Thursday September 15, 2022
I’m looking at a relic. No, not the bones of some ancient saint. Or a corpse, mummified in a peat bog or frozen in a glacier.
This relic is a blue-and-white porcelain teapot.
We gave it to my father’s second wife, Christina Fraser, for Christmas one year. Blue and white were Chris’s favourite colours. We found this teapot in Eaton’s, when Eaton’s still existed. She loved it.
Then she wanted to ship it home safely from Toronto to Vancouver. She didn’t trust her suitcase to protect it from Air Canada’s baggage handlers. So she took it back to Eaton’s, figuring they had the expertise.
“Sorry, we can’t do that,” she was told.
“Why not?” Chris demanded. “Your advertising says you’ll ship anything to anywhere.”
“Only for new purchases,” came the reply.
Chris’s face settled into determined lines: “Your policy also offers a moneyback guarantee.”
The Eaton’s rep agreed.
“Then I want to return this teapot,” said Chris. “For a full refund,” she added.
After she had the money in her hand, she said, “Now I want to buy a teapot. This one,” she said, picking up the teapot she had just returned. “Which, according to your policy, you will ship to me in Vancouver.”
Chris Fraser died 40 years ago. I still have her teapot. It sits on a shelf and gathers dust. I probably should give it to my church’s Thrift Shop. I keep it for the story.
“Just take a picture,” a friend suggested. “Then you’ll remember the story every time you look at that picture.”
Somehow, a picture isn’t the same as the thing itself. I can tell the story better when I’m holding that teapot in my hands.
And that must be enough…
Here’s another story, shortened for space.
When crisis threatened Polish Jews, rabbi Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Jewish Hasidism, used to go to a spot in the woods, light a fire, and say a special prayer. And God always responded.
Years later, a disciple of Baal Shem Tov faced another crisis. He didn’t know the sacred words anymore, but he went to the spot in the woods, and lit a fire. And God responded.
More years passed. Again, the Jews faced a crisis. And another disciple went into the woods. But he didn’t know the secret place, or the sacred words, so he lit a fire anyway. And God responded.
Finally, when faced with yet another crisis, the rabbi at the time went into his study, and sat in his chair, and buried his face in his hands, and said, “I do not know the secret place, and I do not know the sacred words, and I do not have a fire to light, but I know the story, and that must be enough.”
And it was.
Stories are special. Eaton’s probably sold thousands of those blue-and-white teapots. They all had the same design. And contained the same chemicals. And they all fitted into a comprehensive economic analysis of supply and demand, of profit and loss.
But only one of them carries that story.
Chris Fraser and my father are both long dead. The teapot helps me remember their story.
And that must be enough.
*****************************************
Copyright © 2022 by Jim Taylor. Non-profit use in congregations and study groups, and links from other blogs, welcomed; all other rights reserved.
To comment on this column, write jimt@quixotic.ca
*****************************************
YOUR TURN
Last week’s story of the inflatable kayak tickled a few of your funny bones. “I'm still laughing,” wrote old friend Janie Wallbrown.
Tom Watson offered encouragement: “Keep paddling”
“I think I brought the same model inflatable,” wrote Rob Dummermuth, “with much the same assessment.”
“Air inflated watercraft are fun when the wind is at your back,” agreed Bob Rollwagen. He then explained his own preferences: “I like the floating sheets, no air, no paddle, just an anchor so you can pretend you are on an island in an ocean meditating.”
Isabel Gibson had some advice: “ On an encouraging note, yes, being on the water is worth the effort.
“On a practical note, you might look into the narrow (fibreglass?) kayaks with an outrigger pod - super stable, maneuverable, and light enough to be carried by one person. Cheap? I don't expect so.”
And this from Wilda Bostwick: “I thoroughly enjoyed your blog about your adventures in your inflatable kayak, and the trials and tribulations before the eventual triumph of actually getting somewhere in it. I suggest that the value you got out of its tenure with you, however brief it may be, fully justified the impulse purchase. Thank you for sharing the story and your gleanings with us. I'm still chuckling.”
*****************************************
Psalm paraphrase
I dedicate this paraphrase of Psalm 79 to all who have suffered vandalism or violence.
1 They didn't have to do this, God.
The broken glass, the spray paint, the upholstery slashed, the tables turned upside down.
2 They even killed the canary.
Do they call this fun?
3 They dumped the contents of the cabinets on the floor, and flung our precious books against the walls.
There is no way we can clean up this mess.
4 Do they really hate us this much?
What did we do to offend them?
5 If they need someone to vent their anger on, why not dump on those who deserve it?
6 Let them lash out at economic systems that protect money and penalize jobs;
at competition that grabs from the weak and gives to the strong;
at governments who sell their countries to balance their budgets.
8 How can they hold us accountable for the attitudes of our grandparents?
9 Merciful God, give us the courage to carry on.
You can find paraphrases of most of the psalms in the Revised Common Lectionary in my book Everyday Psalmsavailable from Wood Lake Publishing, info@woodlake.com.
*******************************************
TECHNICAL STUFF
If you want to comment on something, send a message directly to me, jimt@quixotic.ca.
To subscribe or unsubscribe, send an e-mail message to jimt@quixotic.ca. Or you can subscribe electronically by sending a blank e-mail (no message or subject line) to softedges-subscribe@lists.quixotic.ca. Similarly, you can un-subscribe at softedges-unsubscribe@lists.quixotic.ca.
I write a second column each Sunday called Sharp Edges, which tends to be somewhat more cutting about social and justice issues. To sign up for Sharp Edges, write to me directly, jimt@quixotic.ca, or send a note to sharpedges-subscribe@lists.quixotic.ca
And for those of you who like poetry, please check my webpage .https://quixotic.ca/My-Poetry If you’d like to receive notifications about new poems, write me at jimt@quixotic.ca, or subscribe yourself to the list by sending a blank email (no message) to poetry-subscribe@lists.quixotic.ca (If it doesn’t work, please let me know.)
********************************************
PROMOTION STUFF
To use the links in this section, you’ll have to insert the necessary symbols. Some spam filters have blocked my posts because they’re suspicious of some of the web links.
Wayne Irwin's “Churchweb Canada,” an inexpensive service for any congregation wanting to develop a web presence, with free consultation. http://wwwDOTchurchwebcanadaDOTca He’s also relatively inexpensive!
I recommend Isabel Gibson’s thoughtful and well-written blog, wwwDOTtraditionaliconoclastDOTcom. She also has lots of beautiful photos. Especially of birds.
Tom Watson writes a weekly blog called “The View from Grandpa Tom’s Balcony” -- ruminations on various subjects, and feedback from Tom’s readers. Write him at tomwatsoATgmailDOTcom (NB that’s “watso” not “watson”)
ALVA WOOD’S ARCHIVE
I have acquired (don’t ask how) the complete archive of the late Alva Wood’s collection of satiric and sometimes wildly funny columns about a mythical village’s misadventures. I’ve put them on my website: http://quixotic.ca/Alva-Wood-Archive. You’re welcome to browse. No charge. (Although maybe if I charged a fee, more people would find the archive worth visiting.)