Of Carbs and Cooking: More Spaghetti Please

 

Spaghetti Dinner for One: Best Meal of the Week

Had a full dinner tonight. 

Spaghetti remains a favorite meal for me. Of course there isn’t a lot of food I know how to cook. The issue I have with anything that needs to be cooked after work, is the lag time between preparation and eating. I’m hungry when I begin the prep. That leads to snacking, a lot. If the meal takes 30 minutes, I’m half full on whatever I munched on during the wait phase. It’s a problem of self control. I could force myself to wait for the food to cook and count the minutes before the water boiled. Then dig out the noodles to see if they’re soft enough to drain. And finally, wait for both noodles, sausage and sauce to simmer together for 5 minutes. I haven’t mastered patience yet.

The weekends are a little different however, I can cook before I’m really hungry and not have to fill up on crackers or potato chips.

But whether I’m making spaghetti on a work night or on an Sunday afternoon, most it will get polished off during the leftover phase. And yes, leftovers are just as good as a meal straight from the pan. I don’t make the garlic bread anymore unless I’m serving a handful of people. Not because of some no bread diet or anything, I just don’t crave it like I used to. Anyway, the consistency of reheated garlic bread is similar to a dishwashing glove--rubbery, chewy, tasteless. It’s completely unlike the noodles and sauce which warms up nicely and doesn’t surrender taste. Where does my love for spaghetti come from? It’s not like we used to eat a lot of it as kids. But then, I don’t know what a lot would be. Certainly not once a week, like with pizza.

Wherever my fondness for the classic Italian dish comes from, it hasn’t wore off yet. I’m as committed to having it once a week as am to getting in my miles when jogging. The carb heavy meal actually works well for work outs too. Carbohydrates are quick sources of energy because they turn into glucose quicker than do fats or proteins. The glucose is stored as glycogen for an efficient fuel source during a run. I didn’t need to hear that something I already enjoy is good for energy, but it certainly helped. Right about the time I found out about carb loading is about the time I started doing a spaghetti meal every week. Before that I had laid off making it quite so often. 

I’d burned out a little. Running brought me back.

Obviously I love homemade food but don’t have enough time to cook a lot of different meals. Tuesday through Friday are packed with events, men’s groups and training in the evenings. Mondays are typically free. On the weekends I like to relax. I realize I could cook more often on Saturday afternoons or Sunday evenings, but I like to lay around a little too. Plus, we’re in football season and I’ll always try to watch a few games on TV. I don’t watch it all day, but I’ll catch at least one NFL game and maybe a Saturday night one as well. I tend to doze off though. It’s a wonderful feeling to snooze for an hour or so just because you’re tired enough to do so.

For now at least I’ll keep my meals simple.

I should probably mention the biggest drawback to cooking, I’m not good at it. Even spaghetti is only “cooking” in the most basic sense. I doubt cooks would call it that. It’s closer to warming food up. It’s not like I’m making my own sauce or anything. I brown the sausage and add it to an already simmer pot of marinara (or meat sauce) from a jar. In recent years I’ve switched to the Rao’s brand. It’s more expensive but tastes better than the Prego I used to buy. I like the Johnsonville mild sausage instead of the ground chuck from the grocery store. Here I’m also not sure when this changed, but I prefer sausage. It also doesn’t render into a greasy pool in the frying pan like fatty beef either. Once the water boils I dump in the noodles. This part is tricky. Sometimes I put too many noodles in and have to save them for the next meal. It’s not easy to tell how much I’ll need though. Is a handful or two handfuls? Well, at least they’re cheap.

I probably cook my noodles slightly beyond the ‘Al dente’ standard because I can’t abide even a hint of crunch. And I always use the spaghetti noodles and not pasta penne or bowties or any other variety. Once it’s sticky it’s ready. Then comes the low heat marinade process. By then I’ve usually eaten handfuls of cashew pieces to take off the hunger urge. Once the pan cools, I sit down to eat.

 Cooking? Maybe not, but it’s close enough for now.

