Well its been a month already since my last post - time sure flies!
Today is the first Mon in August which in Emancipation Day in the Bahamas. In 1834 the British Empire freed all slaves and outlawed slavery. It would be 30 years later that the US Civil War would decide this issue for the US.
There are alot of things that have happened over the last month. Ginni has had to return to the US to finalize agreements with our new renter in Canton get some nursing in to replenish our funds after several months with no rental income. God bless her!
We had our meeting with the Archbishop for our annual review. It was a wonderful meeting with the Archbishop spending over 2 hours with us. We reviewed a wide range of topics and he approved our work in North Andros, authorizing us to start work to build what will be the only Catholic Church in North Andros. He even told us that it should be named Our Lady of Hope Chapel! So last weekend I went north and told our people there the news. They have already donated almost $2000 - enough to clear the land and put in the foundation. We will see how it goes. Summer is actually a tough time to do any development work. Most people have left Andros for friends and family in cooler climates. Even our Haitian friends up north have left so we will see how this effort progresses but we are thrilled with getting the Archbishop's blessing.
One thing that is kind of related to this is that the Bahamian government is requiring we have all church lands surveyed. This has resulted in my learning about church land sprinkled across Andros. It may be reasonable to consider selling a plot or two in order to raise the funds to build Our Lady of Hope - time will tell what happens with this one, but the idea that an entire new faith community might spring up from our work here is exciting.
Along those same lines, about a year ago a priest visited us from Providence RI. It turns out when he was in the seminary the Archbishop was his classmate! Well, he was taking a class in FL and, being so close to the Bahamas, he called his old classmate and they had a bit of a reunion when the Archbishop invited him to take the short flight from FL to Nassau. After visiting for about a week the Archbishop asked if he'd like to help cover one of the remote parishes over the weekend. He said yes and, since we were long past-due in having a priest, he spent that weekend with us on Andros. Well he saw what we do and the need for priests here in the Bahamas (it had been a L O N G time since we'd had a priest). He heard Ginni and I talk about our ministry here, some of the adventures we had experienced, and he met the Bahamian people. Well - he's back.
During our meeting with the Archbishop he told us that Fr. Doug would be returning to the Bahamas long-term. Ginni and I looked at each other and just about jumped out of our seats. He is a wonderful priest and we could not help but feel we played a part in his making this decision. After his visit with us we kept in touch via this blog and he, and his parish, were very generous in supporting our renovation of St. Gabriel's Church into the Fr. Gabriel Roerig Parish Ctr.
Fr. Doug will be on Long Island - a remote island much further south than we are. There is a Bahamian Deacon there already and they have 6 churches needing coverage so Fr. Doug will have his hands full. Keep him in your prayers. This year on Long Island is a year of discernment and it could extend beyond this year - we sure hope so.
Just to give you an idea of our need for priests - we have not had a priest here since Easter (yes that was April and we are in August and there is no shot of our getting a priest for awhile yet). I went into the weekend not sure if I would have enough hosts but I made it by the skin of my teeth. I will need to fly to Nassau this week to get more consecrated hosts. Fr. Glen, the rector at the Cathedral has been very generous openning his tabernacle for me whenever we get into this situation.
With Ginni gone and no CCD I have some time on my hand until I began to work on what we will do next year for CCD. Next year should be a Confirmation year for us (confirmation is a 2 year program here). So I have been working out schedules and classes for primary school and then the secondary school Confirmation Program. I have a ton of work to pull this all together, right now I have a skeleton and now I have to put the meat on the bones.
This past weekend I was blessed to baptize a 4 year-old boy visiting his Grand parents on Andros. Grammie and Grampie wanted him baptized and, after getting permission from his parents in Nassau, I had a Baptism-prep class for them and the God-parents, then on Sunday I filled my conche shell with water and we welcomed in one more member of our Church.
Finally, I think I should mention the heat. I know alot of you in the US have been sweltering in the heat of summer but this is 'wicked awsome hot'. I did 3 liturgies on Sunday and literally soaked through all my clothes with sweat each time. So 3 liturgies, 3 changes of clothes - I was so ready for a shower when the day was done!
Well, enough for now - please, please, please keep us in your prayers.
- Peace
Monday, August 1, 2011
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Vacation, Independence Day, and back to work
Well its been a month since my last post, delayed primarily by a 2 week trip to the US, so let me try to catch you up on things.
My last post was after an angina attack that put me in the hospital for a few days, followed by the Vicar General's direction I should do nothing for a week or so. So, that's what I did. Once we were back on Andros with new medications and a relatively clean bill of health we got a surprise email from one of our tenants saying that things were tight and they didn't think they were going to be able to make their rent so - they were leaving in 2 weeks. Despite having a lease committing them thru September they were simply abandoning thier lease and leaving.
