Public Safety Ministries Inc.

Click here for previous post on “Waking”

From pages 148-149, part two of the book.

My interest in philosophy, both in undergraduate and graduate studies, focused on the mind-body problem and issues related to consciousness. Without knowing it, I was beginning the process of reconnecting to my body. But at this point, I still believed what the doctors had told me at age thirteen–that there was no way to connect my paralyzed body short of a regenerated spinal cord. This meant that to access my paralyzed body in a more living, engaged way, I needed a paradigm shift. I had to literally change my relationship to the world. Without knowing exactly what I was doing and why, I took a shot-gun approach–I began to question almost everything I had been told in my entire life.

Click here for previous post on “Waking”

From page 88, the close of part one of the three-part book. This passage follows his first gin and tonic, a drink he associated with becoming an adult.

The moment after gin and tonics, the realization that there is not a prize behind door number one, is a moment we all share. The answer to the question “Is this it?” is, of course, yes.

We all want a simple story–I know I do. In a simple story, my paralysis and the loss of my father and sister would be the obstacles I overcome, the negatives I turn into positives. My success would be the lessons I learned and a life of productive happiness.

In another version, the dislocation I experienced between mind and body during these months would be the injury. Yoga would eventually be the remedy. Humpty Dumpty would get put back together again and yoga would be the clue.

My story is not simple. As I write this, I am both heartbroken and desperately in love. Living thus far has taken quite a toll. And yet, I would trade nothing. The richness and possibilities I can feel come directly from what I have experienced. I stand in awe of the transformative potential embodied by our consciousness.

This awe, however, still possesses the flavor of the moment just after gin and tonics. This fact does not weaken the drama of life. It begins it.

This past week I finished “Waking” by Matthew Sanford. For book reviews I probably need to develop a rating system for consistency purposes, but until that happens I’m going to go with how much I enjoyed the book, and I thought it was “great”! I bought it when it first came out this past summer but just got around to reading it. It is the story of a man who was paralyzed in a car crash (when he was 13 years old) that also killed his father and older sister. Click here for a link to his book and some reviews. Click here for a link to “Mind Body Solutions” a non-profit organization he started. Later this week I am going to share a couple of short passages that were memorable to me. I’d like to know what you think too.

This will be my last “live” post until April 9, 2007. I leave next week for a pilgrimage, one that has become an annual event for our family, to Florida for spring break. Camilla’s (my wife for those of you that don’t know her) family all live in either Florida or Georgia and we make an annual trip down south to visit once a year. It usually happens at spring break time but not always.

I am getting ready for what is now a familiar trip, but with my retirement from EPPD it has a whole new perspective, a fresh perspective, a “spring” perspective. I am fighting my impulse to over plan the trip and just experience it. I am fighting the urge to bring unnecessary “work” whatever that means in my post retirement, pre-ministry career phase of my life.

The “work” I intend to bring is to gain some perspective over what has actually occurred over the past 60 days since my retirement from the EPPD. We’ll see what happens and maybe I’ll have something insightful to share when I return.

In the meantime there will be a somewhat regular appearance of new posts over the next two weeks. I have had the opportunity to do some consistent reading over the past 60 days. Before I leave I will “post date” some posts and share some passages from the books I’ve been reading, passages that I have found inspirational, informative or simply just interesting from my perspective.

Enjoy the coming of spring, take some time, and I’ll see you “live” in a couple of weeks.

There was a story in the source-health section of today’s Mpls Strib titled “Air of awareness”. It talks about the health benefits of conscious, controlled breathing exercises. We can’t not breath, but so often we don’t pay attention to our breathing.

I was not a use of force instructor when I was a cop, but I do know the importance the instructors place on remembering to breath during physical training. I remember it now because I had occasion to forget to do it then. Without knowing it I would find my self holding my breath during training. Our police instructors always did a great job of bringing it to my attention in a positive way that obviously has stuck with me. Giving verbal commands to suspects when in an altercation had several benefits, one of which it helped you breath.

So, when you are doing spiritual training, spending tme in silence and contemplation, don’t forget to breath, to be conscious of your breaths, to slow down and be deliberate in your breathing.

Check out the article. Although the program it describes is not directed at public safety, if you look closely for ideas you can apply to your personal fitness practices you are sure to find something you can use.

For the past 25 years or so I’ve been a back row pew guy at church. I’ve been fortunate attending (I’ll admit that attending might be stretch as to the implied consistency of my attendance) Mount Calvary Lutheran Church in Excelsior MN these past 25 years. Even through a couple of sanctuary remodels they still have the best type of back pew, one with a wall directly behind it. Some churches only have back pews that are open behind and people can walk behind you, aka a pew with no place to rest your head when the sermon reaches a certain level of inspiration. The only time I’ve spent much time with the other people “up front” was when the kids were about 3-4 years old. They wanted to sit up near where mom was sitting with the choir. After about a year of that I coached the kids on the importance of the back pew, the importance of tradition, and we’ve been there ever since.

