Living a "Chipper" Life

I met my cousin Chipper in 1959. We were taking one of the dreaded cross-country family vacations in the station wagon. We consisted of father, mother, three children, and my maternal grandmother for a total of six souls in a very, very close proximity.

I wish I could say my memory was clear on all the details of this family venture, but I was the one who became car sick.

Mom told the story of my being adopted. It was winter, I was a year old and Mom and Dad dressed me up in a new snowsuit and traveled from Ohio to Michigan to visit family. I was standing in the front seat between them (a common practice back in the day). Dear old Dad was smoking his cigar. That’s probably when I turned green and vomited down his neck and arm. He promptly stopped the car, got out, went to the side of the road and repeated my act.  I wonder if they felt they had been given a defective model and wanted an exchange? More than likely that feeling was compounded during my teen years…

Back to the Road Trip: Riding in the back area of a station wagon only made the issue of getting motion sick worse. Therefore Dramamine was administered in mass quantities and I slept. And I slept… and I slept… and I slept! Fortunately I was awakened to see Carlsbad Caverns, Mt. Rushmore, Old Faithful, the Petrified Forest, the grand sequoias and the ocean! We were actually living and traveling the Woody Guthrie song THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND! Well, perhaps in title and chorus only.

THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND
words and music by Woody Guthrie

Chorus:
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California, to the New York Island
From the redwood forest, to the gulf stream waters
This land was made for you and me 

As I was walking a ribbon of highway
I saw above me an endless skyway
I saw below me a golden valley
This land was made for you and me

We stopped in the evenings and stayed in motels. It was always a treat when the motel had a swimming pool. Out came the swimsuits and my younger brothers and I would have preferred not to eat any dinner, but just to swim. Back then, one had to wait for half an hour after a meal before swimming to ensure you wouldn’t get cramps and drown. After being confined in the car for hours and hours, getting out and swimming was a wonderful release of tension and energy.

I don’t know if there was ever an actual travel itinerary for these road trips as we ventured around the country. We stopped and visited various family members as we traveled. That is when I met Chipper.

He and his family lived somewhere in country of Texas. Chipper was approximately my age and was a special needs child. We fell hard and fast into the comfort of each other’s presence. I loved him and Chipper loved me. For that very short period of time, Chipper and I could not or would not be separated.

Chipper’s special needs were consuming for the adults in his life at that point in time. He had limited mental capacity and then some physical aspects that also needed time and attention. He was “hyper” before the term had been coined and when he got going too fast, his mom would say, “Chipper!” and he would respond, “gotta relax, gotta relax…”

My brother was teasing me in some manner and Chipper became my defender and picked up the bug spray and ‘hit’ him with a dose of it. To this very day my brother believes that was the single, solitary event that caused him to need glasses!

I cannot imagine the strain of having a special needs child has on a family unit, but his parents divorced and Chipper went to live with his Grandma and Grandpa. This was a time in history when family took care of family.

Chipper worked around the ranch with his Grandpa and when he misbehaved the implied threat was, “Chipper, do you want me to take you to the woodshed?” He would straighten right up.

As happens in the life and times of family, Grandma became ill and passed on. It came down to Chipper and Grandpa. One day while the two of them were working away on the ranch, Chipper disappeared for awhile. When he reappeared, with his limited abilities and speech, he took Grandpa to the house where Chipper had prepared lunch for the two of them. As I was told the story, he even offered prayer for the meal. Even now as I write this, I am so very humbled by this act of reverence and love on Chipper’s part.

So life continued on… then Grandpa became ill and had to be hospitalized. Grandpa died. Chipper had been placed into an institutional environment. He was there for six months and then he too, died. I believe it was from a broken heart. I also believe that Chipper is in the arms of a Savior who loves him and is surrounding him with such a pure love… I look forward to seeing Chipper again someday.

Things I learned from Chipper…

…special needs children (and adults) are truly special

…they are probably much closer to Christ than I can fathom

…they love totally and completely when they trust you

…that I can behold the heart of Christ when I am in the presence of someone special

Tamara

PS Psalm 4:3
You can be sure that anyone who serves the Lord faithfully is special to him.
 The Lord listens when I (they) pray to him.

Remembering the Less Fortunate

In the Old Testament, the poor, and service to the poor is the second most frequently mentioned topic.  Idolatry is first. 