While this was a shock, it was complicated by our having told the other tenant that since they had been unable to make their rent payments we were exercising our option to ask them to leave (they were a tenant-at-will month to month renter). So - while I was to avoid stress and take it easy, all of a sudden we had no tenants renting our home and that income was how we paid the mortgage, insurance, taxes, etc. We had tried to sell the house prior to starting this ministry but, due to the housing market, were unable to do so and we rented it. Now we still have the financial obligations but with both tenants leaving we are in a financial bind.
So Ginni headed home to deal with finding new tenants and get in some nursing to make a few dollars. We had planned to take a few weeks in June to go home for my nephew's wedding, but now our trip had double duty - the wedding and the house. Originally it was a one week trip to go to the wedding but now I had to arrange coverage for two weekends here in Fresh Creek because of this renter situation. In the 3 years we have been here I have never been away for two weekends in a row but the Archdiocese assured me they'd find coverage and I was to deal with the problems at home.
A week after Ginni left I followed. The tenant who left on two weeks notice had left, but had left alot of personal items behind, while the tenant we had asked to leave was still packing up. The house was in chaos but we were able to clean one apartment and begin showing it to possible tenants pretty quickly. With a few possible tenants on the hook we sent off their credit info for credit checks and then took the vacation we promised ourselves we needed.
Ginni had traded a timeshare we have for a week in the Berkshires and it was great to be back in that part of the country where I grew up. I grew up in Pittsfield and we stayed in Lee. What a difference from the dry flat tropics of Andros. Here were green mountains and hills, lush green seemed everywhere, while the rain had yet to arrive in Andros and our grass literally crunched under your feet there. The first 3 days we drove thru back roads and visited my old house; Bear Town State Forest, where I used to camp; and used the putt-putt mini golf and pool at our resort. Later in the week it rained a bit so we visited the Norman Rockwell Museum, a local winery, the National Shrine of Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, walked the grounds of Tanglewood, and even rediscovered the old ShadowBrook Jesuit Seminary (now a Yoga Center). Ginni and I met on a retreat at ShadowBrook when Ginni was at UMass so it was wonderful to see the place again.
With the rain persisting we left a day early to deal with the house and spent a day following up on possible renters and cleaning before leaving for my nephew's wedding and an overnight stay in Lowell. A high point of this trip was seeing our newest grandson again. I hadn't seen Leo since the winter when he was only a month or two old - he's a different little boy now at 6 months old. Sitting up by himself, smiling and rolling over he will be a handful once he starts crawling! What a cutie. The other high point was our son Mike brought a date to meet the family. A scary step with my family but one she handled very well. Mike has been dating her for several months and he is smitten - time will tell where this leads.
Anyway, now its back to the house and finally getting the upstairs tenant to come and remove their belongings. We also hired a friend from St.Timothy's who works as a contractor to come and fix a long list of items needing repair who made great progress while we were in the Berkshires and at the wedding. One thing we found was that, with the housing crisis, alot of people looking to rent are people who have lost their homes by not being able to pay their mortgage. Consequently, the credit checks are all pretty horrible. We finally settled on one man who was divorced, but liked the larger apartment because it gave his kids a place to stay when visiting on weekends. His credit was just as bad as the others but his mother was willing to co-sign and her credit was great. So we do the final meet the day before I have to fly back to Andros, his mother signs, I sign, and Ginni and the tenant were to sign a few days later when he would bring his security deposit and the 1st month's rent. So, I fly home and when Ginni meets with him he can't come up with the money and his mother really doesn't want to loan it to him. So that falls through and we are back to square one interviewing tenants.
Ginni has to return to Andros and currently our friends are showing the apartment and collecting Rental Applications and sending them off to the credit check company, who email the results to us. Doing this from the Bahamas is a royal pain, but we have no choice.
Anyway - when Ginni returns I meet her in Nassau and the next day it is my followup appointment with the Doctors who treated my Angina attack. All the test results were fantastic, I have no coronary blockages at all, 100% clear, and the drugs have my pressure down - all is well. The Dr that did the MRI says I have arthritis in my neck that will continue to cause me discomfort but no heart issues. So I can resume life and get back to work.
With the Dr's under control we fly back to Andros and Ginni has her first day home in about a month. Of course as soon as we get home the power goes out, the water pressure drops to zero, and the heat and humidity is through the roof. Eventually power returns, we unpack settle in, and Ginni goes to take a shower. First, she runs into a 3" spider crawling up the shower curtain, kills it, turns on the water - and there is none. She takes a bird-bath in the sink and comes into the bedroom. She turns on the lamp on her nightstand and it flickers so I suggest it needs a new bulb. She goes and gets a bulb and when she comes around to her side of the bed she says, "OH, Oh, Fire!" and I see that the extension cord from her lamp to the outlet had split and now it is spouting sparks and fire. Well she unplugged it and we cleaned the scorch marks off the tile and replaced the extension cord, then climbs into bed - that was Ginni's first night home.
