Sooo it's summer time, and that means VACATIONS, which (occasionally) means we miss posting an On The Table. In our defense, between the four of us, we've been in California, Costa Rica, Germany, Iceland, and Shakori Hills, NC for long stretches of time over the last 4 weeks. Many apologies for the radio silence, and we hope you missed us.
This weekend continues to be a busy one at CT. Friday (tomorrow) we have our monthly Karaoke at the Lamb Center!!
Our fourth gathering of 2011 will begin with setup starting at 6, pizza and singing at 6:30, and wrapping up at 8pm. It's at The Lamb Center, the only daytime drop-in center for homeless folks within Fairfax County, off Fairfax Circle and not far from the Vienna Metro.
A few words from Croghan on last month's gathering: "One guest I knew brought her elderly Mom along, and told me afterward that she (Mom) never sings at parties, but she was singing along to La Bamba, tickled that we sang a song she knew, in her native language. Both of them were beaming. Seriously folks, that how this works: just show up and have a good time, and unexpected joy happens. And kids, by the way, are welcome and usually in abundance, running around, dancing, singing, and making folks smile."
Sunday's service will be at the usual some-indeterminate-time-after-10am at Jammin Java. In case you're not in the know, it's the season of Pentecost, when the liturgical readings focus on the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of Christians. We'll be building on the energy of our previous two meetings (where we discussed Pentecost Sunday and the Trinity) to focus specifically on the Holy Spirit: what we think we know or don't know about this person of the Trinity and how we've experienced (or not experienced) its presence. We'll read a little scripture to frame the discussion and probably pray a little at the beginning, too. And then we'll have communion.
AFTER that (say, 12:30ish?), we'll be bidding a very sad goodbye to our beloved Suzy and Vince Gamma with lunch at Clare and Don's Beach Shack in Falls Church. Suzy and Vince will be heading to Mobile, Alabama in a couple of weeks so that Vince can take a new position after retiring from a career in the Coast Guard. I (Moffitt) know that I speak for Common Table when I say I will SERIOUSLY miss their chilled out, even-keeled wisdom and generosity. So if you can, in Vince's words, "come out, have a beer, and chill out with us. This should be very low key. No pressure."
That's pretty much it... we hope to see you around this weekend, but regardless, enjoy the long weekend and the Independence Day Holiday!!
Peace,
Moff