Did you hear the one about ...?

"If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans."

- Woody Allen

 

 

A man was sitting in his home one day when the sheriff stopped by.  The lawman informed him there was a flood coming, but the man said "God will protect me."  As the flood waters neared his home the National Guard stopped and urged the man to come with them in their Humvee, but the man said "God will protect me."  As the flood waters surrounded his house the Red Cross came by his house in a boat and encouraged him to climb on board, but the man said "God will protect me."  As the flood waters engulfed his house the man climbed onto his roof, where a helicopter was waiting for him, but the man said "God will protect me." 

 

Then the man drowned.  When he got to Heaven the man said, "God, why didn't you protect me?"  And God said, "What do you mean?!  I sent the sheriff, a Humvee, a boat, and a helicopter!"

 

There is an intimate relationship between spirituality and humor.  Although this is usually more exemplified in Eastern traditions such as Buddhism, it certainly must exist in Western religion and spirituality.  In Judeo-Christian theology it is certainly more subdued, but it must exist.

 

One the most common images of the Buddha is that of the Laughing Buddha.  Historically he was a Buddhist monk who loved children and enjoying the gift of life.  He carried candies with him and was always ready to joke and laugh. 

 

This may seem a little sacrilegious to some people, however it is fun to think that at the Last Supper Jesus had planted at least one whoopee cushion.  Perhaps it was Judas who was the hapless victim of the good nature prank.  They all needed a little release.

 

That is one of the keys to understanding the connection between spirituality and humor.  Laughter is a release from our fears, it is a communal way to face the darkness and chase it away. 

 

Stop and think about the nature of many of the jokes you've heard over the years.  The good ones, not the "why did the chicken cross the road" kind of joke.  The jokes that made you laugh so hard you peed a little.

 

At the root of all of those jokes someone was hurt in someway, and that pain or embarrassment was the core of the joke.  Without it the joke wouldn't be funny.  Think I'm wrong?  Try and think of one, I'll wait.

 

That may seem on the surface to be a depressing and rather shabby view of human nature.  Yet we come back to the point that laughter is a shared defense, it is courage welling up from deep within to renew us and give us strength.  As physicist Stephen Hawking observed, "Life would be tragic if it weren't funny."

 

And that is the next key to the connection, renewal.  When we laugh we feel refreshed.  Our burdens have been lessened.  Physicians have long understood the healing power of laughter. 

 

The final key is related to what Zen schools call Satori, literally "a kick in the eye."  It's really not much different from what is meant by the Judeo-Christian word epiphany.  It's a sudden revelation of a spiritual truth.

 

Much like humor, that spiritual awareness is sudden, often non-verbal.  When someone tells you a joke, as soon as you "get it" you start to laugh.  If someone has to explain the joke to you then you'll never find it funny.  You may certainly understand on an intellectual level why the joke is "funny," but you missed it.

 

Even though the Bible doesn't often portray them as such, I am sure the early saints and patrons had a rich sense of humor.  To spread their message of hope they needed to give the faithful a way to renew, a way to face the darkness of the times. 

 

Maybe there was no whoopee cushion at the last supper.  Let's hope at least one of the Apostles owned a dribble glass.

Christ's Great Granny

 

"She was my rain.  She was my unpredictable element.  She was my fear."

- Garth Stein, "The Art of Racing in the Rain"

 

 

Originally my post for today was going to be about the Garden of Eden.  The usual musings about the deeper meaning of the "fruit of the knowledge of good and evil."  As the saying goes, been there done that.

 

What ever metaphorical value you assign to the fruit the real core of the matter was the sin itself, Adam and Eve defied God.  God said don't, they did, end of story.

 

Perhaps what is more interesting is the role Eve played in the whole sordid affair, and Adam's culpability in the matter.

 

One of the common themes surrounding Eve is that as temptress.  Since Eve somehow tempted Adam into disobeying God it implies Adam is in some way not as responsible.  This point of view was heartily endorsed by the male dominated church. 

 

Being of the male persuasion I can assure you, men are not that hard to tempt.  If Eve tempted Adam it was probably the easiest thing she did that day.  However, Adam was an adult.  He knew the injunction against eating the fruit, and was as accountable for his actions as was Eve.

 

There is also the side question here about what kind of sin was original sin.  Although Adam and Eve knew that the rules stated they could not eat of the fruit, they could not know that eating of the fruit was evil, or even that disobeying God was "evil".  They hadn't eaten it yet.

 

It is often said that Eve's sin was that of pride.  She wanted to be like God, and the serpent led her to believe that she would be.  So then why did she offer the fruit to Adam?  If her prime motivation was pride then why not simply eat the fruit herself, and leave Adam as a big dumb ape?