Charlie Kirk is the Man Who Won Over the Youth

The Assassination of Charlie Kirk is a Turning Point for America

I’ve been broken hearted this whole last week over the death of Charlie kirk. Such a brazen, monstrous act demands a full-throated response. More on that later. They took the best of us. They killed the man they couldn’t debate. They shot the truth teller because their hearts were full of lies. They murdered an effective leader who started turning the youth to Christ. Who is “They”? the Left. The demonic, selfish Left that couldn’t hear the truth about the lie of transgender ideology. Nor could they handle sound logic about abortion and gay lifestyles. Charlie spoke logic and held up our behavior to the living truth of the gospel. They killed him like John the Baptist and reveled in his destruction.

Happy Warrior

He wasn’t a minister, but anyone who speaks truth must eventually contend with the Divine. The world God created is designed a certain way. It doesn’t matter how you feel about it. The Creator of the world spoke life and process into existence and gave humanity a role in nurturing it. We ignore its design at our own peril. Charlie’s articulation of God’s natural order was easy to understand. He spoke plainly about everything and never apologized. His humor and attitude remained positive, forward thinking. The eagerness with which he took on all challengers made him stand out among his peers.

His Movement

His Turning Point movement became more important to the Republican party than the RNC (Republican National Committee) ever was. It remains the most effective vehicle for bringing the young, men in particular, to the Right. Charlie didn’t separate politics from Christianity except where there isn’t any commonality. TPUSA (Turning Point USA) had begun a faith wing to bring churches and Christian leaders on board. This probably didn’t sit well with those who think religion and politics shouldn’t mix. But like the old Republican establishment, that way of thinking is being replaced by a youth movement that wants more of God.

Young America

After seeing their world ripped apart by lies about marriage, family and moral living, Generation Z wants a world with ordered purpose. With all its imperfections, religion (Christianity in America) unites us under a common belief system. It wasn’t that long ago that divorce was rare, houses were affordable, and depression and anxiety were less common. Kids recognize that something has broken down in the culture. It begins with a strong fear of the Lord that’s been missing in society. Kirk knew how to show this through argumentation and debate. They killed him for it.

Where to from here?

This is ultimately a Spiritual problem. As Christians we pray for our land. We pray for those who cursed Charlie and celebrated his death, but we demand justice and retribution in the strongest terms. It’s domestic terrorism and should be dealt with by kicking in doors and freezing bank accounts. This kid they’ve arrested was at least connected with Antifa. Not to mention his boyfriend looks to be another confused transgender. Arrests need to begin immediately. I don’t believe the FBI doesn’t know who the secretive Antifa are or where their funding comes from. We need an earnest accounting of who sources domestic terrorism.

If the Left is too entrenched in the deep state to make a difference, we don’t have a country anymore.

Funding Sources

Steve Bannon said on his Saturday show that he thinks MAGA law enforcement types are afraid of being killed. Let’s pray that that isn’t true. I’d start looking into the Soros network first, but if Elon Musk’s DODGE showed us anything it’s that most Left wing funding comes from the taxpayers. No line item exists on the federal budget for violent Marxists of course, but through thousands of cutouts the money gets there. Like water on the street after a rainfall, it finds the cracks every time. I’m optimistic that at least the top level FBI and DOJ (Department of Justice) offices are on board with the crackdown. The FBI is still full of deep state goons hoping to bide their time until Trump is gone. It’s a fight that I hope team Trump is ready for.

On that note, I read a transcript of the Vice President (Vance) on Charlie Kirk’s radio show today. He said something that I think needs to be repeated because a lot of normies like the sound of unity. He laid bare the lie about “unity” that people use so cheaply on social media. And, he said it isn’t a “both sides” problem. Fortunately, he gets it at a fundamental level, as does Stephen Miller. As long as both of them are involved in the fight, and the messaging, I’m encouraged.

Christian Response

As to the Spiritual side of this, I’m reminded that ‘we wrestle not against flesh and blood’. Prayer is always the response of the Christian to trials and upheaval. But I’m concerned that some of my fellow believers are waving this killing off too quickly, and excitedly talking about the possible salvation of the killer. Their first response should be to see justice done swiftly and the network of domestic terror dismantled. I worry that we don’t have righteous anger toward evil anymore. That soft on crime attitude from Evangelical Liberals makes us all less safe. Our cities are violent and out of control because of policies that blame victims and excuse repeat offenders. 

