Beneath the Mulberry Tree

One block away from the World Peace Rose Garden in downtown Sacramento is the Episcopal church. I was at the Episcopal church yesterday for the Service of Remembrance --- an annual service sponsored by PFLAG honoring all those who died violently because they were GLBT.

I was dropped off at the church by a friend of mind. Both of us spent the weekend at a Men’s Retreat. I didn’t want my friend to have to wait around, so I sent him on home, even though it was nearly two hours before the service was scheduled to start.

Some would see this as a waste of time. I, on the other hand, went to the Rose Garden.

Today, I substitute taught the eighth grade class at Browns Elementary School. My wife dropped me off on her way to work. After school, I had the option of walking 1.5 miles home (something that would take about 30 minutes), or waiting two hours for my wife to come pick me up. I chose to wait.

John, the custodian at Browns School, keeps the campus looking beautiful. There are lots of trees and well-kept lawns, giving it a park-like feel. There are even a few rose bushes.

I sat at a picnic table beneath the trees. It’s true, I had to be careful I didn’t sit in some ketchup spilled earlier by the kids at lunch, but other than that, it was peaceful. Birds chirped, cows mooed in the distance, and the sprinklers went psh-psh-psh in a soothing sort of way. I sat and helped my son (who was with me) with his homework. I wrote an article for the next church newsletter. I did some work on my sermon for next Sunday. I enjoyed working and sitting and resting on a picture perfect day….

Home lately has been a maelstrom of stress and chaos….God, help me find a way to bring the peace of walking through a rose garden to my home. Help me find a way to bring the peace of sitting at a table in a grove of mulberry trees to the family I so dearly love. Amen.