 

I don't usually like to make generalizations about men vs. women, and usually I think they aren't very accurate.  I think the story of Adam and Eve implies women are naturally better at seeing that the success of the individual is inseparable from the success of the couple. 

 

If Adam had gotten the fruit first he would have told Eve he was going out to play a round of golf with the seraphim, then he would have snuck out the back way and gone looking for some hot young homo sapiens.   

 

But what of Adam's true motivations?  Perhaps lust for Eve?  She held out the fruit and said "Wanna?", and Adam said "Oh yeah! Oh yeah!" 

 

That's really the other side of the sexist view of the story.  Eve was a gullible female, Adam was a horny male. 

 

In the Filipino version of the creation story the first man is known as Malakas (Strong One) and the first woman as Maganda (Beautiful One).  In that creation story the world is made of Sky and Sea.  Kite (a hawk like bird) was tired of flying around. 

 

He stirred up the Sky and Sea, who began to fight with each other, hurling boulders and thus forming the islands of the Philippines.  Then Sky commanded the Kite to build a nest, and stop stirring up trouble.  

 

In the meantime, Bamboo was created, and he bumped into Kite.  Kite was hurt and angry, and split the bamboo in two.  Out of one half emerged Makakas, and Maganda from the other. 

 

They had many children, but eventually tired of all of them, and wanted some peace and quiet themselves.  So Malakas started beating about with a stick, scattering the children.  

 

There are as many different creation stories as there are cultures in the world.  Even if one chooses to believe one as the literal truth about the beginnings of humanity all of them have valuable insight into human nature. 

 

In the Filipino version everyone just wants a little peace and quiet.  The story of Adam and Eve has different lessons to be learned.  Of all the lessons I think one of the truest can be summed up in the words of Mark Twain, "There is a charm about the forbidden that makes it unspeakably desirable."

 

And of course, having a good marketing campaign never hurts.

 

 

Garden of Good and Evil

 

"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."

- Dr. Seuss

  

This may seem like a bit of a macabre subject to some, but stick with me and hopefully we'll find a meaningful message here.

 

Our subject here isn't really focused on death itself.  The subject for today is more about saying goodbye, about cemeteries and funerals.  Perhaps that is one thing that all people, everywhere, understand. 

 

Some of the earliest archeological finds include funeral objects.  There are some classifications of early cultures that include the methods and manners in which we say goodbye to the departed.

 

There is also an old expression, "funerals are for the living."  In a culture that professes to believe in an after life in which our good deeds are rewarded it can be difficult to balance our grief at the loss of a loved one from our lives with joy that they have gone on to their final reward. 

 

Many people believe that funerals and related activities are strictly human endeavors.  Yet I recall seeing a documentary about meerkats that would seem to indicate otherwise.  One of their troop had been fatally wounded, and the troop lined up one by one to say goodbye. It seemed obvious from their behavior that they understood, at some level, that their friend was leaving them.

 

Over the centuries different cultures have said their good byes in many different ways.  In New Orleans the funeral procession takes the loved one to the cemetery in a sad, slow march with suitably morose music.  Once the dearly departed has been laid to rest the tone and tempo become more joyous and upbeat, to celebrate the life that has left them.

 

In many ways funerals and cemeteries also say to the mourners, he hasn't really left.  There is a reminder that the spirit in some way remains as long as we keep them in our hearts.

 

Early funerals included many objects with the burial intended to be used in the afterlife.  Everything from the mundane, such as favored dish wear, to the sublime, such as beloved jewelry, was sent off with the deceased for their personal use.

 

Cemeteries are full of expressions of love for those missing.  Some of the most beautiful art work adorns cemeteries. From headstones with simple, inspiring images and text, angels, and head stones shaped like trees.

 

There are also many stories in the garden of good and evil.  There are stories of children who passed way to early, and stories of couples with long full lives together.  Saints and sinners lie together, awaiting their final judgement.

 

Of course, one of the most important religions today had it's beginnings in a cemetery.  As important and inspiring as the life and words of Christ are, it is his rising from the dead that is the central mystery of Christianity.

 

It is also very natural that many cemeteries are part of the grounds of a church, especially in rural areas.  The relationship between the church and the people, between the grounds and the land, speaks volumes about the life, the hopes, and the fears of the people.  Many people in rural America, even 30 or 40 years ago, were baptized in the local church, and laid to rest years later in the cemetery next to it.

 

And here is where I will rest my point.  Funerals are for the living, and so are cemeteries.  They provide people with that something tangible that is so important to hold on to in our grief.

 

A place, unchanging.

Be There or Be Square

“All religions, arts and sciences are branches of the same tree.  All these aspirations are directed toward ennobling man’s life, lifting it from the sphere of mere physical existence and leading the individual towards freedom.”

