The Doctor is in.

July 2016

	Jean plays Ursula in Much Ado About Nothing Jean is living her dream this summer. She's been away most evenings and Saturdays at rehearsals for two shows, and this month performed in Much Ado About Nothing with Bainbridge Performing Arts. It ran Thursday through Sunday nights for three weeks at the Bloedel Reserve at the north end of Bainbridge Island. After these three weeks, her other show, The Little Mermaid, will run the next four weekends. It is also being staged on the west side of Puget Sound at the Kitsap Forest Theater. This email came to us from our high school classmate Lisa Bergman. She is a distinguished classical pianist and popular hostess on Classic King 98.1 FM. Hi Everyone, Just wanted to share an amazing coincidence! David and I attended an absolutely wonderful Shakespeare performance of “Much Ado About Nothing” at Bloedel Gardens on Bainbridge Island last weekend….it was outdoors, and the casting was fabulous….especially the actress playing the part of Ursula, who was none other than the one-and-only, talented and electric – are you ready for this? JEAN E SLEIGHT! I of course made my way through the madding crowd after the performance to find her and throw my arms around her with gushing enthusiasm! So congratulations to proud parents Richard and Nancy – and proud aunt and uncle Laurie and Tom – and to all of us who’ve been within hugging distance of her. Jean – you were fabulous! Happy summer to you all….Lisa (and David) Our Staff Summer Fling on the Water My friend Jackie saw how small our electric boat was and made the decision to walk back to campus from Lake Union. I'd half expected this since she told me how her mother taught her to stay away from water. She is no swimmer. Our summer staff outing had us renting a 21' craft from the Electric Boat Company. We cruised down the Lake Washington Ship Canal past the Ballard bridge and then back to Gasworks Park. Eight of us rode in the electric boat with one forward speed. Steering was an adventure, but boat traffic was light. After the outing with a lunch we had pre-ordered online, we returned to our conference room for four kinds of dessert. Daniel Hallak (MAM-SSM coordinator) and Jared Wymer (Budget Manager) have both left our staff this month, to be replaced by Janine Thorn and Allison Screen. Allison has certainly been thrown in the deep end and I've needed to get her connected to the resources she needs, and have had to instruct her on parts of the contracting process that she now oversees. Janine has yet to meet Jackie Miller, her official start date being August 8, but when I described Janine to her, she said, "Oh, I have a sister!" Janine lives about 35 blocks east of 1228 99th and is just a bit lighter skinned than Dr. Miller. But while Jackie is a Philadelphia native and fan, Janine roots for "da Bears," being a native of Chicago. Big Fish at Taproot Theatre Taproot Theatre got to me with their summer musical Big Fish. It is the story of a man that had a huge impact in his life — but his son couldn't see it until his father was on his death bed. I cried because this dad was misunderstood, and because he passed over his high school sweetheart to pursue the college girl that won his heart. He was faithful to the latter but loved them both. I sat with Annie who held my hand throughout. And at the right time had a Kleenex for me. Ginger at 94 Cousin Bob came up from the Bay Area to see Jean's play and to spend time with Ginger and Susan. He took the amazing picture of Annie and Ginger walking up Susan's drive way to their mailbox. Click to see it larger. Steve White and some of Ginger's neighbors and friends joined her for her birthday party. But the event doubled as Thomas and Annie's 5th wedding anniversary. Cynthia Eby was visiting from Oregon too. Ginger still gets her weekly appointment at the hair dresser. And she gets to the Taproot Theatre plays and nearly every family event. She sleeps a lot - but is certainly doing better than my mother did. Annie and Thomas are 30 Years Behind Us The Disher's stopped by on their anniversary , July 16th, and Annie followed the example of putting on her wedding dress. But unlike me, Thomas also put on his tuxedo. They demonstrate that their romance is alive and blossoming.
	The Messiah According to Matthew Continues, Just After five summers, I am one lesson away from wrapping up my series through the book of Matthew with the senior saints at the Emerald Heights Retirement Community in Redmond. Nancy has attended nearly all of the lessons this summer and has found them especially interesting and informative. I'm just happy that the ten lessons and the seven chapters this summer have come out even with Matthew 7:12-28 coming on August 4. This photo should have been posted in June. Dr. David Pratt, my former department chair in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Washington, posed with me on June 16th at the Emerald Heights Retirement Community. I spoke with him again on July 28th. He, along with Dr. Don Williams of the UW College of Education, both live at Emerald Heights and both served on my doctoral committee. Here are some highlights from my lessons in July. These talks (with PowerPoint) range from 47 to 57 minutes. July 7: Matthew 5:13-32 When Jesus says, “Let your light shine before men,” I see a modern twist on the vine and branches metaphor. 'I am the Power you are the bulbs; he or she who stays plugged into me, and my power flows through you, will light up the world, but a bulb out of its socket can’t shine at all.' By the way, the Greek word for "world" here is from where we get cosmos. This is a huge mandate. If I can make a theological point here. Where the Church, the shining, salty, body of believers is about our Father’s business, being a blessing to the nations - we are taking up Israel’s original mission: to know God and make Him known. But watch out! We are not Israel’s replacement. We resume Israel’s mission. We don’t replace them. We are not God’s Plan B, because Plan A couldn’t get the job done. God is the only completely faithful promise keeper. We are grafted, as Paul says, ‘like wild olive branches into their tree.’ He does not forget His first love Israel. I am a firm believer in the truth of this statement by the great 20th century Swiss Reformed theologian Karl Barth. “Jews have God's promise and if we Christians have it, too, then it is only as those chosen with them, as guests in their house, that we are new wood grafted onto their tree.” July 14: Matthew 5:33-48 A Jewish father was distraught and went to visit his Rabbi. “Rabbi, let me tell you, a terrible thing has happened, my son has left home and he has become a Christian!” “Shhhhhhh!” replied the Rabbi, “Oy, let me tell you too, my son left home and he also became a Christian.” “So what should we do?” asked the man. The Rabbi thought and said, “We must pray to G-d!” So they prayed -- when suddenly there came a voice from the heavens, “Let me tell you, my Son also left home . . .” ___________ And Jesus gives us one test for us to measure ourselves, to see if we are really practicing this kind of love. One might think this love seems so intangible and hard to recognize. But the command to love our enemies is coupled with the twin command that calls for us to pray for those who persecute us. We pray for our family and friends because we truly long for God to bless them and protect them. But if we can’t extend that prayer to our adversaries, then we’re not loving as Christ commands. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If God doesn’t give up on the lost, who are we to give up on them? He didn’t give up on us. July 21: Matthew 6:1-24 (My version of Matthew 6:22) "What you focus on, what fills your mind’s eye and holds your attention, captivates you - or takes you captive. Set your focus and vision on the things of God, in whom there is no darkness at all, and your whole life will enjoy the clarity God’s light imparts. But if you focus your thoughts on yourself, your goods, or worse, the gutter, there’s no light to be found there. You’ll wander around in perpetual darkness, the tunnel at the end of the light." July 28: Matthew 6:25-7:11 Jesus was no lawyer or politician. He spoke clearly, plainly, and succinctly. He did not spin the truth but told it like it was. Don’t judge others. Don’t you be the one to pass sentence on another person. That’s not your job - it’s God’s - and He has not delegated it to you. This is not to say we are not to be discerning, to make wise and informed decisions. We are told elsewhere to let the wheat and tares grow together. It will be the angels that harvest all of us at the right time. God has opened a door which no one can shut. Whosoever believes and repents may cross that threshold. Even the most vile villain (think 'Saul of Tarsus') may one day prove to be a most beloved brother or sister in Christ. If God opened that narrow door, who are we to shut it?
	Bits and Pieces ♦ Now we can see that 1335 99th Ave. NE will be a shade of yellow similar to the house north of it. The elegant stone facing is on and the sewer's been hooked up. And as this is going on, that house just north of it has gone on the market. And, I believe I spotted a young Asian couple looking at the Frickel house just west of us with a real estate agent. ♦ Daniel Hallak, who for the past five years was our Professional Development Specialist in the business school, completed his Ph.D. in Industrial-Organizational Psychology at SPU at the end of this month. I remembered how much I'd wished someone had brought a camera to my dissertation defense, so I grabbed one of mine and got shots with the new Dr. Hallak and his chairman, Dr. Paul Yost, and other well-wishers and his family. ♦ Nancy followed both the Republican and Democratic conventions closely this month. While neither of us like Donald Trump, we can't imagine voting for Hillary Clinton. It is the choice between the Wizard of Oz (a well-meaning fool) and the Wicked Witch of the West (a deceptive and dangerous politician of the worst kind.) Nancy continues to be engaged in far too many activities, leaving little time for emptying and finishing the house before the December wedding. Here she is completing the railing she built at Susan's house. ♦ On July 30th, Nancy surprised me with the news that she had acquired one more item from the Hsu estate. The new member of our household is an 1894 "Bradbury Upright Concert Grand" piano, serial number 26493. She and Annie and Thomas helped Ron Hsu and two others move the piano into a U-Haul truck. Nathanael and I helped move it into the northwest corner of the living room. I continue to bless Nancy for designing our house with a ramp to the front door instead of stairs. If and when she ever finishes the Library, the bookcases shown here behind the piano will move to "my" room (the library for which I pine.) At that time Mr. Bradbury here will move to the honored spot along that north wall. As usual, it only took Shadow a few minutes before she provided her own unique blessing on the new addition. Thomas played the first tune and it sounded good. My Quote from July Let me put these three Beatitudes together. Peacemaking is showing mercy with a pure heart in tangible ways. Feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, housing the homeless, befriending the outcast, visiting the lonely. These are all examples of peace making -- making wholeness. Peacemakers build community. They are reconcilers. Peacemaking is active, not passive. Like showing mercy or acting out of a pure heart, peacemaking does good stuff. These three Beatitudes are the helping ones. If the first four spoke of our helplessness before God, these three speak of our helpfulness toward others. -- RLS, 6/30/16

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