In the New Testament, the results are even more dramatic.  One of every sixteen verses refers to “the poor”.  Among the four Gospels, the ratio is one of every ten.  In the Gospel of Luke, it is one of every seven.  In the epistle of James, it is one of every five…  

I’m sure that by now, you are beginning to see the direction I’m taking.  The Messiah celebrated in the Old Testament book of Isaiah and in Handel’s great oratorio is a God with special preference for the poor.  

And isn't that what we are celebrating?  God With Us - because of our great poverty (spiritual) God came to us in the form of the Christ Child.  The Messiah however, did not remain a child but fulfilled His mission to reconcile us to God.

As Christ’s followers — those who are committed to sharing in the work of the Messiah —we must constantly remind ourselves of that preference.  In our consumeristic world, during such a blessed season when commercial temptations often reach their highest level, such reminders become even more critical.

George Fridric Handel’s work, Messiah is generally reckoned to have been composed in three weeks; with the Hallelujah Chorus having been written in three days. Handel is reputed to have said, “that Heaven opened” while he was composing it.

Messiah remains Handel's best known work, although this was not a status that it enjoyed until the last few years of his life, brought about by annual performances in Handel's oratorio seasons and charitable benefit concerts at the Foundling Hospital, an organization for underprivileged children.

Last Sunday evening we were privileged to see the 75^th  performance of the Messiah by our local community college, due to the generosity of our Sunday School teacher and his wife. (Thank you again, Ed & Peggy!)

Persons from the community perform with the college choir and the college orchestra.  Most of the soloist parts are performed by students, but not all.

It was wonderful to behold!

My husband is not specifically drawn to the arts, especially oratorios, operas, classical music and works performed by orchestras!   Bless his heart, he attended nonetheless!  He did believe the performance was finished when the Hallelujah Chorus was complete. 

I diligently and gently tried to explain the Messiah is a performance that covers the Old Testament references from the book of Isaiah, all the way through the birth, the life, the death, and the resurrection of the Christ.

My Prayer

Almighty God, remind me how often scripture mentions the poor, and help me to remember that I also should give them priority.  Help me to speak and act on behalf of those whose voices our society often ignores.  ~Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Quotes on Poverty and the Poor

If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one. ~Mother Teresa

Let us touch the dying, the poor, the lonely and the unwanted according to the graces we have received and let us not be ashamed or slow to do the humble work. ~Mother Teresa

The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread. ~Mother Teresa

We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community... Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sakes and for our own. ~Cesar Chavez

We can tell our values by looking at our checkbook stubs. ~Gloria Steinem

How will you be responding to those in need this season?  Take the opportunity to read Isaiah 53 ~ this prophetic word always amazes me.

Proverbs 14:31

The Message

³¹ You insult your Maker when you exploit the powerless;
when you're kind to the poor, you honor God.

Proverbs 29:7

The Message

⁷ The good-hearted understand what it's like to be poor;
the hardhearted haven't the faintest idea.

Tamara

Reflecting on Christmas

My email devotional from the Upper Room today spoke on how we may need to have ‘spiritual glasses, or vision remedies’ that are specifically designed to help us see the star and the angels… in the hills over Bethlehem this Advent season.  Instead, we often see fuzzy images of sugarplums and reindeer and Santa and snowmen and gifts—and maybe, just maybe we might catch a glimpse of the child in the manger. It’s difficult to see any details outside the limited realm of our personal comfort levels. (From In My Heart I Carry a Star: Stories for Advent by Derek Maul.)

Do we see the advent of Christ in this world as a means to bring God’s message of reconciliation and love to our brothers and sisters?  Or do we see it as just another way to pad our comfort and reward ourselves with layer upon layer of material blessing?  And worse, perhaps we spend the next year paying off those material blessings…

We live in a great big world full of desperation, people, war, plenty, hunger,  joy, pain, and even hope sometimes — if only we have the eyes to see… And then, only when those eyes have been spiritually opened by the transforming power of the Christ, the lowly child in the manger.

When our eyes are opened and we have clear vision we run the risk of grasping something of the pain, the tragedy, the truth, and the crying needs of those with whom we come into contact with on a daily basis. These realities ultimately define all people who have not witnessed — or allowed themselves to respond to the sign that has been given by the star and the angels.

My Prayer
This Advent, God, I ask that You shine through my life.  Light my often pale and drab spirit with Your love.  Help me to give without reservation and remove my fear.  Thank You for the confidence that You bring. ~Amen.

Can you identify one activity that, upon reflection, you might consider a distraction from the true meaning of this season?

Psalm 126:6, NRSV


Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves.

