Neighbors

"We are not asked to love the neighbor as neighbor, but as ourselves." -- Geevarghese Mar Osthathios, Metropolitan of the Orthodox Syrian Church in Kerala, India

I have LOTS to show you, but first, a happy announcement! Angel Helen Watson from Wadsworth, IL is the happy grandmother of a brand new bouncing baby boy - Linkin David Watson! Congratulations! After that, almost everything pales in comparison -- well, almost everything..... except the packages that arrived from California and Australia!

Angel Cathy Falkenstein from Loomis, CA sent us an envelope with these inside:

"Where are my kitty treats?!?!?!? I got up off the Polarfleece blanket because you said there would be treats!"

Uhhhhh.....Supervisor Cowboy, the Angels can't see the yarny goodness with you sitting on it.

Ahhhh....that's better! A lovely turquoise scarf for the folks we serve at Cornerstone Community Outreach's homeless shelters and a Christmas spa cloth for the women we serve at WellSpring. Thank you, Cathy!! Both bits of yarny goodness were made with lots of love and are just wonderful!

Angel Hazel Lindsay sent us a big box of goodies from Armitage's Army in Australia -- want to see?

"I'm warning you, Mom: no treats, no cooperation!"

Supervisor Cowboy, I know it's Sunday afternoon and you prefer to keep the Sabbath holy (or maybe just sleep on the Polarfleece blankets) -- but the Angels want to see you! And these lovely scarves made for the folks we serve at Good News Community Kitchen. OK, OK -- I'll go get the treats.........

Ahem.....now, let's try this again!

Hey! Cowboy! Where did you go?!? Oh, well -- this way you can see this gorgeous baby blanket even better. How perfect for the babies we serve at Swedish Covenant Hospital.

Isn't this just the sweetest little baby sweater with matching mitts? I just love the color, and so will the new mom!

Finally, some cooperation! Yet another wonderfully made baby sweater for a little boy!

"I WANT TREATS!!!"

Hey!! Cowboy, the Angels can't see the sweater with you sitting on it! Now be a good boy! Get off!

Thank you. That's better! Won't this look so cute on a toddler girl living in one of Cornerstone's shelters? Hazel even made a hat and scarf to match:

And just look at this yarny goodness:

Just perfect!! I really liked the yarn Hazel used in this little sweater -- it's "Barbie pink," sort of "spongy," very lightweight and warm, and it washes like a dream. This will be a little princess' prized posession! And there was more:

"I don't like these new treats you bought! They are icky!!"

Oh, good grief!!! OK, OK, I'm sorry, Supervisor -- I had the coupon and I've heard other kitties really like them. I apologize - the next time I go to the store, I'll get a different kind. Can we get back on track here?

Thank you. This sweater will be just wonderful for a toddler boy -- Hazel's needlework is just so fine. It will become an heirloom!

Hazel also packed in some extra goodies:

Ballerina Barbies! These are guaranteed to make a little girl's eyes sparkle come Christmas!

And nice, warm hats Hazel found on sale for the men at Good News Community Kitchen! Thank you, Hazel, for your continual generosity, commitment to service, and beautiful yarny goodness! You are such a treasure!

Another treasure stopped by on her way home from church, bearing gifts:

Angels, meet honorary Crafty Angel Sonja Bowen and her husband, Bill! Sonja heads up the knitting and crocheting ministry at Fourth Presbyterian Church here in Chicago, and we became fast friends because Bill worked with me at the Central Conference office until he retired last year. Just look at what she gave us!

REALLY BIG BAGS O' YARN!!! This yarn was donated to the ladies at Fourth Presbyterian, but the agencies they serve are pretty strict about the kind and color of yarn the ladies can use to make things for them. So Sonja always gives me the yarn she cannot use -- and this is a bumper crop!! WHOO HOO!! I've been praying for more yarn to fill our bins, and here comes Sonja! Thank you, Sonja, for your neighborliness and willingness to share -- you are such a blessing to us!

Frank and I were talking about being a good neighbor and what that meant on Saturday night, and of course, I quoted the Bible -- you know, "Love your neighbor as yourself." We talked about what that meant, and I remembered the quote up top. I like the emphasis Osthathios puts on "neighbor" and "ourselves." We humans, being human, always love ourselves the best of any people around, and usually our families come in second. Neighbors can come in a distant third -- or even further behind than that. But God calls us not to love neighbors as we would someone way down the list, but as we would love the person first on the list, ourselves. Now that is something to think about!

Then we started talking about who is our neighbor. Just the folks that live next door to us? What about the guy across the street? How about the homeless man I've seen lately pushing his grocery cart around our neighborhood in the morning when I'm on my way to work? What about the people the Crafty Angels serve? What about that child living in poverty in Africa or the mom giving birth at a hospital in Afganistan? Is a neighbor someone you have some sort of tie to or feeling for -- or is a neighbor any human being?

Angel Helen Watson carries the idea even further -- she considers all the people she knits and crochets for as members of her family. They are her grandparents, parents, children, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, cousins, and so on. Her goal is to treat them as she would treat her family members. And believe me, she treats her family pretty good!

So, if we were in a philosophy or theology class, we'd be at the point where we could begin to agree that our neighbors could be most anyone -- anywhere in the world. That is profound. And if you add in on top God's command to love them just as we love ourselves, the first people on our lists, that can rock your world. Just imagine what would happen if people did that! But I don't have to imagine -- I see it every time I open a box of yarny goodness sent in by an Angel. I see how Angels are changing their world -- one neighbor at a time!