So the first week back has been uneventful but July 10 is Bahamian Independence Day and so on Saturday, July 9, after our normal Saturday liturgy at the Navy Base, I head over to the Queens Park for a ecumenical prayer service led by all the clergy here in Central Andros, followed by midnight fireworks. Since we were away I didn't have any particular role other than being present on the stage - until the moderator realizes they need to fill about 10 minutes before the fireworks and she turns to me and say into the microphone, "before we end tonight why doesn't Deacon Tremblay come share a few words". So, thrust into the spotlight, I do an impromptu talk about to be truly Indepent, we need to be Dependent upon Jesus. Then remembering last week's homily about our being yoked to Jesus, I took off on how the Bahamas has done exactly that, explicitly stating in the Constitution that the Bahamas are a Christian nation. I guess it was pretty well accepted, I got a few AMEN DEAC's from the crowd and I filled the 10 minutes without embarrasing myself.
Next week we will be helping ANCAT, a local conservation group, with their summer camp for youth. Our new Parish Ctr will be a gathering point and our van will be a resource to get campers from point A to point B, but we will benefit from learning more and more about the the flora and fauna of our island and they teach the kids. It will be a busy few weeks but an opportunity to learn and share the faith a bit when opportunity presents itself to both the kids and parents.
Summer time is also a time for us to begin planning next years CCD curriculum and we will begin doing makeup sessions for 2 women who were in our RCIA program and had to withdraw due to work requiring literally all their time. If we can catch them up in July and August, they can resume in Sept and receive the sacraments next Easter! PTL!
Another item coming up is our annual review with the Archbishop. We will have been here 3 years in Nov (imagine that) and when I sit down and list all we did last year in preparation for this meeting I am amazed at what we were able to do. CCD for 57 children, RCIA, funerals, baptisms, restoring St. Gabriel's church, a parish mission, . . . the list just goes on and on.
I want you to know that WE know, without you and the Holy Spirit we would probably have been sent home after the first year. Your prayers and support are a major reason we've been able to do what we have done - THANK YOU.
So - until next time
My last post was after an angina attack that put me in the hospital for a few days, followed by the Vicar General's direction I should do nothing for a week or so. So, that's what I did. Once we were back on Andros with new medications and a relatively clean bill of health we got a surprise email from one of our tenants saying that things were tight and they didn't think they were going to be able to make their rent so - they were leaving in 2 weeks. Despite having a lease committing them thru September they were simply abandoning thier lease and leaving.
While this was a shock, it was complicated by our having told the other tenant that since they had been unable to make their rent payments we were exercising our option to ask them to leave (they were a tenant-at-will month to month renter). So - while I was to avoid stress and take it easy, all of a sudden we had no tenants renting our home and that income was how we paid the mortgage, insurance, taxes, etc. We had tried to sell the house prior to starting this ministry but, due to the housing market, were unable to do so and we rented it. Now we still have the financial obligations but with both tenants leaving we are in a financial bind.
So Ginni headed home to deal with finding new tenants and get in some nursing to make a few dollars. We had planned to take a few weeks in June to go home for my nephew's wedding, but now our trip had double duty - the wedding and the house. Originally it was a one week trip to go to the wedding but now I had to arrange coverage for two weekends here in Fresh Creek because of this renter situation. In the 3 years we have been here I have never been away for two weekends in a row but the Archdiocese assured me they'd find coverage and I was to deal with the problems at home.
A week after Ginni left I followed. The tenant who left on two weeks notice had left, but had left alot of personal items behind, while the tenant we had asked to leave was still packing up. The house was in chaos but we were able to clean one apartment and begin showing it to possible tenants pretty quickly. With a few possible tenants on the hook we sent off their credit info for credit checks and then took the vacation we promised ourselves we needed.
Ginni had traded a timeshare we have for a week in the Berkshires and it was great to be back in that part of the country where I grew up. I grew up in Pittsfield and we stayed in Lee. What a difference from the dry flat tropics of Andros. Here were green mountains and hills, lush green seemed everywhere, while the rain had yet to arrive in Andros and our grass literally crunched under your feet there. The first 3 days we drove thru back roads and visited my old house; Bear Town State Forest, where I used to camp; and used the putt-putt mini golf and pool at our resort. Later in the week it rained a bit so we visited the Norman Rockwell Museum, a local winery, the National Shrine of Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, walked the grounds of Tanglewood, and even rediscovered the old ShadowBrook Jesuit Seminary (now a Yoga Center). Ginni and I met on a retreat at ShadowBrook when Ginni was at UMass so it was wonderful to see the place again.
With the rain persisting we left a day early to deal with the house and spent a day following up on possible renters and cleaning before leaving for my nephew's wedding and an overnight stay in Lowell. A high point of this trip was seeing our newest grandson again. I hadn't seen Leo since the winter when he was only a month or two old - he's a different little boy now at 6 months old. Sitting up by himself, smiling and rolling over he will be a handful once he starts crawling! What a cutie. The other high point was our son Mike brought a date to meet the family. A scary step with my family but one she handled very well. Mike has been dating her for several months and he is smitten - time will tell where this leads.