Tamara

Find Us Faithful

I follow a blog 'oodles of grace' by Susan. She is a hospice social worker and her heart warming tales blogs move me every single time I read them.  Her XYZ post today was/is no exception.

I'm sure I've posted this before, but Susan's so reminded me of this time in my life, so I'm doing a re-run:

Honoring the Memory of 9-11

It is hard to believe that ten years have come and gone since the infamous acts of September 11, 2001.

I had scheduled vacation during that time as I had a high school friend coming to visit for a week. She arrived a few days before the event. Her flight out the Saturday after was much different and much more difficult.

Thoughts and Questions

The agency I work for has carried out the executions of four death row inmates this past year. What is the Christian response to the law, criminal justice and Capital Punishment? Then I ask myself the proverbial question, “What would Jesus do?”

Community & Church

I previously posted one of my favorite quotations by Mahatma Gandhi regarding faith, community and politics:

"A religion that takes no account of practical affairs and does not help to solve them is no religion."

And so I ask:

What is the church doing for those in need inside their own walls?
What is the church doing in and for the local community? 
What is the church doing for the world community?

We can and often do reach out to fill the spiritual needs of people, but what about the physical needs of food, clothing, housing?  Or merely spending time with persons who have begun attending our church or who have moved into our community or neighborhood?

Next, I need to take it to a more personal level and ask myself the above questions:

What am I doing for those in need at the church?
What am I doing for my local community?
What am I doing for the world community?

Oh, I may piously sit back and say, "well, I support ministry XYZ with a monthly financial contribution..." but is that enough?  Is that enough to quell the Spirit in my soul that begs for more?  And not necessarily money, but that of time and actually of getting my hands dirty?

In Luke 6, right after the Beatitudes, we are commanded to 'love our enemies'.  It is hard enough to love those who are like-minded, but our enemies?  Really?

Beginning in Luke 6 verse 27:

27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.

32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

Now wait a minute? Does this mean the woman who seeks an abortion?  Does this mean the homosexual?  Does this mean the Muslim?  Yes, it does.  Does this mean we turn our back to sin?  Of course not.  What it means is that we respond as Christ did. In and with love.  Even though the end of this reference speaks of reward, that is not the motivation to perform such acts. We do these acts, these charities because all persons are created in the image of God - not just the Christian.  Being a Christian, proclaiming to be a Christian is not an elitist club or membership.

Today's post is meant for me.  For me to be able to sort through all the religious acts of piety and become a 'verb' - an action word.  It is one thing to know this and quite another to live it.

There are certain things I know quite well about myself.  I have a creative streak, a gift, if you will.  I can conceive some wonderful ideas and plans, but in carrying them out?  Not so good.  Am I able to convey this vision to others and perhaps they can carry them out?  That remains to be seen.

So this I pray:

Abba, Father... help me to see all mankind as created in Your image.  ~Amen!

because we're His,

Tamara

ps... in accordance with verse 30... to the Christian woman who borrowed my book Zipporah and then sold it in her yard sale.  Consider it yours.  I release you and my feeling of shock, awe, hurt and disappointment!  Note to self:  Don't go to yard sales of persons you know or have lent something to. Then don't be angry with yourself for not saying something.  In the scope of eternity, is it worth it?

Today's Devotional Scripture

Today's Verse

Trust the Lord with all your heart, and don't depend on your own understanding.

~Proverbs 3:5 NCV

Thoughts on today's verse...

Do you trust the Lord with ALL your heart? I wish I could say that I did, totally... but I often question Him as I try to apply my own unique version of understanding to the particular circumstance.

I suppose I can liken this to my recent medical events. These are now requiring changes to be made in my life. Change is often difficult. (Can I hear an Amen?) Change is neither good, nor bad - it is merely change and our ability to adapt to it - to attempt to understand it. Even by making all these life-style changes it may not guarantee that I will spend one additional day on this earth. I could walk across the street to the mailbox and get hit by a car. .

Ah, but here's where I'm learning to trust Him - I know that He was with me through the terrors of the night (OK, so it was a Medi-Vac Life Flight...), He has allowed this to shape me and conform me into His image and possibly, just possibly to be able to minister to someone who is in or will be in a similar situation! .

I will try not to strive against His all important lessons, but to become more tender, pliable and open to the ministry possibilites He places in my path.

My prayer...

Father God ~ keep me humble, keep me open to Your will and Your direction in my life. You know how often I attempt to rationalize and understand situations - today I simply raise my hands in surrender to Your will. ~Amen

Yours, because we're His,
Tamara