Now that explains (with possibly more detail than needed) the “Back Pew” in today’s post title. “A Message” could also be called a perspective. I once read something by Frederick Buechner where he talked about a sermon he heard once, not to be confused with the sermon that was delivered. He said something to the effect that often the most influential sermons we hear are not the same as the sermons delivered. When a sermon touches you and inspires you to associate it with some part of your life experiences it becomes your own and often quite different from what the preacher had in mind.

So what you have here today is possibly the first of what may be a series of “Messages from the Back Pew” or more specifically my personal perspective on what may have been said in the pulpit on any given day.

So today, Pastor Scott preached. I am here to go on record that I was not inspired to rest my head on the wall. In fact I found myself sitting forward in my seat a couple of times to better engage the message. Scott, a very good friend of mine as well as my pastor, just returned from a trip to Africa. He went as a part of the Kids Against Hunger Program Mt. Calvary is involved in. There was a lot of content in the sermon, too much to share now, but there was a simple message, maybe more of a question in the sermon.

The public safety professions are based on a philosophy of service. Take this thought with you this week and think about what it means to you:

When we go out in the spirit of public safety service, “who is serving and who is served?”

We all get a lot of forwarded e-mails with stories and thoughts, jokes and messages etc. Today I received a forwarded message that is making it’s way through some public safety routes. It is from a citizen who wanted to share something with those of us in the public safety professions. Someone thought of me and the ministry when they read it, and I thought of you and am also passing it on. Enjoy.

Dear Friends in Law Enforcement, Fire/Protective Services and Chaplaincy:

Some time ago, while reading David McCullough’s biography of John Adams — entitled, amazingly enough, John Adams — I came across an excerpt from Adams’ journal in which he quoted Cesare, the Marchese di Beccarria (this in 1770, obviously before he became President of the United States; the quote brought you to mind):

“If, by supporting
the rights of mankind,
and of invincible truth,
I shall contribute to save
from the agonies of death
one unfortunate victim of tyranny,
or of ignorance, equally fatal,
his blessings and years of transport
will be sufficient consolation to me
for the contempt of all mankind.”

It reminded me of the work you do, and prompted me to want to pass along this brief word of encouragement in the important work you do every day.

All best wishes,

Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association Executive Board Meeting
03/15/07

Dear God,

We thank you today for this opportunity to gather in the spirit of law enforcement leadership. We ask for guidance as we carry out our leadership roles in this association.

Specifically today we ask for guidance and blessings on our upcoming Minnesota Chiefs Conference and Executive Training Institute. We thank you for all the work and preparation the organizers have put into the event. We ask that you guide the organizers and give them the strength and patience they will need to perform their duties. We also ask for safety and protection for all attendees as they travel to and from and participate in the conference.

Bless the food we receive today as nourishment for our bodies, the information presented as nourishment for our minds and the fellowship we share as nourishment for our souls.

Amen

Some of you may have noticed that I haven’t posted any photos (other than links off the net) lately. Well that was the result of user issues, aka I reverted to old software and forgot how to use it. Well I refreshed my brain and figured it out. Below are some photos I should have put in previous posts. See if you can figure out which ones go where. (and they all don’t go in the same post)

With the recent weather it is clear that Minnesota mushing is over for the season. That is always a nice transition because when the weather deteriorates for the sled dogs, it is replaced with the blessing of the coming spring. The coming of spring is a signal for the Carlson family to start planning our annual pilgrimage to Florida for spring break and a visit to Grandma’s house.

Two other events occur in this season, the NCAA basketball tournament and the Iditarod sled dog race. I’m not a avid sports fan nor spectator, but I do enjoy the tradition of paying attention to these two events each year (as well as a few others). With luck I’ll still be involved in the NCAA tourney pool at work and I’ll follow the results during our pilgrimage.

For those of you with some interest in the Iditarod, here is the latest info on the race that is nearing the end (for the front runners anyway) from my personal perspective. I’m following two racers, Jeff King and Jeff Wells. Jeff Wells is the guy from Fergus Falls who I’ve raced with in the past and Jeff King is an elite racer that Jeff Wells works with and is running one of King’s teams. As I write this post, King is in 5th place getting close to the end of the race. Wells is in 52nd, has passed the halfway mark and doing an outstanding job for his first Iditarod. Click here for the official site and race details.

Traditions in life, events and occasions that we can count on year after year are very positive spiritual fitness exercises. I love adventure, but I also love the comfort of tradition. I feel an increase in my spiritual fitness and personal happiness just writing about the my up coming traditions of spring: basketball, sled dogs and a family road trip.

What are the traditions in your life that build your spiritual fitness?

I read a good book this past weekend while in Duluth with Amy at the sled dog race. The book is “the Wisdom of Yawdy Rum” by Michael Lane.

My dad lives next door to the author and bought me the book. He saw a lot of similarities in the story and what has been going on in my life, a transitioning life. The story is about a man who is frustrated with his career and is exploring his options for the next phase of his life. He meets and old New Orleans jazz musician who shares some of the wisdom he has acquired throughout his life. He is looking for a balance with work and family, looking for purpose and fulfillment in career, and clearly he is looking for change.

