1/8/2023 0 Comments My Irish Hat – Lost and Found Eight years ago, Catherine and I wandered into a local shop called “Ireland on the Square” in Newburyport. They specialize in Irish imports including handmade Irish sweaters and hats. Catherine’s dad was Irish and we traveled with both her parents for a memorable trip to Ireland some years ago when they were in their 80s. In the store, Catherine spotted a Donegal, Tweed Herringbone, blue flat hat (see photo including a cameo appearance from Ziggy). We both thought it would be quite “respectable” for funerals, weddings and other cold weather occasions. We are both fond of this hat, and I have worn it quite a few times in cold weather. A Funeral Catherine and I were planning to go to a friend’s funeral with our very good neighbor and friend, Prudy. However, Catherine had a lingering cold and did not want to share it with anyone at the funeral. So, Prudy and I went together. The funeral service was held at Ascension Memorial Church, a beautiful 150-year-old Church in our Town. https://www.amcipswich.org/. Everything about this Church has a “welcoming” quality including their website that states: “the community is open to all, centered in worship, religious education, table fellowship, care for the environment, and compassion for neighbors local and global.” Bob, our departed friend, had lived his whole life in town, and the affectionate term of “townie” fit him well. In addition to his “regular” life as husband, father, grandfather, etc., he was a very competent carpenter and handy man. For years, he offered his services wherever there was a need, and he had garnered deep appreciation and respect from many people. Thus, it was not a surprise that more than 600 people showed up, filling the Church to capacity including standing room only. Prudy and I were lucky to get a seat in the very back. The Rector’s talk matched the welcoming page on their website and was filled with the spirit of inclusion and kindness. I was touched by what he said and the way he said it. Perhaps, I was a bit “swept away” by the whole experience, and unknowingly left my hat behind. Finding My Hat and My Self The next afternoon (Sunday), I realized I did not have my hat. I hoped that I might have left in the Church. I checked their website but was informed that they would open on Monday at 9AM. I had to wait. When I arrived Monday morning just a bit after 9AM, there was a whirlwind of activity with adults and small children flowing in and out of the doorway next to the church. I followed the crowd and everyone was going upstairs to what turned out to be a nursery school. I looked for someone to ask about their “lost and found”, but the administration window had a sign saying that they would not be open until Wednesday. Hmmm. Since no one was downstairs except me, I decided to investigate where we had been sitting in the Church, just in case my hat had fallen nearby or I had left it on the bench. The door to the Church was closed (not locked) and a little sign on the door said: “Holy Silence offers a community of practice for religious and non-religious persons seeking clarity and peace from returning and resting in the stillness of the present” I took it as an invitation and opened the door to the front of the Church, and then something intense and wonderful happened. As I walked into the Church, the “voice in my head”, that never-ending buzz, simply cut out. What specifically brought this about, I really don’t know. My body became quiet, light and alive, and everything seemed still. I looked around as if I had entered a completely new space, a new world. The altar, the baby grand piano, the stained-glass windows all seemed to smile back at me. But it was the benches that fully captured my attention. They glistened. The room was immaculately cleaned and orderly. “Visits” from another dimension of existence are always new and fresh. At the same time, they are quite simple, just being fully in the moment, drinking it in. They bring with them a special kind of joy, an inner smile and a feeling of immense gratitude. I slowly walked to the rear of the Church where I had been sitting, although finding my hat now seemed quite secondary. I looked carefully and even crawled under a few benches just in case it had dropped somewhere. There was no hat to be found. “So be it.” I slowly and quietly walked back to the front of the church enjoying communion with everything I was seeing, and left through the door I had entered. There was a closed door to another room nearby. I wondered if someone might be inside who could help me. To my surprise, the space was a large, beautifully appointed sitting / common room with comfortable couches as well as a large flat screen TV. But no, no one was there. I took a deep breath and enjoyed looking around. It occurred to me that the “lost and found” I had been searching for applied more to me than the hat. Leaving that room and closing the door quietly and intentionally, I knew it was time to go. I walked down the hallway to go outside. Twenty-five feet in front of me, right near the entry door, was a free-standing wooden coat rack that I had not noticed when I entered. It looked empty except that there was something on the top hook. Could it actually be my hat? As I approached, I saw that indeed it was there, just waiting for me to come and get it. David: “Thanks hat, both for being here and for the experience.” Irish Hat: “My pleasure, “Top of the morning to you.”
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David FeldmanDog walker, Dog Mediator, Father, Husband, Categories |