bierkergaard

Lina and I were married five years ago. It was a beautiful October Fall day. Crisp, sunny, cooler but not cold. April may be the cruelest month: I. THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD A PRIL is the cruellest month, breeding Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing Memory and desire, stirring Dull roots with spring rain. Winter kept us warm, covering 5 Earth in forgetful snow, feeding T.S. Eliot, The Wasteland But October is the most melancholic month. Halloween can be quite a spiritual observance about the cycles of life and death, growth and decay, and ultimately about letting go. We are not all in charge of the universe and the sooner we gain humility and gratefulness to God for every miraculous breath, our souls will worship more just than the stuff on the horizontal plane. When Lina were visiting location for our marriage ceremony and reception, we ran the gamut. From the low-budget firehouse to the mid-priced city building to the wondrous and pr

My dear wife Lina bought me an Alessi Espresso maker for my birthday. This model is included in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City....it is considered such a classic. I do believe that I will be having an Exhibition at the house Saturday morning before beginning the final leg of my painting trilogy. Should help with the pace, espresso rifling through my veins. Last week I wrote of "Absorbing Evil" and I utilized the image of a sponge. I had a couple of thoughtful replies that essentially commented that as Christians we do not have to just take it all the time without dishing out the Truth with a capital T. I also wrote a blog, with little spiritual application, about poured coffee. So, I like coffee, that much is true. Serving up anger in cool little cups. I concur...when I first became a Christian, I was quite shocked that Jesus was not exactly Mr. Rogers in his conflicts with his enemies. Calling an opponent a "Twice a Son of Hell" surely are fighting wor

OK, I admit it publicly...I am an Eagles fan. Being from the Philly area, I vote a straight ticket on my pro sports teams. All Philly. Cheesesteaks, Rocky, hoagies, burnt pretzels in shopping carts, the whole shebang. After a 2-4 start, the Eagles have certainly dug a pit for themselves to claw out of this year. They aren't that bad as the record would suggest, but they ain't that good either. At least not yet. The tide may turn. In fact, I am counting on it for today I bought an Eagles hat at K-Mart. I have been searching for a new hat with a Philly spin. The new Temple I hat I bought, the one size fits all, didn't fit my head. I think the Eagles may have been lulled into complacency by reading all of the preseason predictions of how great they were supposed to be. Fumbles, interceptions, missed tackles, blown field goals--at very inopportune times--suggests a team that believed themselves to be anointed. Now it is more dis-anointed. Complacency is a dangerous condition.

Sunday morning, after church. Square One coffee shop downtown beckoned like a bell. I drove trance like to the shop. Sunday mornings are nice in town...plenty of parking, the shop is more in chill mode. Not the weekday in-and-out I want my coffee now vibe. I ordered the Ethiopian Pour Over coffee and then stood entranced by the deliberate and delicate steps of the process. The general approach is go slow, coaxing the coffee beans to give her heart by wooing rather than scorching the grounds into compliance. One can taste the fear of coffee brewed badly. I wouldn't have the heart to ask for a Pour Over on a crowded Monday morning. Here is an essay in the New York Times about the Pour Over process. As I sat in the chair and slowly sipped the elixir down, I was reminded that going slower is so that we can rather go deeper.