Conclusion

I said above we need a full-throated response from law enforcement or this will keep happening. Dismantle the networks, kick in doors, arrest the conspirators and kill the violent resistance. We need to pray for our investigators and police, federal and local, to bring swift justice and make critical arrests. Just like with the crackdown on criminal illegal aliens, we don’t just pray that they’ll all go back to their country. We send in the ones appointed by God to bring justice. It's maddening that this evil seems to persist. Elementary schools are under attack by vicious trans monsters while innocent women are stabbed riding the light rail home after work. It's time for a reckoning.  

I think Psalm 94 is appropriate here.

“How long will the wicked triumph? They utter speech, and speak insolent things; all the workers of iniquity boast in themselves. They break in pieces Your people, O Lord, and afflict Your heritage. They slay the widow and the stranger, and murder the fatherless. Yet they say, “The Lord does not see, nor does the God of Jacob understand.” (verses 4-7)

“He has brought on them their own iniquity, and shall cut them off in their own wickedness; the Lord our God shall cut them off.”(verse 23)

Charlie Kirk brought light and truth to a generation. His legacy will live on. 

Labor Day 25: Learning to Do Home Repair

 

Working on the House and Forcing Myself to Learn 

Labor Day in 2025. Normally I’d go for a run to start off the day. I’m good about taking advantage of days where I’d normally work. Today is a free day. But I’ve wasted enough time this year sitting around and watching YouTube when I should’ve been fixing some eye sores in the house. I started yesterday. I bought a ceiling fan at Lowes, then tried to install it. Next I took off the old model, the ones that’s developed an irritating hum. Looked up in the ceiling where the junction box should be. I’m still not sure what it is. It’s a junction box of sorts, I guess. But it looks nothing like the ones in the online tutorials. My house is old (1941) so there’s that. It’s not uncommon to take off a wall plate and stare with confusion at what sits inside.

Even if the old piece that worked just fine with the old fan is operational, the bracket for the fan doesn’t line up. The antique in the ceiling needs to be replaced. It’s a little loose anyway. That makes me think it might have been the problem with the low hum fan in the first place. Especially if the hum is from a slight vibration and not the motor, we have the culprit. Either way it has to go. I crawled up in the attic to get a better look between the 2 x 4s. The attic crawl space over my bedroom isn’t even big enough to be called a crawl space. Not to mention it’s covered with spray in foam. I can’t get back in there. I decided right then I would call an electrician. They might be able to do it from the bedroom by cutting a wider hole in the ceiling and yanking out the old unit.

I’m in new territory here so I’ll wait.

Being in the attic for a brief time made me realize how awful the condition of the hatch door is. It’s never been in great shape. I don’t have one of those handy fold-down ladders and I generally avoid going up there as much as possible. But the hatch is  another one of those projects, like the fan, that I’ve put off for too many years. So here we are, Labor Day and I head off to Lowes to buy a lightweight hatch and a patch kit for some drywall. I didn’t really know what to use. Regular plywood is too heavy. The associate helped me find a ¼ inch thick plywood and cut it to my specs. It nearly fit. I had to trim about a half an inch off the sides in a half ass way. I used a jigsaw because I didn’t have a circular saw. It looks as bad as you can imagine, but it fits.

I also stuck a piece of foam insulator to the top (attic side). I’m not sure how well this will work yet. None of these projects are as easy as they play out in your head. But I’ve learned to expect this and just go with it. Not that my attitude is chill, far from it. But I do expect delays and problems. Some of that is living in an old house and retrofitting here and there. I won’t pretend I work on the house all the time either. I’m more of yard guy, as I’ve detailed many times. Landscaping is a soothing balm for my soul where home repair, a festering sore. Painting might be the one exception. Not because I love to paint, but there isn’t a lot that can go wrong. Don’t like the color, buy new paint. Spill on the floor, clean it up. Painting is the kind of house work I can do without help.

And speaking of paint, I slapped on 3 coats of primer to my new wood hatch door after I stuck the insulation on. Even without doing the project I really wanted, I still managed a successful day of projects. The patch kit was for a hole in the ceiling near the hatch. I slapped on a patch and covered it with compound. Again, we’ll see how it holds. I’m not sure why it matters whether or not I got anything done. It’s Labor Day after all…who cares if you sit down and watch TV or sleep in late? Maybe because home repair stuff is always so tedious to me, I take every opportunity to brag about the smallest wins. Well maybe humble brag at least. I’m not exactly showing my work or telling you how expert the work was. Whenever I take on some new home project I go through this unhealthy self-criticism about my lack of knowledge. But the only way to get increase knowledge is to work on the house more often.

