Up to the Mountain

Yesterday, I went up to The Mountain; the mountain that has inspired this blog – 6,684 Feet. Mount Mitchell tops the Black Mountain range in central Western North Carolina. Sitting near the eastern edge of the Appalachian Mountains, the Black Mountains rise boldly from the North Carolina Piedmont with 14 peaks over 6,000 feet in elevation. And, Mitchell is the tallest at 6,684 feet.

Hands and Feet - Reflections on a Weekend of Service

I will provide for you and I'll stand by your side

You'll need a good companion now for this part of the ride

Yeah, leave behind your sorrows, let this day be the last

Well, tomorrow there'll be sunshine and all this darkness past

- Land of Hope and Dreams, Bruce Spingsteen 

On the last Wednesday of summer, our group pulls out of the parking lot of Galilee United Methodist Church in Sterling, Virginia, towing a trailer full of tools, building supplies and luggage. Our mission is to help rebuild a home that was damaged by Hurricane Sandy in October of 2012. With six able bodies on board, our destination is Bethel United Methodist Church on the southern tip of Staten Island. Bethel will be our bunk house for the next four nights.

Escape from Northern Virginia - Day 3

Just a few quick photos for today. We worked long and hard on days two and three. We finished we what came to do and a bit more. The homeowner expressed thanks for all we did and showed real appreciation for us being here. We are all tired, but feel good that we made a difference for this one family here on Staten Island.

Mike cuts a piece of casing for one of the windows.

On the Corner of Patterson Avenue – Escape from Northern Virginia, Day 2

Day two was a long one. We got started a bit after 9:00 AM but did not stop until sometime after 8:00 PM. Good progress was made. We finished casing out the windows, leveled out the living room sub-floor, installed most of the flooring in the living room, finished the doorway between the kitchen and bedroom, finished hanging the kitchen cabinets, finished the new wall area that we created when we installed the garden window in the kitchen and prepped the garden window to be cased. Plus, Bruce, our skilled carpenter, took a couple of hours to help do some tile work at another house on the island.

Escape from Northern Virgina - Day 1

Wednesday night a small team of folks from Galilee United Methodist church in Sterling Virginia piled into an SUV towing a small trailer and drove north for an early start to the final weekend of the summer. Our Labor Day destination was the New York City burough of Staten Island. Shortly before midnight, we arrived on the Southern tip of Staten Island and settled in at Bethel United Methodist Church for the night.

Counting Change

"A man can know his father, or his son, and there might still be nothing between them but loyalty and love and mutual incomprehension." - from Gilead by Marilynne Robinson

A couple of weeks ago, this 1949 quarter emerged when we converted my loose change into an Amazon gift card at our local Coinstar machine. Besides being old, this quarter is of value because it is 90% silver. Until 1974, many US coins contained some silver. Quarters stopped being made from silver in 1965. The internet tells me this quarter is worth between three and four dollars. For me, for a brief moment, it was worth a lot more.

A Curiosity That Was Once Familiar

My wife, my daughter and I wandered into the Curious Iguana as we explored downtown Frederick, MD this past Saturday afternoon. My response to being in the Curious Iguana, a small independent bookstore, took me off guard. I felt like I imagine a former smoker might feel walking into a smoke filled room, but in a good way. I was reminded of a past addiction and cherished the brief reminder of the happiness it used to bring.

Getting Real in the Safeway Checkout Line

I was reminded this morning of why I almost never go to Safeway. As I started a busy day, I ran into Safeway for a couple of things. When I got to the checkout, there was one line open and it was backed up with folks with full carts. My immediate reaction was, "Great, now I am going to start the day off behind." Before I left the store, my mind was changed.

World Cup Connections

With the 2014 World Cup beginning tomorrow, I am reminded of my own World Cup experience. Eight years ago I spent the better part of June in Germany for work, which coincided with the 2006 World Cup. All of Germany had World Cup fever. Just being in Germany at the same time as the World Cup was a great experience, but my experience did not end there.

It was nearly impossible not to be drawn into the excitement. Every restaurant, bar, beer hall and hotel lobby had a brand new HDTV tuned to the action. On the day the Brits were in Nuremberg to play Trinidad and Tobago, I happened to be in town. The British fans overran the city. By mid-morning, Nuremberg's historic Hauptmarkt was packed with Brits in pre-match, drunken revelry. It was later reported that there were more Brits outside Nuremberg’s Frankenstadion than there were in the stadium for the match. I was told that there was an official list of British hooligans whose passports were confiscated to keep them from showing up in Germany for the Cup and raising too much hell. Those Brits are serious about their football.

I actually got to attend the World Cup knockout stage match between Portugal and the Netherlands in Nuremburg. When we got inside the stadium and to our seats, I was overwhelmed by the dynamic, energized feel of the stadium fueled by screaming groups of orange clad Dutch and burgundy clad Portuguese fans scattered around Frankenstadion. As I surveyed the stadium, I also noticed heavy duty fences between the sections of the stadium. I asked one of my German colleagues about the fences. He explained to me that the fences keep the visitor and home team fans separated from one another to keep riots from breaking out during hotly contested matches. I scanned our section again, noting groups of orange and burgundy clad fans sitting side by side.

The match was intense and was later nicknamed The Battle of Nuremberg. Portugal won 1-0, but not before a record number of red and yellow cards were issued. Late in the match, Portugal pushed the ball out of bounds to allow an injured Dutch player to get off the pitch. When the Netherlands brought the ball back in bounds, they kept the ball instead of passing it back to Portugal as is expected in a case like this. This sent the tension level in the stadium through the roof and because it was the World Cup those fences were not separating the fans of the two teams. It got a bit scary and I took note of the shortest route to the exit. In the end, I suppose I can thank Budweiser for being the exclusive World Cup beer vendor which kept the drinking down and the fans' tempers just in check.

While going to a World Cup elimination match was an incredible experience, my favorite World Cup experience came when I spent a weekend in Southern Bavaria’s Füssen. After a day exploring Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss Hohenschwangua, I went to the hotel bar for a beer and to take in some World Cup action on the HDTV. It was a small place and I ended up at a table with a mixed group of locals and tourist. I managed to make conversation with the folks at the table using the little bit of German I knew and giving them a chance to practice their English. The US was playing Italy. And, as I recall, it seemed like everyone was cheering for the USA. It was really a fun night with the US playing the Italians to a 1-1 draw.

As I look back on that night, I realize that this is what the World Cup gives us. There we sat; a group of strangers, having a few beers, communicating as best we could through language barriers, collectively cheering for team USA. And, just for a couple hours, we connected with one another. So, now it begins again as it does once every four years. For a few weeks, people around the world will focus their attention on Brazil and the World Cup. The level of play will be superb, the competition will be fierce and the end result will be a true world champion. And, many times over in bars, coffee shops, and restaurants around the world, strangers will gather to watch and cheer. And, just maybe, they too will connect.