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Healing Spirit Metropolitan Community ChurchRochester, Minnesota |
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"Reflections" from Rev. Nancy J. Horvath-Zurn Older Friends Can Be the Best Inspiration Dear Friends and Family of HSMCC, Four years ago I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia.
It is very painful and affects the muscles of the body.
There are days when a person feels he or she just can’t get out
of bed and function because the pain is so excruciating.
When I learned there is no cure, I became depressed.
I didn’t know how I could live out my life in that kind of
daily torment. The next year
I reluctantly made reservations to my favorite spot in the world: Bear
Head Lake State Park, near Ely. I
didn’t know how I would put up the pop-up by myself, haul wood and
water, and go about the daily physical tasks required when camping.
I figured it would be my last trip there alone, but I knew I had
to go despite the pain and fear. I had to see it at least one more time. That is the year I met Don and Harriet from Rockford,
Illinois. I was in campsite
4 and they were in campsite 10. I
passed their site to go to the lake each day for my prayer time.
Don had a 79 lb. canoe he put in and out of the water several
times a day. An avid
fisherman, he stayed around the bay closest to the boat dock and fished
for hours. Harriet tended to
the fire and one of her favorite things to do: cooking!
An avid bird watcher, she kept track of the many species of birds
that sang and flew through their site. In chatting with them I learned
they had been coming to the same campsite for over thirty years.
Since I’ve been coming for over twenty, we spoke of the old
days when the seven mile road was gravel and Marty and Becky were the
only rangers. Don and
Harriet also camped in a pop-up, choosing flashlights and lanterns over
electrical sites. They
hauled wood and water and had the same set-up I did in my campsite.
For the first few days I saw Harriet standing or sitting in her
campsite and Don out in his canoe. Imagine
my surprise the night I ran into Harriet in the bathroom and saw she
used 2 canes to get around! She
has had arthritis since she was two years old.
I then realized that these folks were, as my mother would say,
“no spring chickens”. Don
was seventy-seven years old and Harriet was sixty-nine (give or take).
Don appeared to be very thin and frail, yet he was out there
handling that canoe like a fifty-something year old.
One day I asked him how he ever got it up onto the roof of their
vehicle and he said, “The good Lord always provides what I need.”
Now, I figured that if these good people could crank up their
own pop-up, set up their awning, haul their wood and water, cook over
the fire, fish out of a canoe, and enjoy their camping trips despite the
pain, I could do the same. I
remember calling home and telling Barb, “I have met my inspiration.”
Whenever I find myself in deep pain and feeling as though I just
don’t want to try anymore I think of Don and Harriet, and my attitude
is immediately readjusted. Over the years we’ve stayed in touch with letters and
Christmas cards. The last
two years found me at Bear Head searching out their beloved campsite 10,
but to no avail. It sits sad
and empty. This past week I found a phone number and called them.
“You’ve heard of “guess who’s coming to dinner?” I
asked. “Well, guess
who’s coming to Rockford?” Harriet
was delighted! Don was
having hip surgery that week to remove a pin from his February hip
replacement. I volunteered
to visit them at the hospital. As
it turned out, Don was already out of the hospital, a day after surgery,
and at home. Why was I not
surprised? Barb and I found
their lovely home and spent a couple of hours with them delighting in
conversation, coffee, and Harriet’s homemade Swedish coffee cake,
likely from a Lutheran cookbook. Although
Don was on a walker and Harriet was on two canes, neither of them sat
longer than ten minutes the whole time we were there.
Don went out to get the mail.
Harriet insisted on serving us in the living room and refused
assistance. As we left I said to Barb, “See why my old friends are such an
inspiration?” She replied, “Sometimes the old friends can be the best inspiration.”
We both grinned as we climbed into the mini-van and headed to the
soccer fields. Next week Don and Harriet will leave their home where they
have resided for forty-six years. They
are moving to a first floor apartment where everything is on one floor.
It backs up to a wooded creek, and Don is planning to hang bird
feeders outside. Barb asked
if it is assisted living and Harriet said, “Absolutely not!
I don’t need someone taking away my joy of cooking—serving us
three meals a day.” It
turns out it’s just an apartment complex.
Not even senior living. These old friends are my inspiration.
Please hold them in prayer as they move and get settled in what
Harriet calls, “Their new digs”.
The Horvath-Zurn’s are considering a camping trip to Rock Cut
State Park in the future. Don
and Harriet will be in site 433. I
hope we can get 431. In the
meantime, I’m planning my next trip to Bear Head Lake.
Because I can. See you Sunday! Your
Pastor, The Deacon’s Corner... Diversity
and Respect for Others... Each day, it is my practice to browse through several
online news services.
Recently, I ran across an interesting article about how Americans
are becoming more open and accepting of other’s beliefs.
The article discussed a survey done with 35,000 people from all
walks of life and backgrounds, and who were diverse in their religious
beliefs.
The survey found that regardless of how strict an individual’s
theology, most (70%) believe that theirs is not the only way to God. "It shows increased religious security. People are
comfortable with other traditions even if they're different," said
the Rev. C. Welton Gaddy, president of the Interfaith Alliance. "It
indicates a level of humility about religion that would be of great
benefit to everyone."
As we strive in our faith walk to proclaim God’s love
for all, we now have substantial evidence that God is at work throughout
all faith communities teaching truth about how we should respect and
accept each other regardless of traditions and dogma.
We’re learning that it’s okay to be different from
others—we’re still loved and so are they!
Hey, that’s cool! So, let’s keep working to raise that 70% to
100% creating the world that we all want to live in — peacefully
different, respectfully different -
but together.
Prayers all around!!! God Bless… Deacon Gin |