Anyway, now its back to the house and finally getting the upstairs tenant to come and remove their belongings. We also hired a friend from St.Timothy's who works as a contractor to come and fix a long list of items needing repair who made great progress while we were in the Berkshires and at the wedding. One thing we found was that, with the housing crisis, alot of people looking to rent are people who have lost their homes by not being able to pay their mortgage. Consequently, the credit checks are all pretty horrible. We finally settled on one man who was divorced, but liked the larger apartment because it gave his kids a place to stay when visiting on weekends. His credit was just as bad as the others but his mother was willing to co-sign and her credit was great. So we do the final meet the day before I have to fly back to Andros, his mother signs, I sign, and Ginni and the tenant were to sign a few days later when he would bring his security deposit and the 1st month's rent. So, I fly home and when Ginni meets with him he can't come up with the money and his mother really doesn't want to loan it to him. So that falls through and we are back to square one interviewing tenants.
Ginni has to return to Andros and currently our friends are showing the apartment and collecting Rental Applications and sending them off to the credit check company, who email the results to us. Doing this from the Bahamas is a royal pain, but we have no choice.
Anyway - when Ginni returns I meet her in Nassau and the next day it is my followup appointment with the Doctors who treated my Angina attack. All the test results were fantastic, I have no coronary blockages at all, 100% clear, and the drugs have my pressure down - all is well. The Dr that did the MRI says I have arthritis in my neck that will continue to cause me discomfort but no heart issues. So I can resume life and get back to work.
With the Dr's under control we fly back to Andros and Ginni has her first day home in about a month. Of course as soon as we get home the power goes out, the water pressure drops to zero, and the heat and humidity is through the roof. Eventually power returns, we unpack settle in, and Ginni goes to take a shower. First, she runs into a 3" spider crawling up the shower curtain, kills it, turns on the water - and there is none. She takes a bird-bath in the sink and comes into the bedroom. She turns on the lamp on her nightstand and it flickers so I suggest it needs a new bulb. She goes and gets a bulb and when she comes around to her side of the bed she says, "OH, Oh, Fire!" and I see that the extension cord from her lamp to the outlet had split and now it is spouting sparks and fire. Well she unplugged it and we cleaned the scorch marks off the tile and replaced the extension cord, then climbs into bed - that was Ginni's first night home.
So the first week back has been uneventful but July 10 is Bahamian Independence Day and so on Saturday, July 9, after our normal Saturday liturgy at the Navy Base, I head over to the Queens Park for a ecumenical prayer service led by all the clergy here in Central Andros, followed by midnight fireworks. Since we were away I didn't have any particular role other than being present on the stage - until the moderator realizes they need to fill about 10 minutes before the fireworks and she turns to me and say into the microphone, "before we end tonight why doesn't Deacon Tremblay come share a few words". So, thrust into the spotlight, I do an impromptu talk about to be truly Indepent, we need to be Dependent upon Jesus. Then remembering last week's homily about our being yoked to Jesus, I took off on how the Bahamas has done exactly that, explicitly stating in the Constitution that the Bahamas are a Christian nation. I guess it was pretty well accepted, I got a few AMEN DEAC's from the crowd and I filled the 10 minutes without embarrasing myself.
Next week we will be helping ANCAT, a local conservation group, with their summer camp for youth. Our new Parish Ctr will be a gathering point and our van will be a resource to get campers from point A to point B, but we will benefit from learning more and more about the the flora and fauna of our island and they teach the kids. It will be a busy few weeks but an opportunity to learn and share the faith a bit when opportunity presents itself to both the kids and parents.
Summer time is also a time for us to begin planning next years CCD curriculum and we will begin doing makeup sessions for 2 women who were in our RCIA program and had to withdraw due to work requiring literally all their time. If we can catch them up in July and August, they can resume in Sept and receive the sacraments next Easter! PTL!
Another item coming up is our annual review with the Archbishop. We will have been here 3 years in Nov (imagine that) and when I sit down and list all we did last year in preparation for this meeting I am amazed at what we were able to do. CCD for 57 children, RCIA, funerals, baptisms, restoring St. Gabriel's church, a parish mission, . . . the list just goes on and on.
I want you to know that WE know, without you and the Holy Spirit we would probably have been sent home after the first year. Your prayers and support are a major reason we've been able to do what we have done - THANK YOU.
So - until next time
Friday, June 3, 2011
Not Quite a Heart Attack
Well as you can tell from the title of this blog entry we have had some excitement here.
While driving North to Mastic Pt on Sunday for our 4th weekend liturgy I began to experience chest pains. I thought it might be heartburn and ignored it - even asked Ginni for some TUMS. After the service it persisted and I asked Ginni for a 2nd TUMS on the drive back. Throughout the night it persisted and when I went to lie down the pain from my chest thru my should blades was so intense I had to sit up. Gradually, I was able to lie myself down and had a fitful night sleep.
