Oh, man. You won't believe how big my upper lip got this afternoon after having lunch with Amanda at Chick-Fill-a! I have no clue what caused it to swell up like this but it sure looks and feels weird. I came home early and took a Benadryl. Hope it works.

Had a pretty good weekend. Nothing really eventful, unless you count March Madness. I have no particular favorite team as long as it's one of the ACC. Three were knocked out of competition this weekend, North Carolina, NC State and Maryland. Well, there's still Duke, Wake Forest and Georgia Tech.

Went back to COC (Church Of The Covenant) Sunday. Neither of us felt well but we went anyway. It was a good service. Fairly typical for a Presbyterian church, somewhat liturgical but not too stuffy. Somewhat dry but a strong sense of the presence of Spirit. I know we come from a more conservative (and 'charismatic') background so you have to take my comment about 'dry' in context. We are used to much noisier meetings. Fortunately, we have matured enough to know that God doesn't pay any more attention to us for our 'loudness' or how much we jump up and down. All of that is okay but we are learning how to hear God in that 'still small voice'. It is in the silent space of the heart that God makes his presence known as well as in the outpouring of love and friendliness from others which we have experiencing there. We're just glad to be back in church and enjoying it again! PTL
We had an interesting experience after service and being reminded that people are the same wherever you go! We stayed for lunch after service which they do about once a month, I think. At our table we were supposed to be discussing the question of "church membership", pros and cons, etc. Well it seems that in every group situation of this kind there is always someone who is just a little more talkative, a little more dominant personality and a little more overbearing than the rest. I couldn't express my own comments for having to battle with the louder, more opinionated voices at the table. This is not totally their fault, of course. I just hate having to struggle to get a word in edgewise. Most people just talk over others before they finish a sentence in order to say their piece. I foolishly try to be polite and wait for someone to take a breath before interjecting my own thoughts. This never works. At least with some who seem to never breath in between words let alone sentences.
I know. They could be less self absorbed and be sensitive to others in the group. But the real problem lies within myself. My own psychological 'schema' or drama centers around the childhood admonition to "speak up, son" which I heard all my life growing up with a soft voice (and not a little shyness) and having to make an effort just to be heard at all. Some folks just open their mouths and the whole room knows they are there. When I do make a conscience effort to 'speak up' it feels like I'm shouting. Anyway, I'm still working on it.
This particular event does not effect my decision to continue going to this church. These kind of people are everywhere you go and you just accept them and love them just like everyone else. We all have our foibles and faults!

Enough ranting already. Check it out next time.