesday


April 5th National Day of Action
Stop Deportations and Expand Administrative Relief from Deportation



Everyday more than 1,100 people are deported. It is predicted that in April 2 million people will have been deported under the Obama Administration.  Amid Congressional inaction, President Obama and his Administration must understand that our communities cannot continue to wait. The President can and should take concrete, bold and necessary actions TODAY to turn back the deportation dragnet.

People of faith from all denominations and traditions have been calling on congress to pass just and humane immigration reform, yet the House of Representatives continues to stall and has failed to move forward on legislative reform. 

NOT ONE MORE FAMILY SEPARATED BY DEPORTATION, NO, NOT ONE!