A friend mourning their spouse told me the story this week. They’d had to call streaming services to cancel their beloved’s premium sports subscriptions. The usual offers of discounts ensued until sales representatives learned the reason for the request. Then grace abounded. “They were on the verge of offering to come over and bring tea,” my friend said. “If only we could be like that with one another all the time.”
Of course, we can. And often, we do, the urgency of business notwithstanding. Three or four times a year, the deans of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles came all the way to St. Paul’s Commons, Echo Park for lunch. The exception was during Covid, when deans became a council of advice on reopening protocols for the Rev. Canon Melissa McCarthy and me. These are wise, experienced leaders who know what works and what doesn’t, ask apt questions, and offer direct advice, always in the spirit of camaraderie.
Thursday’s was my last such meeting, minus the Very Revs. Michael A Bamberger, Peter Browning, and Betsy Hooper, who had scheduling or travel conflicts. I invited the Rev. Canon John Watson, interim diocesan canon, to describe his work with vocations and congregational development and Bloy House interim dean Eric Miller to talk about his good work at our theological school.
Girding myself as usual for my question period, I received nothing but grace and gifts. On the group’s behalf, the Very Rev. Canon Kay Sylvester presaged two retirement activities by presenting San Diego Padres gear and books about writing. In conclusion, I will do my best to follow Strunk and White’s famous guidance, “Omit unnecessary words.” No better circle of collaboration exists. Thank you, friends and colleagues.