As I’ve stated however, I loathe it. I’d rather spend all day cutting grass and digging holes in the yard than 1 hour trying to do any type of house repair.  But even mildly successful work builds just enough confidence to try again.

Or maybe just wait till next year.

Reflections of the Creator

 

Creativity Reflects God in Everything We Do

The summer is coming to a close and with it, the need to spend time mowing the lawn and watering the flowers. It doesn’t take that long of course, but it’s one more time suck away from writing. My Cubs games are another one. I paid for MLB network this year thinking I might only watch a handful of games. Turns out, I have the opposite problem. The team is playing well and looking to make a deep playoff run. That means it’s hard to turn off. The biggest reason for not writing as much is the 3 nights per week of personal training I do. This is new since June. I’m busier than I was at the beginning of the year by orders of magnitude.

New Realities

But even with the new responsibilities I could squeeze in a 700 word blog once in a while. Something has shifted in my attitude toward writing and I can’t pin it down. When I started the blog over 10 years ago it was a way to keep myself accountable to the process and improving in the craft. Putting it online is more about having to look at how long it’s been since my last post. Currently I’m only putting a new one out every 3 or 4 weeks. 7 to 10 days used to be the longest stretch I allowed myself without feeling like a slug who watches too much baseball. I’d scribble something out just to complete the empty space on my wall. Now I can' hardly manage that.

A lot of my favorite pieces over the years are thrown together bits of opinion that formed a semi coherent article. That sense of responsibility to the page has drifted away like a helium balloon. It’s still up there somewhere above my head on a very long string. I haven’t cut the string and let it float away just yet. When you start something creative it isn’t easy to just cut it loose. Maybe I’m stretching the meaning of the word “creative” here, but in the most basic sense the articles are mine. The ideas, thoughts and opinions presented on the site went through a filter in my brain and came out as an expression of me. Some were clear and concise, others were muddy and needed a good wash. But the quality isn’t really the point.

Old Examples

It’s how the ideas define you, how they’ve changed and what still remains core to your identity. Not what opinions have been consistent across time, but what intangibles still color your work.

 I’ll use PJ O’Rourke because he’s was a favorite of mine for so long. He was consistently funny and irreverent in a playful way. I was too young for the National Lampoon years and even much of what followed. But his journalism for Rolling Stone and even the books he wrote in the 90s put a smiley face on some very dull topics. His mixture of 60’s hippy and witty libertarian was the perfect attitude for the kind of journalism he pursued. He missed on a few of his books late in life, but I never held it against him. 

His opinions changed over time with the culture, but his writing was always smart and funny. He enjoyed discussing politics and culture, and always found a way to infuse his trips with humor.

I think the recognizable part of a person’s work is what it makes it unique. This is true in all realms of creativity. It provides the color. I was never a big Van Halen fan but I always knew his guitar the second a new song hit the radio. Kindergarten was as far as I got in studying music. The nice way to say it is, music wasn’t a good fit for me. I was kindly asked to try something else by my teacher after a few sessions with a recorder. But even with my unsophisticated understanding of music, Van Halen is easy to pick out. This isn’t to say that all work is brilliant, just that’s it reflects its creator.

Conclusion

A lot of this unique style is unintentional and imbeds itself into our work. The nature of creativity comes from the ultimate Creator though. Even when we don’t acknowledge Him, we are His handiwork as Paul says in Ephesians. Our creative acts are an outgrowth of our Father in heaven. In this, we reflect our maker. If I didn’t write another word on my webpage again, I hope that the small collection at least reflects the God who created me. I hope that’s the color of my writing. 

For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10 (Holman)

Responsibility, Busyness and Stress: Learning to Manage

What have I learned about being busy?

Busyness is just a feeling. It’s possible to manage multiple tasks and become more efficient. Like anything else, responsibility is a learned habit. You need reps.

The Seasonal Thing

This time of year is hectic. With fall sports just around the corner, it’s a rush to get everything out the door in time. Youth football starts on the same weekend around the state. For the bigger leagues at least, that means everyone needs a uniform in the same time frame. Production ramps up, hours increase and stress is high. The number of orders being turned in for July and August is tough to keep up with. Phone calls demand attention as customers stream in the door to shop or pick up orders they’ve placed online. Emails fill up the inbox. Waiting to respond will elicit a nervous phone call. “Did you see my email?!!”

