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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1997-07-30, Page 12PAGE 12. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JULY 30, 1997 From the Minister’s Study Where is home? By Rev. Chris Johnson Brussels and Ethel United Churches Where is home? This is a question that has puzzled me for many years. What exactly does it mean to be "home"? It's an easy question to answer when you've stayed in one place all your life, but if you've moved as much as I have, I struggle with finding what for me would surely be called "home". I've been thinking about this question a lot as the people of Brussels get ready for their special homecoming this weekend. The streets are festooned with red and white streamers, and the store windows are full of photographs, newspaper articles and lots of "old stuff'. People are excited about celebrating the 125th anniversary of the village. There's going to be so much happening this weekend, that no one person will ever be able to take it all in. I have chosen a vocation (or perhaps it chose me, I'm not sure) in which I am faced with the reality of moving. Yet, even before I became involved in the work of the church, I had moved a great deal. I often despair at the reality of never really being able to put down the kind of deep roots that grow when you've called the same patch of earth home for your whole lives. Yet, there is a patch of dirt that, of all the places on earth, is the first thing that I think of when I say the word "home". It's the place where I feel the most connected to the past, to my foremothers and forefathers, to the church and to the community around it. There are people who have known me my whole life, who have watched me grow up, marry, have children and embark on my new career as an ordained minister. That place is the Johnson Farm. RR 5, Wallaceburg, ON N8A 4L2. My great-grandfather Johnson first homesteaded this place in about 1884. Down the concession, my maternal great-grandparents Gonyou homesteaded their farm. Down our concession, turn left and go down about two miles, another set of maternal great-grandparents Elliott homesteaded their farm. Yet, I only lived full time on this piece of earth for 17 years. And to be honest, I couldn't' get away fast enough. Our land is flat, flat, flat, on the northern edge of Kent County. At that time I thought it was boring; there were no hills in sight. Too, the work was hard. Planting, hoeing and picking tomatoes. Hoeing the beans and the corn. Bringing in the hay to a stinking hot barn full of dust. Feeding the chickens and gathering the eggs. I rarely was able to get off the bus from school and just lounge around. There was always a job that needed doing. So, off I went to university, eager to discover the world away from the farm. And thus began my odyssey of moving. Toronto, Ottawa, Toronto. Graduated with a Bachelor of Journalism. Got married. Belleville, Kingston, Pasadena (Newfoundland), Hagersville, and now, Walton. I work in the area of Brussels and Ethel. I visit hospitals in Wingham, Seaforth, Clinton, Stratford and London. As I have grown older, the place of my birth is becoming beautiful. The sunsets light up the big sky that forms a 360 degree dome over your head. The shape of the white clouds against the blue sky is like no other canvas I know. An undulating field of wheat next to a tall, vibrant green field of corn creates a picture of which there is no equal. The homes with their well-tended flower beds, their gardens, the trees, and the homes where people lay their heads. I long for home, this farm I call "home" with mixed feelings. It seems rather silly and juvenile to cling to some romantic notion of some sort of vacation farm where one never has to raise a sweat or nurse an aching back. This "home" is a vision of nostalgia, of longing for a place, within the uncertainty of my own life journey, which I am sure will always be there. It's not a realistic hope. This farm is like any commodity. It can be bought and sold. My brother Phillip owns it now, but there are no assurances that he will be able to keep i* forever. And if this piece of dirt was ever to pass into another's hands, where will my precious "home" be then. Kathleen Norris, in her book Dakota: A Spiritual Geography, writes this: "The word 'geography' derives from the Greek words for earth and writing, and writing about Dakota has been my means of understanding that inheritance and reclaiming what is holy in it." My job as an ordained minister means that I get to do a lot of writing, and contemplating and reflecting on the world around me, and how it affects our lives from a faith perspective. So perhaps by looking at the earth, our home, and writing about it, I can begin to trace my own spiritual geography - all of those places that I carry within me as I proceed upon this journey of life. Writing offers to me an opportunity to understand the dilemma of what it means to be "home" and to try to reclaim the holy within any given situation in which I find myself. I have only lived in his area for one year and to be honest, I'm not really sure if I feel at home. I still struggle with the feeling that home is always someplace else, that I spend a lot of energy thinking of everywhere but where I actually am. I wonder if this is a dilemma in which many of us find ourselves. Where is home? If we're coming from Toronto to be a part of the Brussels Homecoming, what do we answer when we are asked "Where's home?" Yet, my dilemma is that I will never be able to completely "choose" my home. Our last three moves were decided