by Rev. Phil | May 30, 2023 | Sabbatical Blog
Boy, did I goof up yesterday. Thank you to the person who pointed out that in my blog about bike riding, I wrote that I was peddling my bike, not pedalling my bike. To be clear, I was riding it, not selling it. Oops. We all make mistakes. That’s why...
by Rev. Phil | May 30, 2023 | Sabbatical Blog
I took a break from blogging for a bit. Needed to focus on a few other things. Sorry. Last week I was up north and decided to try something new. I went bike riding on some of the back roads of Muskoka. I discovered and learned a few things. Firstly, I...
by Rev. Phil | May 19, 2023 | Sabbatical Blog
I just finished reading a really good book called, “Between Two Kingdoms” by Suleika Jaouad. It is the story of a young woman’s journey through cancer. Diagnosed with a very aggressive form of leukemia at just 23 years old, Suleika was forced to confront...
by Rev. Phil | May 18, 2023 | Sabbatical Blog
A luxury that I can rarely afford while I am working is taking a daily walk in the woods. But now that I have the gift of time, the forest beckons. Daily. And it never disappoints, especially as the trilliums are in the height of their short but...
by Rev. Phil | May 17, 2023 | Sabbatical Blog
I stopped by the church yesterday to pick something up, and someone had left me a gift. It’s not my birthday, nor it is it a holiday. The gift was a “just because” gift. They are the best ones. At the bottom of the tissue paper was a box of...
by Rev. Phil | May 15, 2023 | Sabbatical Blog
Now that the Leafs and the Oilers are out of the playoffs, I can switch my attention to more seasonally appropriate sports. Last night I had my first softball game. It is my second year playing on the “Benchwarmers”. Don’t let the name fool you. We won the...
by Rev. Phil | May 14, 2023 | Sabbatical Blog
On Mother’s Day 1956, Rev. Peter Marshall an American Presbyterian church and chaplain to the U.S. Senate told the following story: There was once a quiet forest dweller who lived high above an Austrian village along the eastern slope of the Alps. The old gentleman...
by Rev. Phil | May 13, 2023 | Sabbatical Blog
Did it or didn’t it cross the line? Leaf fans will be debating that for days, weeks, even years to come. If you ask me, it was a goal, but there are plenty of people (including the referees) who will tell you it wasn’t. In the end, it doesn’t really...
by Rev. Phil | May 12, 2023 | Sabbatical Blog
Waiting is a requirement in life, patience while waiting is a gift. I am spending my afternoon waiting in the Hyundai dealership for an oil change and to get my snow tires off (I know it’s mid-May, don’t judge me). Best guess is I will be waiting for about...
by Rev. Phil | May 11, 2023 | Sabbatical Blog
I have shared before my love of going to the dump. It is one of life’s true joys, at least for me it is. There is nothing like tossing things over that metal rail and hearing them crash into the bins below. And today the dump did not disappoint when...