Youth football is different from baseball in one major way. The organizations are big, 350 to 400 kids in the larger ones. Everyone in the organization gets the same jersey. They play other grades in the same league. The jersey is reversible in case they play another grade in the same organization. The entire league starts play the week before Labor Day. The trick is getting the jerseys back and sorted before the first game. Rosters are an issue though. Not everyone is on a roster when I need them to be. That means I have to do a second and a third order for the ones who are late.

Most of my stress at least, is this particular variety. No one wants to miss the window for uniform handouts and these manufacturers need time to make them and ship them back out. The trick comes from getting the rosters (with numbers) for the jerseys in enough time to place an order. It’s tight. Some organizations are better at it. They’ve got a process in place that’s as smooth as it could be.

July and August constitute email flurry month however I’ve always got a lot of late kids to add after the fact. Late is defined as beyond the first deadline, which is drawn somewhat arbitrarily around the 4^th of July.

The Current Thing

With all the busyness I’m constantly worried I’ll miss something critical. I’ve learned to focus as much as possible on the current thing.

 Finish it first, then move on. But take as much time as you need. Quick work is sloppy work. Incomplete orders always become a bigger issue than they would have, had I just taken two minutes to review before clicking send. I could write books with multiple volumes on this topic alone. If you’re predisposed to be fast and beat everyone to the finish, mistakes will happen. They’re the proverbial bald tires you never bothered to change before your last lap. For me, it’s usually a critical item or note to the factory about color changes or name spellings I forgot to mention. A lot of these orders go to factories in non-English speaking countries. To say they’ve made some hilarious (if not costly) mistakes, is to state the obvious. Instructions must be specific.

The Visible Stress Thing

Despite the hustle, I remind myself to take deep breaths when angry. I can get short and nasty with coworkers and customers when irritated. No it doesn’t happen often, but it’s unprofessional and customers can feel your anxiety. Situational stress is something you get better at working through the more you’re exposed to it. Confidence in the face of disaster is a skill that’s closer to stage acting than changing your feelings in the moment. It’s artificial, but it’s also better than the regret from a loss of control. Rushing around increases the chance you’ll add to the problem. Slowing down the situation helps to get you to a place where you can think about what to do.

We’ve had multiple issues with the aging software in recent months. We’re using two different platforms for the retail store and they don’t work together. Every week is a new problem. It’s a little awkward when the customer is in the store and I’m trying to troubleshoot or look for a payment to do a refund. If I’m not sure what to do, I’ll write down as much info as I can and try to resolve it later. Usually if I think about it for a while the answer will be obvious. But it’s less obvious in the moment, when you’re under the gun. I can’t say why this is, but my thinking is somehow short circuited by the immediacy of the task. I’m sure others struggle with this too. The good news is that it’s possible to overcome it with effort.

The Sleeping thing

On a few nights last week I had trouble sleeping. Thoughts of the coming day, deadlines and tight shipping schedules bounced around in my head. Normally I head to the gym in the morning but with the loss of sleep I missed more than I meant to. I rolled back over to try and make up for the loss. Sleep is key, the gym can wait.

This is a season anyway. Every job I’ve worked has had a busy season. With other retail jobs it’s always the last 2 months of the year. In school it was the finals week and the subsequent research papers to finish. I’m a fitness trainer as well. January and February see a surge of new members. Membership leads to new clients for the trainers on staff. Most can double their work load if they want. If I’m not careful the schedule can get out of control.

The solution is to plan ahead as much as possible. It sounds simple enough, but clients change their plans constantly and you either work around it or lose them. The closer you stick to the scheduling the better the sleep. You’re not opening up the app and changing dates around for people if you lock them in. I’ve had to say “NO” more often. Not a week goes by without at least one person canceling or trying to get a different time. I’m always polite, but I sleep better now.

Conclusion

 I’ve never dealt with this many emails and text messages in my life. Between the two jobs it can be overwhelming. But I work with others who manage twice the number of accounts and people that I do. They also coach their kid’s soccer team and volunteer at their church. They make it to sales meetings and pack a lot of their own orders. Seeing others thrive with so much responsibility is an encouraging picture of what’s possible in a hectic environment. For someone like me who is trying to put everything in order, it’s a comfort to know that so many can. I imagine I’ll look back on this period of life and smile at how easy it was, and how busy I thought it felt. We should go from strength to strength after all. Responsibility is a habit we learn. No one is born with it.  

