sacred stories

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For over a year now, I have been studying sacred stories. Because this is called the "Pastor's Pen" (Column in the South Jetty) you might be expecting me to focus on THE Sacred Stories of Scripture. Of course those are sacred, but the new stories I've been studying over the past year are the stories of the people of Port Aransas, and of course I've focused mostly on the stories of people connected to Trinity by the Sea, but not exclusively. Some of the most amusing stories were told to me by our own Bill Anderson, before he died in November, about the old days in Port Aransas; stories about Lawnmower Ted who would pull his lawnmower into bars and "play it" like a musical instrument. Bill Anderson's stories usually landed with a diversity of characters getting along, and more: taking care of one another. Lawnmower Ted, the police, old hippies, colorful fisher-folk, and all the others who hung on especially during the sparse winter months in the old days.

The stories from our church community aren't all that different: in the early days, it was Dr. Jim Sharp's and Mr. Bill Ellis's job to go hit the beach and streets on Friday to find out if an Episcopal Priest was on vacation here that weekend, and then to enlist the priest for services on Sunday (Especially when we met at the Tarpon Inn.) Then there is the story of how a family rented their garage to artist Roy Fridge for something like $1 a month. Mr. Fridge was a sculptor, and worked with found items. He created the beautiful driftwood candlesticks and the cross we have in the church now. He found pieces of drift wood washed up on the beach, and put them together to make something beautiful.

Bill Anderson       Feb 19, 1951--Nov. 28, 2013
We have lost a lot of characters over the years, our own local "saints." Those characters like Lawnmower Ted, Dr. Jim Sharp, Mr. Bill Ellis, Artist Roy Fridge, and now, even our beloved brother Bill Anderson. I hope that remembering and knowing their sacred stories will open all of us to the reality that we are now the characters (and saints) to continue to walk in their footsteps. Someday, there will be stories about you and I. What stories will be told and remembered? How will we fit into the sacred stories of this island? Even if we aren't pushing lawnmowers into bars, what metaphoric music are we sharing with others, and how are we caring for one another?

Sacred stories tell us who we are as a community. As I learn the sacred stories of this place, I identify more and more with who we are, and I see how my own story begins to fit in with the others. We come from all over sorts of places, we stay for a short time or a long time, and we come from a diversity of backgrounds;  all of us who have "washed up" here are put together to make something beautiful.

I'm also studying the stories because Trinity by the Sea is preparing to celebrate our 50th Anniversary this year (with a big community celebration on March 1.) We are not the oldest church on the island by any means, but we have had 50 wonderful years here; that's worth celebrating! It's also an opportunity to begin to listen to God's vision for the next fifty years. Remembering the good things God has done for us in the past is a hint toward the good things God will be working through us in the future. It will probably have something to do with pulling together a diversity of people with a diversity of gifts that have "washed up" on this island, and continuing to create a beautiful community that not only gets along, but one that cares for one another.

In my first column of the new year, I want to take the opportunity personally say, "Thank you!" to the wider Port Aransas community (full time, or not) for the gifts you have shared with Trinity by the Sea for our first 50 years. As we remember the sacred stories of characters from our past, may we continue to be the good and diverse characters God has created us to be in our own time, and may we all not only get along, but sincerely care for one another as God shapes us into something beautiful. 

Originally Published in the Port Aransas, South Jetty

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