I was very fortunate in my personal transition to leave the EPPD on a positive note. We often don’t have that choice. This book shares a lot about the process of discovery that leads a person to the conclusion that change is inevitable. Often we wait until we are pushed out (which is the case in this book) but often it looks as though we are asking for the push.

It is a very good read, especially for anyone facing a midlife career transition. It ends with a sharing of his “secret”, some simple ideas of Yawdy’s wisdom. I won’t share them now in case you want to read the book. The first time through I read it as a novel (I often study the books I read), the next time I read it I’m going to study it and pull out some of the wisdom and share it in a weblog post or two.

Check it out, you’ll be glad you did.

Two days ago I had the opportunity to have lunch with a pastor friend of mine and a friend of his, Jack Fortin. As I navigate the world of ministry, theology, non-profits, seminary…. I have been blessed with the opportunity to meet a lot of different people and share my story and hear theirs. We had a great conversation and I was thrilled with the opportunity to hear and share stories regarding real life and in the real world ministries.

Jack Fortin is the Executive Director of The Center for Lifelong Learning at Luther Seminary in St. Paul MN. He is also the author of “The Centered Life: Awakened, Called, Set Free, Nurtured”

I learned a lot during our meeting and I’m sure I’ll share more in the future. But the message I want to leave with you today is the idea of living a “Centered Life”. This idea is the foundation of the book. The book describes how often we are told to “balance” or “find balance” in our lives. But with the overwhelming demands in life, the sheer quantity and magnitude of life, we shouldn’t focus on balancing our lives, but focus on “centering” them. Centering our lives on God.

I’m not going to go into further detail right now. I need to do some more research on the idea and look at potential applications for “A Centered Life” in the Public Safety Ministries ministry. But at first glance, it seems to me personally, that I can have more success in bringing order to my life by “centering” it rather than “balancing” it.

This website and the weblog posts that I make are intended to share my faith and ministry journey as it happens. Yesterday was a very “influential” day in my journey. And in the next couple of day’s I’ll share an experience I had yesterday that also had a great impact on my “calling”. It has to do with my involvement with a project called “Beyond the Yellow Ribbon”. Click on it for more information on this project designed to support Minnesota’s deployed and returning military personnel. More to come…….

An important aspect of spiritual fitness is having the opportunity to talk to someone. One of my favorite movie lines comes from the movie “Crocodile Dundee”. In the movie, Mick’s girlfriend is telling him about a friend who is much healthier now that she has a good therapist. In response to Mick’s question about the purpose of a therapist, the girlfriend explains that a therapist is someone you can talk to and share your feelings. Mick’s response “What, doesn’t she have any mates?”

Friends and “mates” are important to being healthy spiritually. I have been blessed with lots of family and friends that I can talk to. It’s also important to have “safe” people to talk to. Often that’s where professional therapists, bound by ethics and confidentiality, are good alternatives to sharing sensitive issues with a friend. You will often here me refer to “a pastor friend of mine” (from now on referred to as APFOM) who has been a friend since high school. He is my “safe” friend. He is someone I can talk with and share ideas and is honest in his feedback, and he is always confidential. He’s my “mate”.

Who is your “mate”? Who can you have a “safe” conversation with? Think about it, it’s important to your spiritual fitness.

Some of you may wonder what sleddog racing has to do with spiritual fitness. For me it has a lot to do with rest. It is important to a person’s health to get enough rest. Often we rest our bodies and even our souls, but I find sleddog activities a time when I can rest my mind. It is very physical work, and it can even be a workout for the soul with the emotions of caring for the dogs and dealing with success or failure in a race. But it lets me rest my mind. It takes me away from the thoughts that often fill my mind regarding my future, the business, finances, studies, schedules, family responsibilities and all of the daily thoughts thay fill our lives. It is an important activity that rests the mind but exercises the body and soul.

So here is the update, Amy and her dogs Cobi, Owens, Orion and Goffee came in 7th in the 4 dog pro class at the Snowflake sprint race in Duluth this weekend. She had some struggles on the run Saturday due to the deep and soft snow, but had a nice clean (and fun) run on a beautiful day on Sunday’s run. It was a great father daughter weekend adventure.

For those of you who have heard of the Iditarod race in Alaska you should check out the website for the latest news on the race. Click here for the official site of the race. Once you are on the site, click on the current standings and find musher Jeff Wells. Jeff is from Fergus Falls and was a friend we raced with when he was in high school. He beat me in one of my first pro class skijor races in Cannon Falls. We bought the two dogs that ran lead for Amy this weekend, Cobi and Owens, from Jeff a couple years ago when he moved to Alaska.

Good Luck Jeff!

If you had by chance followed my blogging career when I was working for EPPD, you know that I often wrote and shared stories about mushing, aka sled dog raceing. This year has been horrible regarding snow conditions and th result has been the cancelation of most races. However, as you read this (if I edited the delayed time stamp correctly) Amy and I are on our way to Duluth for the Snowflake Skijor/Sprint Classic held at the Snowflake Nordic Center and also sponsored by Skijor Twin Ports.

It is a really fun race held on a well groomed XC ski trail. The Nodic Center Staff and Skijor Twin Ports club members are great hosts and I look forward to sharing some stories and pictures when we return.