ponderings102 cont
TheArch jan7 reflections Theresa Thandeka [BELOVED] Tutu-Gxashe
mySelf said to me: fold the trinity essay into ponder’s Reflections. so here goes…
some of my thoughts after viewing the trinity event. there’s Grace in that video. i suggest: ponder. watch it. the Tutu women are Special. Unique. Gifted. thandeka, the eldest daughter, talked about their Daddy and his spirituality.
BishopTutu prayed seven times/day
my ponderings. “oh my Lord! how is thandeka?!!” in my first draft i wrote: “how is poor thandeka” nope! ain’t NOthing “poor–i.e., Spirit-broken” in those Tutu women. gracefully grieving. painfully grieving. but broken? “poor” in Spirit? nope.
allow me to digress w/a note about grieving — and a contradiction that slapped me in the face. glued to You Tube, early New Years morn, watching TheArch’s funeral. In his sermon, at Times in tears, Bishop Nuttall, Number Two to Tutu counsoled the family:
“First, let me say a few words to the chief mourner among us. My dear Leah, Gogo Emeritus of our church, distinguished member of its Order of Simon of Cyrene, you and I are in a close solidarity in the loss of a much-loved spouse. I therefore know something of what you must now be going through, though each person should be free to grieve in whatever way is most appropriate for them. Many times you wiped away the tears of your husband for, as we all know, he cried very easily and, in the life of our country, both past and present, he had much to cry about, not to mention the wider world which seems in many ways to be tearing itself apart. Today we are here to try, in a small way, to wipe away your tears, though tears are, of course, a very necessary part of our grieving. Allow me to give you, and your family, a comment which was sent to me for my comfort and which I found helpful within the strange twists and turns of my grieving:
“Grief is not a disorder, a disease or a sign of weakness. It is an emotional, physical and spiritual necessity, the price you pay for love. The only cure for grief is to grieve.” (Earl Grollman)
THEN, SoAf President Ramaphosa, had the audacity. [yes. IMHO audacity. i’d love to hear ur comments about my opinion] anyhow, Pres Ramaphosa’s speech writer opined:
“I recently came across these words which provide a fitting end to any tribute to Desmond Tutu: “Tears are sometimes an inappropriate response to death. When a life has been lived completely honestly, completely successfully, or just completely, the correct response to death’s perfect punctuation mark, is a smile.”
contradiction? yeap. could say a lot more but i won’t. not now.
back to thandeka… there she was, dec 3rd. in New York City. and her Daddy passed away on the 26th. the day after Christmas…in Cape Town😢 i can not imagine how she and her bro and sisters. and the grands and other family mbrs r breathing.
ESP MamaLeah…ESP MamaLeah
anyhow, thandeka and dr michael battle talked about a man whom they dearly loved. [y’all… listen to the bio sketch of this unbelievably brilliant, AfAm man, RevDr Battle. trinity’s priest-in-charge was speechless!] listening to and absorbing michael’s softly spoken words, observing his presence–even his clothes–it was as tho i were in the presence of another very, very humble soul. like attracts like. battle and tutu.
i wonder: what’s the Spiritual significance of thandeka’s being at trinity…in that space. at that time? maybe, just maybe, thandeka’s being w/michael, those weeks b4 her Daddy died, was a God-thing. TheArch and michael were close. very close. consider this: thandeka was there bec she was supposed to be there. i believe that Spirit is an active Presence in our lives. i think that very few [any?] things that happen in our lives r by accident…
looking back at their discussion at trinity…i wonder. was anything “prophetic” said almost said left unsaid
something that uniquely spoke of Bishop Tutu and his love of/love for his fam. wife. children: daughters. and Trevor: firstborn; only son. about whom little is said. named after TheArch’s more-than-mentor, Fr Trevor Huddleston. Trevor Armstrong Thamsanqa [BLESSING] Tutu.
i imagine in the littleness-said, there is BIGness-unsaid. i don’t know; have not read one thing. but something in my soul tells me that TheArch held a special place in his heart for their only male child. Trevor. son of Archbishop Desmond Mpilo [LIFE] Tutu and Nomalizo [MERCIES] Leah Shenxane Tutu. amen soBEit
Ukuthula/UBUNTU
fri jan7 noon cdt mgy
i had to throw this is in…kinda relates to audacity…
ps i’m signing off ponder for the wknd… so i’ll be all set to play w/my chocolate bunnies. on google duo; thanks to the plague. on monday, we’ll pause from BishopTutu and visit one of my children. the plan is to spend the rest of the week in pictures, pondering and reflecting on TheArch.
Have tons of FUN this weekend. amen
ponder on this 