Fall 25 Running Cycle Kickoff: New Roles

 

Jogging with Friends and Taking on Extra Responsibilities

Today was the first day of another group training cycle with Runner’s World Tulsa.

This is always the longest break between sessions. The spring session ends in April right before the Oklahoma City Memorial marathon. There aren’t any Saturday runs again until mid-July. It's best to put your own plan together for the off season or face hot temps with an out of shape body.

The Price of 'Leadership'

I was asked to be a run lead this year. We get a voucher for new shoes and if you’ve seen the price of running shoes lately, you wouldn’t refuse either. I’ve been a De Facto leader the last few years anyway. I memorize the route every week and show up through any type of weather. The one exception was near the end of the cycle, just last year. Tulsa had a brutal storm come through. I checked out on that one. I’ll run in the rain, but those conditions were nuts. I talked to someone from the group the next week about it. Very few people showed up and the ones that did--cut their distance to just a few miles.

The thinking from Runner’s World is this, we don’t cancel because races don’t cancel. You’ll have to run in difficult conditions so get used to it.

The second marathon in Fort Worth that I ran had a similar storm the night before. It was bad enough for them to push the start time back a few hours. That seemed like the best option. Marathons are fund raisers after all. Without tornadoes and lightning it’s not likely they’ll cancel. About the best you can hope for is a delay. We did eventually start and finish the race. The course was soaking wet and sloppy, but also clear. On sunny days it’s packed full of pedestrians walking the path and getting in the way. A clear, albeit messy, track was a silver lining to a race that a lot people didn’t show up for due to poor weather.

A summer rain on a Saturday morning isn’t the worst thing anyway.

The Price of Being Out of Shape

The summer heat is rough on new joggers especially. Starting early helps, but eventually it slows you down if you aren’t acclimated. I’ve spent the last few months staying in running shape. I’m not in the kind of condition needed to run a marathon yet. I’ll run more during the season and get my mileage above 20 for the week. But I kept at it all summer. Conditioning your legs to hold up in the heat and your lungs to breathe will pay off. I told someone today that I enjoyed the heat. It’s only partially true. I enjoy the results that come from training in the heat. There isn’t a good way to replicate that on a treadmill.

Whether jogging indoors or outside, I’m busier this year than ever before.

 I have a full schedule of clients for my personal training position. For the last couple of months I’ve been doing part time work through a gym. This is in addition to my regular 9-5 at the sporting goods store. I’ve had this idea about working sales and doing personal training on my own at some point. I mean working for myself of course. For now I just need to experience practicing with various groups and putting together work out plans for them. Gyms are good places to find a mix of people of all ages and stations. Some need rudimentary functional exercise and others need a high intensity challenge. Others are retirement age and hoping to increase muscle endurance. It allows me to do a little research and practice techniques and sharpen my methods.

Conclusion

For now at least I don't have time for anything else. In previous years I would've have passed on the chance to be a run lead. But it’s not a lot of responsibility and I’ve been halfway there, responsibility wise. Besides, it feels like I’m in a season of new responsibilities across the board. From the new accounts I’m managing to the new people I’m training. It’s all moving toward larger roles. I won’t make more of it than that. It’s just an interesting development that I’ve noticed. Some people collect responsibilities the way others collect seashells. Organization is practically their love language. Not me. I’ve never been one to take on projects or teams on a voluntary basis. That’s probably more a function of not wanting to be bothered, than about some lack of organization. Maybe that’s finally changing.

I am finding out that I prefer to be busy than have a lot of free time. Weird.

 

 

 

Love Day 25: God Works Through Community

 

We Grow in Community: Love Day 25

Today was “Love Day” for Church on the Movers in Tulsa. 

Love is a Verb

It’s an annual community serve day in July where we offer help to our neighbors. Opportunities exist all over the city to clean up, renovate and remake a lot of our common areas. Not everything is about hard, manual work though. Some require prayer and relational help. Most Love Day serving requires gloves and elbow grease. I signed up for the Food on the Move nonprofit that grows vegetables for the community. They have a lot of indoor and outdoor farmland. It benefits the residents who often, don’t have enough money for basic groceries.

