Bridging Social Distance

This has certainly been a challenging time for everyone, but since I work in a long term care setting, I see in particular the difficulties of families having to be separated from their loved ones because of the necessary restrictions on visits. There are some particular parts of everyday life that we may often take for granted and those are our body language, facial expressions, and acts of touch such as a gentle hug, pat on the back, squeeze of a hand, or a kiss. Quite a few patients in long term care have communication issues such a being unable to speak due to a stroke or dementia, or being unable to hear well. These people often rely on visual and tactile communication to express themselves or to understand what someone else is telling them. A quick chat on the phone does not work. Today I watched as a spouse came by to drop off a special food item to brighten up her husband's day. He is unable to speak in general, but with strong concentration he can say some words. I could see the disappointment in both of their faces, as they new they had to stay separated by glass, yet also saw the joy and love they shared at just being able to see each other and share a smile. I put the man's hand up on the glass and his wife put her hand on the other side of the glass. She said, "I love you," and her husband, with great effort , said very carefully, "I love you too." Everyone had tears in their eyes to see such tenderness. It is my hope and prayer that as a result of all of this difficulty we are going through, all of us will be extra mindful and thankful for the people that bless our lives and not take for granted those special ties that bind us... and once "social distancing" is no longer needed, that we will be liberal in our hugs and other physical ways of encouraging each other.

Also, as many of you may have already heard, there has been a suggestion in the media to send cards as encouragement to residents of long term care facilities. This definitely brightens people's days. If you can send out a few cards to encourage people, please do so by picking any facility that you know of and writing "For Any Resident" with the address.

Peace, Laura Miller

Let’s be prayer partners for our country…to slow & stop the Coronavirus

As for me—I miss St James Lenten services—cannot imagine not having holy week services: Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter—oh well, this too shall pass.

I am blessed to be able to work at home—abiding by the President's 15 day challenge…hunkering down--staying home…only going out when essential. My day consists of working at home, praying to God for my family, my country, my friends (including all of you—my St James family). I am never bored—I find this is a GREAT time to reflect on my life—ask God for direction on how I should spend the rest of my life, i.e. what I have done & what God wants me to do—less about me & all about what can I do to help others.

God has truly been speaking to my heart—nudging me to reach out to those I love & also to others I may not have been in contact with for some time too, i.e. phone call or Email visit versus in person—reaching out to those who have been important in my life--just to let my loved ones know how much I care about them. You know what? Reaching out has absolutely been a WONDERFUL experience for me…hearing from close friends, family & especially those I have not connected with for a while—in some cases for years—other than a Christmas card/note. This alone has brightened my days!

My challenge to you is: Let's keep in constant prayer for our country & for each other. Let's be prayer partners for our country... to slow & stop the Coronavirus.

Lord God, I pray for our beloved country, our President, Congress, scientists, doctors, governors, government/business & church leaders & my fellow Americans. Lord, please give our leaders wisdom & have our people follow necessary guidance given to us to slow down this virus & to save our country. Keep our American people safe/healthy & restore our economy in a positive way . Give us wisdom to reflect on our lives, what we can do to help our country survive…& have us decide how to live the rest of our lives—reaching out to one another. Please give us high favor. Bless us all with renewed faith in you. In Jesus name I humbly pray. Amen

Remember that we are Americans—strong, resilient, tough with faith in God. With God's help, we will get through this crisis together & we will be stronger than before!!

Humbly submitted, Love and Blessings from Connie Townshend Halkovich

Our Empty Spaces

  

It is Sunday morning and St. James' Church and St. Mark's Chapel are both empty, and sort of dark and dreary! I miss you all!

Intellectually I understand why we are all staying away and it even makes sense to me, but I don't like it! I miss live communal worship at my local church! I did love the service streamed from the National Cathedral last Sunday, and I'm equally sure I'll enjoy the service from our Diocesan Cathedral later this Sunday morning March 22, 2020 11:00 AM Sunday Worship Service from Cathedral of the Incarnation, Baltimore. But what I miss at St. James' or St. Mark's on Sundays is seeing the faces I know very well, having all the familiar worship practices, and catching up with others at coffee hour after the service. In short, I miss my church family! But these are not normal times and I realize that I need to think beyond myself and my parish. So far, I am merely being inconvenienced. This is a pandemic and so, so many people are affected. Maybe I need to think about whether there are things, even if they are little things, I could do to help others.

I recognize that some good things have come from "social distancing" too! It gives me less time at work, and more with family at home, as well as more time to read and reflect, walk, work in my yard, talk with friends and family over the phone, time to go through the physical things that have been brought into our house over the last forty years and donate some. Some of my neighbors have started asking us to post drawings or photos in our front windows with a certain theme—this week was spring flowers and/or birds—so children could walk by individually and reflect on the different items they find and then share in our online neighborhood group. Others have started having a Friday night meeting at 8 pm on a specific street to sing a hopeful or familiar song (words sent ahead of time) while staying at least six feet apart! So staying mostly at home out of the hustle-bustle of ordinary life has been giving me a lot more time to reflect on what is really important and how blessed I am. God is with us wherever we are, not just in the buildings where we usually go on Sunday mornings.

These have been my rambling thoughts today. Won't you share yours?
Marjie Mack