Miss Mary Mack


 

Over the weekend, I was in a converted old school house from the 1920’s.  This unique brick building was restored in great condition.  The floors in the banquet room and a couple other rooms were original to the building.  While we were waiting for dinner and music to start I was in the banquet room sitting on the stage with the original wood floors.  As I was there looking at the beautiful old floors, it took me back to  many years when this same girl many years younger was sitting on a very similar floor.

I instantly remember playing clapping games, “Miss Mary Mack, Mack, Mack.”  Hundreds of memories came pouring in.  I remember saying other rhymes as well but I do not recall them until I did a little research. “Miss Susie had a steamboat, the steamboat had a bell, and Miss Susie went to heaven…”  Memory triggers can be anything, a smell, a picture, a sight or music. 

It made me ponder.  Something as simple as an old wood floor can make the memories of elementary years long ago come back.  What a gift.  You know they say we remember moments not days.  I do not remember what days I sat on the old wood floor in the gym at Theresa A. Mulvey Elementary School, Westbrook, Connecticut, but I remember some of those moments. 

What things has God brought into our lives to help us recall simpler times?  What moments are the most precious when you look back and see God’s hand on your life? What moments are we making for our children?  What moments will we remember as our time draws short?

Cathedrals

Last year I was blessed by being able to travel to the U.K. The land of Harry Potter, the Queen, the Beatles, London and yes Cathedrals.  My family and I stayed in a town in Cambridgeshire, Ely pronounced Ee-lee.  Ely is famous for having one of the oldest and most unusual Cathedrals.  It does not matter what part of town you are in you can see the octagonal tower which makes it unique all over the village.  It was after my daughter visited this town that I decided to use this town as our hub for our stay. 

Ely is located about 1 hour north of London (via train) it a quaint village with a river front town and it is a very quiet village.  The people are very quiet and reserved.  I was blessed to attend 2 church services during my stay.  The first service was at a non-denominational church people were friendly and spent a lot of time before and after church talking to us and giving us hints on where locals go to eat.  The second service was at the Cathedral for the Sunday evening service –“Evensong”.  This service was very liturgical and very reverent.  I was so blessed to be among the attendants that evening.  More than 50% of attendants that evening were the ministers and the choir. 

In this Cathedral that dates back to the 1300’s it gave me pause to think of all the services and the reverence shown to God over the centuries.  It was such a solemn time.  I praise God that I was able to attend.  I was able to walk through several churches, abbeys and cathedrals during our stay. 

In the beautiful village of Bury St. Edmunds, we were able to walk through the gardens, ruins and abbey.  To say breathtaking is an understatement!  The experience still gives me pause when I recall it.  The abbey is in process of some restoration.  But the way men expressed their love and faith through the stained glass windows, the beautiful details of windows and passage ways gives my heart a boost.  These buildings took people not years but several life times of service to create. 

When I returned home from my trip I did a little more research on Cathedrals.  But then as life goes, it got really busy.  It was not until I attended a women’s conference some 7 months later and one of the speakers mentioned Cathedrals was my mind and spirit once again refocused on the detail and reverence within a cathedral. 

I ordered a history book on the Cathedrals of Great Britain.  I read with enthusiasm the minute in was in my hands.  (This is a type of book that only gets printed for now. It is not available on Kindle.) But sometimes there is a special purpose when holding a printed book.  Being able to see pictures, look at places I will probably never get to see in person.  I will be honest a lot of the vocabulary was more for an architect major but I made it with looking words up on my phone to understand a clearer meaning.

Just this past weekend, here in the states I got to see a chapel built in the 1950’s at College of the Ozarks in Hollister, MO.  This Christian college is very unique in that all students work on campus for their tuition.  I was captured by some of the gothic elements in this chapel that I had seen in U.K.

What captured me this time was that even though the chapel was beautiful from the outside, it is not until you enter a chapel or Cathedral that you do not get to assess its true beauty. Once inside the stained glass windows come to life. The colors and details are almost overwhelming.  The care and detail of each window must have taken years to create. 

Isn’t that how God is?  The outside of relationship looks beautiful and interesting, but it is not until you enter into a relationship with God that everything is stunning.  He opens our eyes to the world he created and the gifts he gave to men.  A relationship with God is breathtaking!

My love for Cathedrals is new.  I am a little obsessed that men dedicated lifetimes to respect and worship God through their crafts.  I am honored that I can visit them and be blessed. If you have a chance to visit one a Cathedral please do!