While it was better the next morning it was still there so Ginni loaded me into the van and we headed off to the clinic. The local clinic does not have a ton of high tech equipment but they do have an ECG machine and that showed I had 'right branch blockage' and the DR recommended I go to Nassau and have a blood test. (Blood tests can tell if there has been heart damage). So we go to the bank, get out some money, pack a bag and head to the airport to get the last flight off Andros. Once we landed we took a taxi to Doctor's Hospital for the bloodtest. They took my blood alright, and then did their own EKG. The next thing you know I am in ICU with 4 IV's and a machine doing my blood pressure every 15 minutes.
The next day, with my blood pressure normal and the pain gone they wheel me to the Cath Lab and insert a catheter in an artery in my thigh and push it on up into my heart to see what they can see - and the good news is they could see no blockages, nothing at all wrong with my heart or arteries.
The cardio doctor explained that I experienced 'acute unstable angina'. Angina is what happens when the heart muscle isn't getting enough blood. Now the question is why. Usually its a blockage, but I didn't have any. It turns out in 2% of angina cases it can be caused by smoking, or drinking, or stress, or drug abuse, etc. In my case, the 4th liturgy of the day may have done it but I actually enjoy the long ride thru Andros to get to Mastic Pt so who knows. Bottom line is I am on drugs for hi blood pressure and chlorestoral and all is well.
I was kind of blown away by the love that just flowed over us throughout this experience. The Archbishop came to the hospital and prayed over me. The priest Ginni stayed with during all this showed up with the holy oils and gave me the sacrament of the sick (I now have recieved all seven sacraments). The Vicar visited as well and made a point of telling me I was to do no work at all this weekend. So, while I am on Andros, its rest, rest, rest. Saturday we will have a visiting Deacon do all our liturgies and I am on the bench (which is driving me nuts).
So, after getting back on Andros, the phone has been going non-stop with people telling me how much they were worried and how much they prayed and how glad I am well. To say that this outpouring of love was overwhelming is not overstating the case. I feel totally swaddled in the sincere love and concern of all these people and it is the most affirming, uplifting experience you can imagine.
Enough for now, I hear Ginni driving the van into the yard and I don't want to get in trouble.
Peace
While driving North to Mastic Pt on Sunday for our 4th weekend liturgy I began to experience chest pains. I thought it might be heartburn and ignored it - even asked Ginni for some TUMS. After the service it persisted and I asked Ginni for a 2nd TUMS on the drive back. Throughout the night it persisted and when I went to lie down the pain from my chest thru my should blades was so intense I had to sit up. Gradually, I was able to lie myself down and had a fitful night sleep.
While it was better the next morning it was still there so Ginni loaded me into the van and we headed off to the clinic. The local clinic does not have a ton of high tech equipment but they do have an ECG machine and that showed I had 'right branch blockage' and the DR recommended I go to Nassau and have a blood test. (Blood tests can tell if there has been heart damage). So we go to the bank, get out some money, pack a bag and head to the airport to get the last flight off Andros. Once we landed we took a taxi to Doctor's Hospital for the bloodtest. They took my blood alright, and then did their own EKG. The next thing you know I am in ICU with 4 IV's and a machine doing my blood pressure every 15 minutes.
The next day, with my blood pressure normal and the pain gone they wheel me to the Cath Lab and insert a catheter in an artery in my thigh and push it on up into my heart to see what they can see - and the good news is they could see no blockages, nothing at all wrong with my heart or arteries.
The cardio doctor explained that I experienced 'acute unstable angina'. Angina is what happens when the heart muscle isn't getting enough blood. Now the question is why. Usually its a blockage, but I didn't have any. It turns out in 2% of angina cases it can be caused by smoking, or drinking, or stress, or drug abuse, etc. In my case, the 4th liturgy of the day may have done it but I actually enjoy the long ride thru Andros to get to Mastic Pt so who knows. Bottom line is I am on drugs for hi blood pressure and chlorestoral and all is well.
I was kind of blown away by the love that just flowed over us throughout this experience. The Archbishop came to the hospital and prayed over me. The priest Ginni stayed with during all this showed up with the holy oils and gave me the sacrament of the sick (I now have recieved all seven sacraments). The Vicar visited as well and made a point of telling me I was to do no work at all this weekend. So, while I am on Andros, its rest, rest, rest. Saturday we will have a visiting Deacon do all our liturgies and I am on the bench (which is driving me nuts).
So, after getting back on Andros, the phone has been going non-stop with people telling me how much they were worried and how much they prayed and how glad I am well. To say that this outpouring of love was overwhelming is not overstating the case. I feel totally swaddled in the sincere love and concern of all these people and it is the most affirming, uplifting experience you can imagine.
Enough for now, I hear Ginni driving the van into the yard and I don't want to get in trouble.
Peace
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Water
In past blogs I commented on the fact that the quality of water here is pretty bad. In periods of drought it is worse (which is what we have now). We have a water filter outside the house that is connected to the water main that feeds the residence, but it still doesn't feel safe to drink.
