Overall, I must say that I live a fairly ordinary life, and because of this I am reluctant to write about the details of my day to day existence.  Usually, it’s  just not that interesting, not even to me.  But, maybe it’s time to try to capture some of that minutiae for my memory’s sake, if not for the sake of posterity.

Anyway, today was pretty typical.  It began with a bad night of sleeping.  About two years ago I bought a new mattress and for a while it seemed to help.  No more, it seems.  I woke up almost every hour on the hour and sometimes on the half hour as well.  Tossing and turning, literally and figuratively, since my dreams (which I cannot remember now) also troubled my rest, I finally got up around 7:30 am and started the day.

I made a few pastoral visits today, including one with Ruth.  She is the mother of my church’s Lay Leader, and not too long ago on a similar visit, she told me that she considered me one of her sons.  This was a high honor for me since Ruth is a genuinely good person in my book, and since her real sons and I bear an uncanny resemblance to each other (we’re all tall, big men), it is also a little appropriate.  During my 20 years in ministry, I have had the privilege of feeling I belong to a few families along the way, and the Waters’ family has been one of those families during my time here at First Church.

This reality makes it even harder for me to see Ruth as I saw her today.  She is battling pneumonia for the third time in a couple of months, and this time it looks as though it will win out.  She has lost a lot of weight, and over the last few months she has also become less communicative.  Her mind has been failing her as well.  Today she was totally non-responsive.  After two days in the CCU, Ruth has been moved to a regular hospital room and is being made as comfortable as possible for what will surely be the last few days of her life.

And while the family may not agree with my sentiments, I prayed for her and asked that God would take her from this life into his loving and eternal arms.  I asked that her passing might be quick and painless, and I also prayed that the family would find some measure of peace and comfort in their worry and grief over their loved one.  It seemed the right thing to do.  After leaving a note telling the family I had been there, I left and made my way to two other pastoral visits.

Ruth is not the only person I know facing mortality.  Another member of my church was diagnosed with Cancer this past week, and there is nothing the doctors or surgeons can really do for him, except to lessen his pain.  Though he seems in good spirits, I know this news is extremely troubling to his wife and sister and children.  I only hope that I can be of some help to him and them in the coming days, weeks and months.

I spent about two hours today working through the church directory, making corrections and getting a rough draft ready for review, and then I ended my work day with a church meeting.  As far church meetings go, it was painless and brief, and for that I am grateful.  My patience for meetings of any kind is pretty short, and so I was glad that we seemed to get several things done quickly. 

In addition to these things, I wrote a couple of emails to some friends, called my lovely daughter Desiree, spoke briefly to my mom, and rescheduled going to see Star Trek with a friend to tomorrow evening.  The highlight of my day was definitely making my daughter laugh a little over the phone (This is often the case).  I teased her about her liking Star Trek (which she saw with her mom) and asked her about the upcoming weekend (during which she will attend her boyfriend’s prom).  Needless to say, she is excited about this, and I guess in a way I am too.

So there you have, one day in the life of yours truly.  As I said, not very exciting.  I am sure their are many people, even pastors, out there, who live much more eventful lives.  But this one is mine, and for the most part, I am content with it.  It may not be what others would want, but it’s not bad as far as lives go, so I guess I will keep it as long as I can.

Pray for Ruth and Bill, if you have a chance.  And if you have more than a moment of two, pray for their families as well.