What a difference a week makes. Last week at Sunday meeting, I was alone in our 300 year old Meeting House for the hour of meeting. I played the piano as I usually do. Actually, when I am alone with just 300 years of Quaker ghosts, I take more chances and explore more musical ideas than I would if I was simply playing gentle background music while people settled into the silence. There is a clock above the piano with a loud and regular tick tock, and so at times I use the clock as my rhythm section, and play something in tempo with the clock. This day, I picked up a 100 year old book of hymms, and leafed through them. I can't read music, except at an excruciating slow pace. At that pace it is no longer music but simply aural torture, for me and the listener. So I don't do that when others are in the room either. But, I have the gift of being able to simply sit down and improvise at the piano ... and so this morning I leafed through that old hymnal and made up my own music to the lyrics in the hymnal. And after working through a few verses, I would settle on a version that I liked, and play it through, and sing along. Then I would work through the actual song to see what the composer thought it should sound like. It was never even close to what my version sounded like. But fun for me to improvise and come up with music that was hymn-like rather than jazz oriented.
When no one is there, I tend to play the piano longer, before leaving the bench and settling in to the silence. It was still cold last week so I sat next to the gas stove. I am silent but not settled these days. We are supposed to be celebrating the 300th anniversary of the construction of the original portion of this Meeting House, but there are so few of us to do anything. If it is going to be done, then I need to do it. So I sit there in silence, but when I am alone, my thoughts drift to all that needs to be done there. Dealing with the bats in the attic. The plastering and painting. Exterior painting and repairs. Electrical work. Where can I find scaffolding. Repairing the driveway. Replacing the sign that blew down over the winter. Righting the fallen stones in the burying ground. Getting the blower to work on the stove. The piano needs to be tuned. If we had an electrical outlet there we could plug in the internal heater and it would hold its tune. Need to check in the basement and see if we can bring a line up. Would love an outdoor faucet so we don't have to carry water from the bathrooms. Need to come up with a theme for Historic Newtown Square Day in June. And on and on. It is not restful or worhsipful when I am there alone. Yet I know I am not alone. People have been coming to this spot for 300 years to worship. There are times when I feel their physical presence in the meeting house. I did this morning - they are sitting in silent expectation - and they are asking me whether this is going to be the last year that we have an active meeting in Newtown Square. I don't have a good answer for them. I leave unsettled that morning.
But this past Sunday, there were others there, just a few, but that was an improvement. Worshiping in the presence of others ... whenever two or more are gathered in his name. I still fight to get into a deeper silence, but with others there, it is an easier trip. Afterwards, I talked about our need to come up with a theme for Historic Newtown Square Day. And then in talking about it, I stumbled over a good idea, that led to another and another. The others joined in the discussion. We agreed - a great idea - if we can follow up and find out whether it can actually be done. I leave uplifted, excited, with a purpose. I can't accomplish everything on my list, but I can try to put this good idea into play. And perhaps by doing so, I will find another person who may share this passion to keep this Meeting House alive for another 300 years. And if there are two of us, then there are likely to be more. And so I go out of the meeting house and into the sunlight refreshed, and energized, and aimed in a good direction.
“This place where you are right now
God circled on the map for you”
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