Anyway - the way our water filter works is that it does its job just fine, but when it is clogged with goo it basically just stops letting water flow into the residence. So our cue that its time to change the filter is when you go to take a shower and the water starts strong, fades, and eventually stops. Last night it started as a fade so it was a bird-bath wash up in the sink using our reserve water bottles we keep under the bathroom sink.
This morning I walked down the hill to the street and turned off the water main, then came back up the hill and disconnected the water filter, pulled out the old one, slipped in the new one and hooked it up again. Then, back down the hill, turn on the main and back up the hill to make sure everything was screwed in tight and nothing was leaking.
You would think that at 8AM this was a pretty easy job, and it was, but at 8AM it was already in the mid 80s so when I came in and Ginni gave me a hug it was, "Oh my, your shirt is soaked, did the filter spray you?" I didn't have the heart to tell her it was soaked thru with sweat at 8AM.
Anyway, she was happy that she could now flush the tiolet and do a load of laundry (Ahhh, the simple things of life).
Anyway - the way our water filter works is that it does its job just fine, but when it is clogged with goo it basically just stops letting water flow into the residence. So our cue that its time to change the filter is when you go to take a shower and the water starts strong, fades, and eventually stops. Last night it started as a fade so it was a bird-bath wash up in the sink using our reserve water bottles we keep under the bathroom sink.
This morning I walked down the hill to the street and turned off the water main, then came back up the hill and disconnected the water filter, pulled out the old one, slipped in the new one and hooked it up again. Then, back down the hill, turn on the main and back up the hill to make sure everything was screwed in tight and nothing was leaking.
You would think that at 8AM this was a pretty easy job, and it was, but at 8AM it was already in the mid 80s so when I came in and Ginni gave me a hug it was, "Oh my, your shirt is soaked, did the filter spray you?" I didn't have the heart to tell her it was soaked thru with sweat at 8AM.
Anyway, she was happy that she could now flush the tiolet and do a load of laundry (Ahhh, the simple things of life).
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Gosh its hot
We have had a day or two in the mid80's with a great sea breeze so it has been wonderful - then a front came thru yesterday morning with lightning and thunder and about 20 minutes of driving monsoon-like rain. It only lasted about 20 minutes, but when the sun came out all that water went right into the air so now its low 90's with 80% humidity - talk about oppressive!
Then, to add to the heat, one of the many abandoned homes we have here mysteriously came ablaze and burned to the ground. The AUTEC fire department sent their pumper but it was a woodframe house that had been sitting in the sun for several years so it went up like straw. Nobody was living in it so nobody was hurt, but now we have this smoldering source of smoke that is filling the air, and will continue to for another day or so.
With the heat, tempers get hot and we have more occurances of domestic violence here. I have been asked to intervene in two different family situations, which can be a bit dangerous. Most recently our local alcoholic friend who visits us daily for a drink and a sandwich appeared with a bandage on his arm. It seems he was helping a local man feed his pigs and, when they returned late, the man's wife asked him why they were so late. He told her they had to stop in a particular town for gas and she went balistic - it seems her hubby has a sweetheart in that town and she turned on her hubby with a vengence. It was then that that hubby started beating our alcoholic friend with a broom for telling his wife where they went. The wire wrapping of the straw at the end of the broom sliced his forearm open as he was defending himself - thus the bandage. I'll need to pay that family a visit later in the week too.
With the heat growing we know summer is near. I announced that our CCD classes will end at the end of the month, which will give us a bit of a break (Amen), but we will be working with a local conservation group this summer to teach some of the children conservation activities they can do to help preserve the pristine environment we have here. We did this last year and it was great fun for the kids, and for us. We also learned alot about the eco-system here and we look forward to learning more this year.
As we continue to reach out to new people we have had success with a few families who had been practicing Catholics, but haven't come for the last 4-5 years. What we are finding is a whole group of 2-3 year old children that have never been baptized. Speaking with these folks it is clear they all consider themselves Catholics and they want their children baptized - especially if the child is a handful. More than once I have heard the mother say, "Oh Faddah, des chillun need da water Faddah, dey be bahd Faddah", and the child is sitting there looking up at me with these big brown eyes, as cute and innocent as you can imagine. So we talk, they get to know me and we get to know them, and eventually they show up on a Sunday. We talk some more and eventually they come to me with God-parents who are Catholics that received Confirmation and we plan a little Baptism prep class. It doesn't sound like much, but this type of evanglistic outreach has resulted in quite a few baptisms.
One thing I am noticing is that unless we go to the home and seek out these 'unchurched Catholics', they would stay at home and we'd never know they were there. Once we know where they are, AND we go to them and sit on the porch and talk - THEN there's progress. One step at a time.
