Another summer is winding down. We were fortunate to take two summer trips
this year. The first, in June, was a
visit to our daughter Beth who is an OB/GYN resident in Rochester, New
York. She was moving from one apartment
to another and so we went to help her move and enjoy some time with her. Having an extra car when moving is helpful so
we drove. I enjoy the experience of
seeing the country. We also enjoyed a Rochester
Red Wings baseball game. For those who
may not know this, the Red Wings are the Minnesota Twins Triple A farm team.
In August
we traveled the exact opposite direction, heading to Montana for a family wedding. Rick and Maggie were married at a family
cabin near Big Fork, not too far south of Glacier National Park. On our way back home, we spent a day plus in
Yellowstone and a few hours at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. I have long enjoyed the haunting, austere
beauty of the plains and the majestic beauty of the mountains. I find it fascinating that I am both
captivated by New York City, which we visited last year, and by the plains and
mountains, but that is another posting.
On our trip
West we listened to a long book on CD, Ken Follett’s The Pillars of the Earth. It was 32 discs long! For those of you who know the book, you will
find it amusing that my wife and I listened to it along with our 23 year-old
daughter, Sarah. Some of the scenes are
not typical parent-child conversation.
We also had
along my trusty ipod classic – over 8,000 songs. Our car allows us to plug the ipod into the
sound system and shuffle songs. This
summer I was reminded of why I love my ipod.
One
sequence of songs: Lucinda Williams, “Passionate Kisses;” Charles Mingus, “Got
To Get It;” Waylon Jennings, “Honky Tonk Heroes;” Prince, “I Wanna Be Your
Lover.” Where else could I go from
progressive country to jazz to classic renegade country to the rock/soul/funk
of Prince?
At another
moment Derek and the Dominoes, “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out” was
followed immediately by the Taize song, “Veni, Sancte, Spiritus.” It was like the theologian Paul Tillich’s
method of correlation in action – existential situation/faith response.
On final
ipod serendipity: George Jones followed by George Harrison followed by “Rock
and Roll Heaven.” You know they’ve got a
hell of a band!
I love my
ipod.
With Faith and With Feathers,
David
