April 17 - Reedwood Friends Church -T sez...

This week we went to a church that my sister had belonged to years ago. My niece still goes to this church. I had K drive to my house and drove from here and we were going to meet my niece there. K arrived right on time at my house - I am so proud of her. I think my strong hints have gotten through to her...

So, we headed out and of course we were there about half an hour early so we went and K got some coffee - I already had my quota for the day.

My niece called to say she would be late, and to go in and have a seat in the back so we would be easy to find. So that made the decision for us because as you know K likes the front and I like the back of the church.

When we entered the church it looked exactly how I remembered it. A little older, and a little more worn out. The first thing we did, oh, I mean K did, was use the restroom. She has now used the restroom at every church we have been at so now I am like, "how was it?" and she said, "nice and clean."

In the front area of the church (lobby?) they had a lot of display boards (you know, those boards we all have had to use for our kids' science projects). There were sign up sheets for camps, retreats, dinners, and all the events at the church coming up so looked at them to see what was up.

So we decided to go into the church and have a seat. We sat in the very last row. We both went kerplunk and sat down to realize that it was just a wooden pew with a little fabric covering (1970's orange). We fell hard onto the seat and we both just kinda looked at each other. Definitely not comfortable. I never thought anything could be more uncomfortable than a wooden bench, but a wooden bench with a little fabric covering was worse. I think Quakers belive Jesus suffered for us so we can suffer for Him.

The people started entering the church dressed casual - I just can't get over how casual people dress. In fact, this guy who must have been about twenty years old walked in barefoot. He ended up being part of the worship group - he played the bongos. The musicians were him, a guitar player and someone playing the piano. They sang about four songs.

For me it was really hard to focus on the service because the last time I was there it was for my sister's funeral, and then the time before that it was my mom's funeral so just sat there are remembered the funerals.

The minister got up and talked. The way he talked was simple and easy to understand. Later my niece texted me to say that she forgot to tell me that he was not the original minister but instead, he was the children's minister. I was like, great, no wonder I understood every word.

After the minister talks they have a time of silence, about 15 minutes or so, where if you feel the urge you can stand up and say whatever you have to say. About four people got up and spoke. You then continue to sit in silence. When I was younger and had attended this church that part made me uncomfortable. Now I really enjoyed it - just to sit and pray and medidate - it was great. I saw some people who had appeared to have fallen asleep, God knows how they could sleep on those lightly covered benches.

Then after they took up the offerings and then they had announcements. K pointed out to me that they did not pray out loud together, all of the other churches we had been to so far had done that.

So, to sum it all up, I can't say I really enjoyed it. It felt flat to me. I don't know any other way to explain it. It also probably didn't help that I felt a deep sadness when I was there. Nobody wants to relive their mom's and sister's funeral. They were two great women in my life and I miss them with every fiber in my body and soul.