Linda reminded me that I had more I should say about my time as a puppeteer. Last week I wrote about how I accidently became a puppeteer and how that has shaped my life. To say I accidently stumbled into ventriloquism would be both true and a groaner (a pun).
I was with a few of my Up Town friends when I had my great fall. Having a great fall in October is wonderful but mine was in August and of a painful variety. The result was a shattered jaw accompanied by tremendous damage to my teeth. It was a memorable experience!
My jaw was wired shut for a little over 6 weeks. On her first visit to me in my hospital room Linda brought a book on ventriloquism. I had long thought about trying my ‘hand’ at this, but it requires a lot of practise. Now I had the opportunity to give this art my full attention. I learned how to speak and project without moving my jaw or lips.
Early on in this exercise I told our Director, Bruce Smith, that I wanted to preform somewhere before the end of the year. He booked me right away to debut at the Church Army Christmas Banquet, where 100+ of our friend and supporters would be.
I found a dummy (another dummy) and continued practising toward this deadline. I wrote a script in my now familiar format. I played the wise patient character and my puppet Andrew, played a zanier type character. We did a bit about the best kept commandment. If you do not know it is the admonition Jesus gives to some He had healed, to not tell anyone. It seemed to Andrew that this was indeed the best kept command. The Church was very much like the mighty Mackenzie River, which was often ‘frozen at the mouth.’
It was a daunting preparation time for me, but I fulfilled my goal of preforming ventriloquism! Since Covid hit I have, with the help of my masks, perfected the art!
This is yet another example of God’s faithfulness. He uses the most difficult circumstances. If we but look beyond our pain He can accomplish immeasurably beyond all we could ask or imagine.
Three mornings a week I do a Bible Study and post it online. For the past, several months we have been wending our way through Luke and the end is in sight. Next week we will be zeroing in on the crucifixion of Jesus. I want to slow down a bit so as not to hurry through this act of love which is so central to our Faith.
After recording the short study, those of us in the room of our chapel at Threshold House spend time in prayer and conversation. You could participate by letting us know of any prayer requests you might have, and we will join you in intercessions. If you live in the Saint John Area and would like to drop by at 9 AM Monday – Wednesday we would be happy for you to join us.
For Prayer
We are planning some ‘Meals with a Message’ some will be lunch hours with soup or chowder, others will be evening spaghetti dinners, and still others will be the occasional breakfast.
We continue to look for a Night Assistant. Please pray for the right person.
Hope & Reedemption 