Finally, one last bit of news is that Saturday is our church picnic. A Pentecostal minister has a small fishing lodge that he is letting us use Saturday afternoon so we should have some fun in the sun, people showing up with food and drinks and, like scripture says "Everyone shared what they had in common". We did this a year ago and it was a big hit - hopefully this year will be the same.
Till next time.
Then, to add to the heat, one of the many abandoned homes we have here mysteriously came ablaze and burned to the ground. The AUTEC fire department sent their pumper but it was a woodframe house that had been sitting in the sun for several years so it went up like straw. Nobody was living in it so nobody was hurt, but now we have this smoldering source of smoke that is filling the air, and will continue to for another day or so.
With the heat, tempers get hot and we have more occurances of domestic violence here. I have been asked to intervene in two different family situations, which can be a bit dangerous. Most recently our local alcoholic friend who visits us daily for a drink and a sandwich appeared with a bandage on his arm. It seems he was helping a local man feed his pigs and, when they returned late, the man's wife asked him why they were so late. He told her they had to stop in a particular town for gas and she went balistic - it seems her hubby has a sweetheart in that town and she turned on her hubby with a vengence. It was then that that hubby started beating our alcoholic friend with a broom for telling his wife where they went. The wire wrapping of the straw at the end of the broom sliced his forearm open as he was defending himself - thus the bandage. I'll need to pay that family a visit later in the week too.
With the heat growing we know summer is near. I announced that our CCD classes will end at the end of the month, which will give us a bit of a break (Amen), but we will be working with a local conservation group this summer to teach some of the children conservation activities they can do to help preserve the pristine environment we have here. We did this last year and it was great fun for the kids, and for us. We also learned alot about the eco-system here and we look forward to learning more this year.
As we continue to reach out to new people we have had success with a few families who had been practicing Catholics, but haven't come for the last 4-5 years. What we are finding is a whole group of 2-3 year old children that have never been baptized. Speaking with these folks it is clear they all consider themselves Catholics and they want their children baptized - especially if the child is a handful. More than once I have heard the mother say, "Oh Faddah, des chillun need da water Faddah, dey be bahd Faddah", and the child is sitting there looking up at me with these big brown eyes, as cute and innocent as you can imagine. So we talk, they get to know me and we get to know them, and eventually they show up on a Sunday. We talk some more and eventually they come to me with God-parents who are Catholics that received Confirmation and we plan a little Baptism prep class. It doesn't sound like much, but this type of evanglistic outreach has resulted in quite a few baptisms.
One thing I am noticing is that unless we go to the home and seek out these 'unchurched Catholics', they would stay at home and we'd never know they were there. Once we know where they are, AND we go to them and sit on the porch and talk - THEN there's progress. One step at a time.
Finally, one last bit of news is that Saturday is our church picnic. A Pentecostal minister has a small fishing lodge that he is letting us use Saturday afternoon so we should have some fun in the sun, people showing up with food and drinks and, like scripture says "Everyone shared what they had in common". We did this a year ago and it was a big hit - hopefully this year will be the same.
Till next time.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Easter and beyond
Well I cannot believe I haven't posted since Palm Sunday.
Suffice it to say we had a very busy Holy Week and Easter. Last year, once Easter was finished, we didn't see a priest again for 4 months dramatically complicating our First Communion children who were looking forward to First Penance and First Communion. Consequently, this year we decided to do First Penance and First Communion during our Easter services, which were fantastic.
Fr. Bill Martin, once again, travelled from Vermont to be with us for Holy Week. Fr. Martin is a retired Air Force Chaplain who enjoys staying at the AUTEC base. He is also an avid fly fisherman so whenever he's not in church, he is wading in the surf looking for the elusive bonefish - and Andros is the bonefish capitol of the world!
We did 4 Palm Sunday services to kick things off, then I had a few days to prepare for Easter. This began with preparing for the footwashing on Holy Thursday (we only did one of those with all parishes coming together for that one). Then there were 3 Good Friday services (Fr. Martin did the one at AUTEC and did two, one at Cargill Creek and Fresh Creek. Then it was off to build the fire pit for the Vigil, prepare the candle that St. Timothy's in Norwood, MA had graciously donated, set up for an enlarged choir and prepare the oils for those who would be baptized and confirmed at the Easter Vigil. Oh, and don't let me forget that during the afternoon, we did a First Penance Service for the children.
When Fr. Martin saw the fire pit and the driftwood I had accumulated he commented that wood that has been saturated in salt water doesn't burn that well, creating a bit of anxiety for me, but when the fire was started it was the best we have had here. Literally, flames were 3'-4' high and it went off without a hitch. My singing the Exultet - not so much. Practicing that 5 minute solo was great, but real time my voice cracked once or twice, c'est la vis!
For me, the high point of the Vigil is conveying the sacraments on my RCIA candidates (yes I said MY RCIA candidates). We had 4 people in the program this year but 2 had missed so many classed due to the demands of their job we decided they should wait - but the other 2, a husband who was baptized and confirmed, and his wife, who was confirmed, were literally beaming! Then, 4 children joined them and all 6 recieved their first communion.