At the start of the day, the director gave the volunteers a short history of the facility. Started by Taylor Hanson, the 90’s pop star from Tulsa, after a Q&A with a former ambassador to South Africa. The diplomat told Taylor to engage the community instead of going through the official channels. Locals needed food. I’m not familiar with how the Apartheid regime handled food, but it sounds like it was withheld because of politics.

Deep Roots

 Whether or not South Africa’s situation on food scarcity is relatable to America, I can’t say. But taking care of those in need is smart policy in any country. Communities thrive when they support each other. Like those vertical planting towers that are so ubiquitous at Food on the Move. Water and nutrients trickle down from the top and feed the seeds all the way down. It's an efficient system when space is limited. 

My task today was to power wash the planting towers. I got a close look at them. 

Eight-foot plastic tubes with holes in them, serve as a plant towers for vertical growing. I included a picture at the top. They're filled with dirt from top to bottom and the seeds are placed in the upward facing extensions. The roots develop inside the tower and the plant grows out the side. The towers get gunked with dirt after a planting cycle and need to be sprayed out. It sounds easy, but the tricky part was trying to pull out the remaining dry roots. They don’t want to leave.

 High pressure water gets most of it, but you need a ramrod to knock out the roots that made a comfortable home inside. It took us a few minutes to finds something like our ramrod, a shovel handle.

Rain Soaked Morning

I had two companions, a father and daughter. We worked outside on a concrete slab and cleaned one after the other, getting sloppy wet and dirty the whole time. At first we thought the volunteer day might not happen. Tulsans woke up to a heavy storm this morning. We've seen too many this year. For whatever reason it’s been a rainy year. The thunderstorm subsided shortly after 7:30 and everything went on as planned. I can’t say that every group went ahead though. 

While filling out the Love Day registration, I noticed a few landscaping options to sign up for. It wasn’t exactly a mowing kind of day. After the first 30 minutes of work, it started raining again. I’m not sure if we were more wet from the power washer or the rain. It didn’t matter in either case, we had a job to do.

Why We Serve

I think we could’ve stayed all day. The farm had more towers that needed to be cleaned. They had a whole trailer full of them. Since it only took 3 of us to share the power washing duties, the other volunteers pulled weeds and harvested some of the vegetables. I would’ve liked to see the operation a little closer. But our washing kept us away from seeing the rest of the place. I’m sure the regulars that worked the farm would’ve been happy to show me around. But after the cleaning and the rain, everyone headed for the parking lot. I didn’t want to be the only one hanging around.

Most of these Love Day’s are characterized by brutal heat. It’s July in Oklahoma after all. If there is a silver lining with rain, it’s that the temperatures stay low (70’s) and the sun hides behind the clouds. It might be humid but it’s manageable. As long as the lightning and monsoon rains don’t overwhelm, it’s possible to do a little outdoor work and not wilt like a daisy.

 These community volunteer efforts make everyone involved feel good about their service. I can’t speak for everyone, but I usually have a pang of guilt over doing this only once a year. It’s not like serve opportunities don’t exist. I think there is even a Saturday serve option available on the small group finder. Without even looking, I can promise it’s the least attended of any of the groups. Not because people are terrible and selfish and uncaring. But because it’s not glamorous. It’s labor intensive and messy. It’s a little too much like real work.

But it’s also appreciated in a way that food deliveries and car service and back to school shopping sprees aren’t.

Conclusion

Some people have a knack for building, repairing and cleaning. Remodeling a person’s home in particular, adds a kind of dignified thrill that isn’t possible any other way. Groceries are great too, but adding a bedroom, a deck or a bathroom is a gift that elevates the occupants. An old home with inefficient windows and paper thin walls can feel luxurious with a decent remodel. Your neighborhood is the same but the place you spend the most time is suddenly new. What could be better?

If it sounds like I’ve been there before, it’s because I have. Members of the church I attended as a kid did a full remodel on our family home. They asked electricians, roofers, plumbers, dry wall workers and general contractors to pitch in on a particular day. It took 2 full days but the result was impressive--a fully remodeled house from basement to attic. I was in the Army at the time, but I saw the full scale of it when I came for a visit. 

God works through communities. I’ll never forget that.   

“Don’t do anything for selfish purposes, but with humility think of others as better than yourselves. 4Instead of each person watching out for their own good, watch out for what is better for others.” Philippians 2:3-4