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Dear ,

I have another story for you this week. It comes from last summer when I was moving my parents to assisted living and emptying what I called "the bottomless house." 

No matter how many drawers I cleared, closets I emptied, kitchen cabinets I scraped out, or built-in shelves I purged, still there was more. Weeks and months of clearing and cleaning, and donating and ditching things, selling and repurposing, still did not get me to the bottom of that house! Some transitions are just like that.

It was a 1950s mid-century modern, and in its day it was on the Parade of Homes. One of its highly touted features was that it had a lot of extra storage space, more than the average suburban home had back then. My parents filled every nook and cranny of it since purchasing the house in the 1990s. The accumulation was astonishing. The thing about this kind of clean-out is that it not only is a big transition, it also stirs up all kinds of feelings. So many feelings!

For many people, such a cleanout accompanies the grief of losing a parent or both parents to death. That was not my experience, and I'm grateful that we separated those transitions in time. My parents are well and settled into their new place. Their house was purchased for cash, and it is being renovated to its mid-century modern glory. Apparently it's a highly desirable style in today's housing market.

For me, it will always be the bottomless house. I never did reach the bottom of it. But the transition itself was successful, and it took us over a year to do everything that needed to be done to recover from a tricky financial situation and bring stability back into my parents' lives.

As I said last week... I know many of you are facing something similar because there is a large generation of baby boomers who are retiring and transitioning to less complicated living situations. Their children are shouldering a much of that physical, financial, and emotional labor. And that big boomer generation is also dying.

So friends, here's to your grief and to your sanity,

To your courage for many transitions. 

And here's to more neighbors who think that your trash is their treasure 

(and will come in the night to haul it away).

Here's to easier trips to the curb. 
And laughter interwoven with the grief.
Here's to your care for congregants and cleaning out church houses.
Here's to new beginnings and shared moment of laughter and tears. 
May there be mercy, grace, and surprising treasure unearthed from the dust. 

More Podcasts for You

Are you new to our community? Have you listened to the Three Minute Ministry Mentor podcast before? I am inviting you today to check out Episode 1: Ministry as a Practice. Our podcast is one of many resources we offer to support your practice of ministry. Here's the cool thing, episodes 1-50 (each one is only 3 min long) became the basis for the book, Pastoral Imagination: Bringing the Practice of Ministry to Life. In each episode I explore another slice of learning in practice. Not from books or lectures 🏫, but how we learn ministry while doing it! ⛪ I share stories from real ministers who are part of the research I've been doing for 16 years. 

To learn pastoral imagination takes time, mentors, learning from mistakes, getting around brick walls, embracing it all with your whole heart, and so much more. What has learning in practice been like for you? How have you learned pastoral imagination for ministry? 🌳

New episodes of the 3MMM Podcast are dropping weekly for the rest of the summer! You can subscribe at the usual places you like to get your podcasts!

Mini Writing Retreat

Perhaps giving yourself time to write about the transitions, family or church crises, and/or your caregiving responsibilities would be a gift to yourself. Our retreat on August 15 could be just the remedy you need. Maybe you would like a daily practice of writing - just a little each morning to process whatever transitions, grief, or joy is inhabiting your life at this moment? In that case, join us for August at the OG Writing Table! Maybe you just need to write your sermon series? We’ve got space for you too!

My questions for you this Monday morning: 

What transitions and grief are on your plate this week? How can you give yourself a little extra breahing room for the tasks ahead?  

Mercy and peace,

Eileen

Big News Coming August 1

This Friday I'll be announcing some next big things for 3MMM and for me! 
If you are a regular at #FreeWriteFriday, I'll make this announcement live at the end of Writing Table that day. You can also watch for an email coming to you on Friday morning. 

Lots of new things for my work and for my research focus. 
And you are going to be invited to be part of it!  Stay tuned!

Remember, , what you do and who you are matters! I believe in you, and I hope you will let me know how I can support you!

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