Rainbows... finding the leprechauns pot of gold

Aunt Marg said:
I caught a radio broadcast not long ago that talked about the vast number of churches that are being closed (here in Canada), and the steady number of churches that are on the verge of closing. The numbers were staggering, with some being demolished, while others are being slated to be sold.

I can't help but think about the deep pockets needed to convert such large buildings into homes, but what a dream, and what an adventure it would be!
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I'm in a Three Church Charge. Basically, that means that 3 small congregations share the cost of a pastor. In the aggregate, we could fill up a church.

We help each other out with our respective events as one congregation. Back before I joined, the pastor would rotate services among the churches. I believe at one time there were 5 in the charge, so services at each church were led by the laity for 4 Sundays and then the pastor showed up the 5th Sunday. These days, the guy is a circuit rider, doing an 8:45AM service at Church #1, driving to Church #2 for the 10AM service, then driving to Church #3 for the 11:15 AM service. Every Sunday.

I used to go to a different church in the charge. The congregation was started in the 1700s. Patrick Henry signed the founder's license to perform marriages. Francis Asbury preached there. When I was there, the only regular attendees were a husband & wife, their teenage daughter, an elderly (now in her 80s) woman, and me. That's 5 of us on any given Sunday, including a kid (it was very intimate.) Then once a month came a man and his two pre-teen daughters. We survived on fundraisers and contributions from descendants of the founder (those are dwindling since the matriarch passed away.)

I've done lots of work on the place, which always made me feel like I was a part of its history. I've since moved on to a larger congregation in the charge (more people, most retired, so lots of community service going on.) It would stink to see that beautiful old building and the 3 century-old congregation go under, but what are you gonna do? It's depressing when you've got a connection to it.
 
In The Sticks said:
I'm in a Three Church Charge. Basically, that means that 3 small congregations share the cost of a pastor. In the aggregate, we could fill up a church.

We help each other out with our respective events as one congregation. Back before I joined, the pastor would rotate services among the churches. I believe at one time there were 5 in the charge, so services at each church were led by the laity for 4 Sundays and then the pastor showed up the 5th Sunday. These days, the guy is a circuit rider, doing an 8:45AM service at Church #1, driving to Church #2 for the 10AM service, then driving to Church #3 for the 11:15 AM service. Every Sunday.

I used to go to a different church in the charge. The congregation was started in the 1700s. Patrick Henry signed the founder's license to perform marriages. Francis Asbury preached there. When I was there, the only regular attendees were a husband & wife, their teenage daughter, an elderly (now in her 80s) woman, and me. That's 5 of us on any given Sunday, including a kid (it was very intimate.) Then once a month came a man and his two pre-teen daughters. We survived on fundraisers and contributions from descendants of the founder (those are dwindling since the matriarch passed away.)

I've done lots of work on the place, which always made me feel like I was a part of its history. I've since moved on to a larger congregation in the charge (more people, most retired, so lots of community service going on.) It would stink to see that beautiful old building and the 3 century-old congregation go under, but what are you gonna do? It's depressing when you've got a connection to it.
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Very interesting, and thanks for sharing your story with me. :)

Like yourself, I, too, feel a strong connection and warmth to places of old that I once inhabited. I sort of think of it as ghosts, past, where even though we have moved on and life has moved on, there's still a part of us there... a part of us that was left behind... a part of us that still lives on.
 
Aunt Marg said:
Thinking about and missing my mom today, I remember sitting with her as a young child, looking at rainbows in the distance, and her telling me, at one end of all rainbows awaits a leprechauns pot of gold.

How I dreamed of one day finding that pot of gold, and actually remember the day, the one and only time in my life when I was able to reach one end of a rainbow and pass through it.

To this day I've never forgotten about the whimsical dream of the pot of gold that awaits at one end of rainbows.
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This isn't so much about leprechauns and pots of gold as imagination in general- I believe a lot of problems these days are because imagination has been taken away from kids. Kids in general, but especially little children, should not only be allowed but also encouraged to cultivate their imaginations, it's a normal part of growing up and they need it!!!

To show how extreme it's become- a few months ago, a work project involved reviewing a specific location, letting people know all the nice things about the area, and why they should consider moving there. When reviewing the schools, I happened to notice preschools- it was said the preschools usually start at 3 yrs old, but some take children at 2 and even 1 year-olds. Even for these tiny tots, they stressed academics- stating little children should not 'waste their days' with 'mindless imaginative play'!!! :mad:
 
JaniceM said:
This isn't so much about leprechauns and pots of gold as imagination in general- I believe a lot of problems these days are because imagination has been taken away from kids. Kids in general, but especially little children, should not only be allowed but also encouraged to cultivate their imaginations, it's a normal part of growing up and they need it!!!

To show how extreme it's become- a few months ago, a work project involved reviewing a specific location, letting people know all the nice things about the area, and why they should consider moving there. When reviewing the schools, I happened to notice preschools- it was said the preschools usually start at 3 yrs old, but some take children at 2 and even 1 year-olds. Even for these tiny tots, they stressed academics- stating little children should not 'waste their days' with 'mindless imaginative play'!!! :mad:
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Seething with anger!

I was age 5, when I started school (kindergarten), and according to my mom, it was too early, a good year too early, because she said I was learning and developing rapidly, far exceeding that of what school would offer, and sure enough, I struggled in a big way until around grade 4.

Children need their play, it's essential, and shame on society for thinking school (on any level) is good for a 1 y/o, a 2 y/o, or for that matter, any child under the age of 5. I never did agree with or support the idea of playschool.

The next thing that will be demanded of the children, those children unfortunate enough to have their innocence stripped from them due to having parents that buy into the ideals of such a location, is the requirement that they be fully toilet trained and out of diapers completely by one year of age.
 
Aunt Marg said:
Seething with anger!

I was age 5, when I started school (kindergarten), and according to my mom, it was too early, a good year too early, because she said I was learning and developing rapidly, far exceeding that of what school would offer, and sure enough, I struggled in a big way until around grade 4.

Children need their play, it's essential, and shame on society for thinking school (on any level) is good for a 1 y/o, a 2 y/o, or for that matter, any child under the age of 5. I never did agree with or support the idea of playschool.

The next thing that will be demanded of the children, those children unfortunate enough to have their innocence stripped from them due to having parents that buy into the ideals of such a location, is the requirement that they be fully toilet trained and out of diapers completely by one year of age.
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I agree with you 100%!!!!
https://mycommentary.weebly.com/the-d-word.html
 

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