The Vigil took about 2 and a half hours and then on Sunday we were at AUTEC for an early morning Easter Day service, where another child recieved First Penance before the service, and then First Communion during Mass. 
After AUTEC we headed south to Cargill Creek for another Easter Day service where, yet another child recieved First Penance before the service, and then First Communion during Mass.
This particular service had another great event for me, one of the children from the community at the northern end of Andros in Mastic Point was baptized and recieved First Communion. I was so thrilled to see the fruit of all those hour-long drives up north bearing fruit in this way.
So - Easter was a hit! He is risen, yes He is truly risen!
After Easter the Archdiocese has its annual Clergy Retreat, so I packed up for a week in Nassau and Ginni headed back to the US to get in some nursing time (late rent from our US tenants is creating a financial challenge for us). She should be back mid-May.
I can honestly say this was the best of my retreats here in Nassau. It is my 3rd Easter retreat and this one was quite good, focusing on the role of Clergy, our ministry, our call, how we work together (or not) - very real-world practical material from a Fr. Ron Knott from St. Meinrad's Seminary in Indiana.
Now that I am back on Andros (sans Ginni) it is CCD prep all morning, and CCD all afternoon. I do have a few marriage prep/baptism prep/RCIA sessions to fill my evenings - and then there is the ever-present need for homily prep, writing up the parish bulletin, Sundays' Prayers of the Faithful, and the financial reports - all those behind the scenes things that need to get done to keep the place running.
Well, enough for now - please keep us in your prayers - till next time.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Happy Holy Week!
Well I just came in from going out with my machete to chop palm branches for Palm Sunday and it made me realize I hadn't posted here for a few weeks, so here we go -
These are actually old garbage cans, and oil drums that have been decorated with actual real goatskin stretched over the top. We have 2 in our church as part of the music ministry!
You cannot imagine the amount of time and energy it takes to make one of these. Put about 20 kids in home made costumes behind the float, with drums, horns, whistles, cowbells - all dancing up a storm and you begin to get an idea of what Jr Junkanoo can be. Add about 10 of these floats and the party can go on for hours.
First off, you cannot imagine how much I appreciate the support staff at St. Timothy's during Holy Week. Music issues and liturgical planning issues are all screaming through my head while, back in Norwood, a team of dedicated folks deal with all these details. Not so here on Andros, let me tell you. Cutting my own palms is just one of many details.
But I am getting ahead of myself. Let me try to catch up on a few things that have happened over the last few weeks. First is Jr. Junkanoo. I may have mentioned this before but we finally got our cable back that allows us to download pics from our camera so I wanted to share these with you. Junkanoo is usually a Christmas Mardi-gras like celebration and it is huge here. In the sping the children all over the family islands have Jr Junkanoo competition with costumes, bands, floats -the whole nine yards. Here, for example, are the junknaoo drums that have been set out in the sun so the goatskin can stretch and create a better sound.
These are actually old garbage cans, and oil drums that have been decorated with actual real goatskin stretched over the top. We have 2 in our church as part of the music ministry!Here is an example of one of the floats.
You cannot imagine the amount of time and energy it takes to make one of these. Put about 20 kids in home made costumes behind the float, with drums, horns, whistles, cowbells - all dancing up a storm and you begin to get an idea of what Jr Junkanoo can be. Add about 10 of these floats and the party can go on for hours.Leaving Jr Junkanoo for a moment - I have told you that CCD pretty much dominates our mid-week workload. All the support we got from home helped us to restore St. Gabriel's church in Calabash Bay and we have been using our new Fr. Gabriel Roerig Parish Center for classes.
Here is a pic of the building mid-construction
Here is a pic of our first Marriage Prep class that we held at the Parish Center. We've come a long way baby!
Most family island parishes send their engaged couples to Nassau for Pre-Cana. Its a real feather in our cap that we were able to do our own class locally. Having done marriage prep for several years at St. Timothy's in Norwood gave Ginni and I a wealth of experience that we were able to put to good use in this class.
Most recently, the Archdiocese of Nassau just held its CHRISM MASS. This is the liturgy where the Archbishop consecrates all the holy oils that will be used over the next year. Here is a pic of the consecration that gives you a nice view of the sanctuary and the crowd of priests and deacons around the altar.
Here is a pic of the recessional with your's truly in procession. 
What was a treat for me at this liturgy was that I was selected as one of the Deacons to bring up one of the oils and present them to the Archbishop for consecration. It was a honor to be asked and I was thrilled to be involved in such a way at such a sacred moment.
Well, enough for now, this will be a crazy week for sure. We will welcome new Christians with baptisms during the Easter Vigil, and bring others into full communion with the Church through Confirmation. This year we will also do First Penance and First Communion during Easter so it will be a joyfilled day. (We learned to do First Communion early when, last year, we didn't see a priest on Andros for 4 months after Easter!)
Pray for us - we certainly need it! Till next time
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