Something Old, Something New

"Christ saith this, and the apostles say this, but what canst thou say?"
~George Fox

Age and time took its toll on the maple outside Pitt Hall. It finally had to come down during the spring work weekend at Powell House.  Rot had taken out its insides.

That tree held more than leaves.  It was home for the Pitt Hall and Anna Curtis Center signs.  In looking for a post to put those signs up in the basement of Pitt Hall, I could only find one sturdy 6x6 post, but it was too short.  A mere 5 feet.  With three of it buried in the ground that would only allow 2' above ground.  

A few other bits n pieces of posts were hanging around from other projects so there was only one thing to do -- scarf them together to form a brand new post.  As it turns out, diggging a hole would prove impossible because of the root system of old tree, but a stump can make a convenient brace for a new post! 

Before joining the two 6x6" posts pieces that had rot and bug damage would need to be cut out and replaced or wood hardener added. 

One aspect of this project that I just love is the transformative nature of it.  You take something that was destined for the bonfire and giving it new life.  

As I work on this post I often find myself thinking that this block of wood is a metaphor for life.  As people, we seem to be like 3 act plays.  Each scene builds on the last until the end where the finale takes place; the final transformation. 

Some of the best parts of us happened in act one and is has been ready and ripe to become something new for a long time. I've noticed that it is often a major event (like a tree coming down or a life passage) that provides the impetus to scarf things together and bring about a transformation.  

And by transformation, I'm not merely talking about an external change.  This is not a makeover but a whole new way of being that incorporates all of what was with all that is new to bring about something "never been seen before."  Transformation actually alters who we are in a fundamental and beautiful way.  Healing. 

Fox's words resonate here.  We can express what God is inwardly working on in us! And be fearless in the knowledge that, like the wood of the post, we can be shaped and repurposed into something that brings the fulfillment of God's work and the manifestation of the blessed community. 

So my queries today are: 

• Where's the dead wood? (here's a clue: any area of life that is not working)
• Where can I be cutting, sanding and scarfing in new pieces? 
• What areas of my life are ripe for transformation?
• What's new that I've been drawn to and that feels good to me? 
• If I could imagine a transformation for myself, what would that look like? How would it manifest in the world? 

Note: special thanks to my friend, John Porritt, a fine woodworker in Spencertown, who taught me how to use the lathe and assisted with the creation of the ball for the top of the sign. 

Joseph Olejak

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