- Albert Einstein, “Moral Decay”, 1937

Any list of “must see” places in Iowa would be woefully incomplete without including the Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend.  Although essentially a religious shrine anyone who visits will be moved at this amazing display of one man’s devotion.

This multi-layered complex of grottos was the expression of gratitude to Mother Mary by Father Paul Dobberstein.  It consists primarily of a number of interconnected grottos occupying multiple levels, connected by ramps and stairs that sometimes wind through the massive structure.

 

Built by hand of rocks, precious, and semi-precious stones the Grotto seems out of place in the cornfields of Northwestern Iowa.  The structure of the complex includes agate, amethyst, azurite, malachite, drusy quartz, calcite, barite, jasper, and even petrified wood.  The stones come from all over the world, including Oklahoma, Brazil, and the Andes Mountains.

As a young seminarian Father Dobberstein was stricken with a severe case of pneumonia.  He prayed to the Virgin Mary to intercede, and eventually recovered from his illness.

In 1898 Father Dobberstein was assigned to Sts. Peter and Paul church in West Bend, Iowa.  There he began stock piling the stones and rocks he would need for his vision.  Construction of the Grotto began in 1912.

Father Dobberstein did have help with his labors.  In 1912 Matt Szerensce, straight from high school, took a job as grotto collaborator, and started a 52 year career of intense labor.  No one knows for sure how many total hours the two men worked, but every stone of the grotto was lifted by hand.

When Father Dobberstein was 74 years old Father Greving was sent to West Bend to take over Dobberstein's clerical duties.  Father Dobberstein was eventually called home, on July 24th, 1954.  Greving and Szerensce continued the work.  In 1959 Matt Szerensce finally retired.
 

The complex is made of 9 separate Grottos, each depicting a scene in the life of Christ.  A moving depiction of Mother Mary holding the body of Jesus beneath the cross adorns the peak of the structure.  Statues include not only the birth and crucifixion of Jesus, but Adam and Eve being expelled from the Garden, and Moses presenting the Commandments. The complex also includes a garden area to sit in quiet contemplation.

The Grotto grounds includes not only the Grotto itself and Sts Peter and Paul Church, but also includes a campground, a café,  and a gift shop.  Between the Grotto and the campgrounds a small pond is home to a flock of swans.

Also on the grounds is a museum with it’s own collection of gem stones.  They also show a video depicting the history of the Grotto.

 

The Grotto of the Redemption is not only the largest man made grotto in the world, it is also the largest collection of precious stones and gems in the world.  A definite must see in Iowa, it is estimated that 100,000 tourists have visited the Grotto.

Oscar Wilde wrote, “No great artist ever sees things as they really are.  If he did, he would cease to be an artist.”  We can be forever grateful to Father Dobberstein for sharing his vision.

 

And if you go, say hi to the swans for me.

Greenbelt

 

"I like this place and could willingly waste my time in it."

- William Shakespeare

 

 

One of my favorite places to go and shoot is the Greenbelt Park in Clive, Iowa.  The park is just a few minutes drive from work, so it's a great place to spend my lunch time.

 

Readers from the Des Moines area may be familiar with the Greenbelt Park, the rest of you will I hope enjoy the photos.  (Hint: click on any photo to view the photos as a slide show). 

 



 

The Greenbelt Park straddles Walnut Creek as it meanders through Clive, Iowa.  The bike trail that runs through the park continues to the east down through Water Works Park and all the to downtown.  To the west the trail continues on to Waukee and the Raccoon Valley Trail.



 For those looking to see deer, here's my advice on the best place to go and get up close and personal.  Go to the Greenbelt entrance at 86th Street, by the 7 Flags Fitness Center.  Follow the road into the woods to the shelter house. 

From there head to the west until you get to the side trail that leads to Lincoln Ave (there should be a park bench there).  Look for the tree shaped like a number 4.

 

To your right, just in front of the tree, is a small trail.  Follow it, and keep your eyes open for deer, squirrels, foxes, and in season herons nesting along the creek.

For mallard duck enthusiasts the best place to spot them is just east of the 86th Street bridge over Walnut Creek.  Go about 30 yards, then start watching the creek!

There's plenty of wildlife in the woods of the trail, and you can get surprisingly close to some of them.  Most of them are semi-acclimated to people, so if you're not too loud or scary you should be able to get close.

The Clive portion of the Greenbelt runs from the near the Windsor Heights Wal-Mart to almost 149th Street in Clive.  On a good day a two or three hour hike will get you from one end to the other.  If you're not feeling that energetic there are plenty of parking areas along the way.

All the photos in today's blog were taken along the Greenbelt Trail.  So if you're in the Des Moines area take the time to have your own little adventure.  Until then, enjoy the show!