for us, and I have lived in three houses that I did not choose, two of which I didn't see until the moment that we moved in. So how do we define home when we are perpetual outsiders, sojourners, visitors - even if we decide to stay here 20 years? Kathleen Norris finds a great deal of inspiration from the desert fathers, a group of fourth-century monks who lived in monasteries in the deserts of the Middle East. One of those monks, Evagrius, writes that "most of one's troubles come from distracting 'thoughts of one's former life' that don't allow us to live in the present." His basic principle of desert survival: "not only to know where you are but to leant to love what you find there." As part of a generation that moves a lot, even despite my "moving" vocation, this may be a key to finding home. Perhaps "home" is simply, as the Webster's dictionary says, "a place where one lies". As a minister, "home" is wherever God calls me to serve. I believe that, no matter what our work here on earth, God calls us to it. And so, I have come to realize that "home" is the place that God calls me to be. It is wherever I am. It is the present, not the past, nor the future. It is not there. It is here. And yet, I can't help but have a special place in my heart for my very first "home". It is a sacred place, in a way, the centre of my universe. It is the only place that I know that calls me back to it continually. And so, I am home here in Walton and Brussels. But, I also have a home near Wallaceburg. And some of us are lucky enough to call them one and the same. We all carry within us a mental map of our own spiritual geography, the places we have been, the special place(s) where we grew up. These are the places where God has called us to be. This weekend, Brussels is calling to all those for whom it was once a sacred place, that centre of the universe where everything (and nothing) seemed to happen, that place that we call "home". This is our chance to celebrate all that it means to us. And so while we yet ask, "Where's home for you?", we also say, "Welcome home." Adventure, action theme for summer Bible school By Veronica deVries Organizers of Vacation Bible School always wonder what kind of impact they have on the children they encounter. As many volunteers share their time and skills they pray that the truths they teach may have lasting influence on the little ones with whom they come into contact. I was one of those wondering and I believe my questions were answered one afternoon last week when I heard a bunch of youngsters singing (a little off-key) a catchy tune that was taught to them that morning at Vacation Bible School. It made me smile and caused me to believe that all the efforts had certainly been worthwhile. And a lot of effort it was! Last week the Christian Reformed Church, United Church and Church of God combined their talents and hosted a week long Vacation Bible School for approximately 130 enthusiastic children from pre­ kindergarten to Grade 6. The theme for this year was "Adventure Fair - God's Kids in Action". With a circus/fair type theme the first thing one noticed upon entering the church was the bright colours. Balloons hung everywhere, along with ribbons, streamers and colourful paper. The children added their own unique colours as each day was designated a specific colour day. It was really neat to see a sea of one Continued on page 15 ‘you are ‘Welcome at the BLYTH COMMUNITY CHURCH OF GOD 9:45 a.m. - Sunday School for Children and 11:00 a.m. - Morning Worship Phone 523-4590 McConnell St., Blyth MELVILLE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH BRUSSELS AUGUST 3, 1997 Homecoming & Ecumenical Service featuring Combined Churches & Community Choirs For information call 887-9831 We welcome you to come and worship with us. THE ANGLICAN CHURCH OF CANADA Stou are welcome this Sunday AUGUST 3 - PENTECOST 11 HOLY EUCHARIST Rev. Nancy Beale Trinity, Blyth - 9:30 a.m. Sunday No service at St. John's Homecoming service will be held at Melville Presbyterian Church, Brussels. Please join us for worship this Sunday Sunday Morning Service -10 a.m. Evening Service - 7:30 p.m. Rev. Adrian A. Van Geest will lead both services jVotv faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Jlebrews: 11:1 BLYTH CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH A Rev. Adrian A. Van Geest Hwy. 4, Blyth 523-9233 Wheelchair accessible The Blyth United Church will be meeting with The Blyth Community Church of God for the month of August Please join us there at 11 a.m. each Sunday for our Morning Worship August 17 is Visitation Sunday HURON CHAPEL EVANGELICAL MISSIONARY CHURCH PASTOR JAMES H. CARNE AUBURN 526-7515 ASSOCIATE PASTOR - YOUTH - JEREMY SHUART 523-9788 Sunday Monday Wednesday Friday 8:30 a.m. - Morning Worship Service 10:00 a.m. - Family Bible Hour 11 a.m. - Morning Worship Service 8 p.m. - Evening Service 7:30 p.m. - New Hope Support Group 7:30 p.m. - Prayer & Bible Study 7:30 p.m. - Youth BRUSSELS - ETHEL PASTORAL CHARGE UNITED CHURCH OF CANADA Rev. Christine Johnson - Minister Church Office 887-6259 Home 887-6540 Sunday, August 3 ’ Joint Service with Melville Presbyterian Church 11:00 a.m. Ecumenical Service In honour of Brussels Homecoming Melville Presbyterian Church ***** During Homecoming Weekend, Saturday, August 2 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. - Light Lunch - UCW - $4 adults, $2 under 12 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. - Open House of Church - Historical Display 1-4 p.m. - Self-guided Garden Tour - Purchase Map and Pamphlet at church - $3/person YOU ARE WARMLY INVITED TO ATTEND.