Fiddlin' Around

Last weekend I went to the Irish Festival
here in Wyandotte,
the city where I live.

Anyone who knows me very well,
knows that I just love ethnic festivals
and art fairs and what not.

I love all things creative and artistic,
even when not of the genre I prefer.

I mean,
I love a good Mariachi.
But still, I attended the Irish festival.

So, what’s my point?
At this Irish Festival
I had a most wonderful time.
A wonderful and talented group
of young musicians performed, and,
well, what can I say but that they were just awesome!

Being a musician,
I can appreciate the quality of their musicianship.. .
. . taking cues from each other,
acknowledging each other,
assisting each other.

And their preparedness and confidence. . .
. . what a gift!
And they just seemed to be having
one good time!
To top it all off,
they were all teenagers!

Now, why would I blog about this
in a liturgy blog?
As always,
I try to make the connection
between liturgy and life.
I mean,
sometimes we go to church
and listen and pray and sing,
but make no real connection
with what goes on
in the church building on Sunday
and what goes on in everyday life.

The point is,
we need to celebrate the gifts God has given to us.
And we need to expand them
and share them.
And we need to really appreciate
the gifts that others bring,
even when we prefer another genre of gift.
And quite often
that gift is not a part of the Liturgy of Sunday,
indeed,
not even a part of the ecclesial structure at all,
but a part of the Liturgy of Life.

Laos Ergon - remember that?
The work of the people.
In the Liturgy of Life
we are constantly sharing the gift,
expanding the gift,
receiving the gift,
accepting the gift,
giving the gift.
Sadly,
unless it’s connected to the institutional church,
many just plain don’t recognize the giftedness of others.

These young people celebrate,
share, and are obviously
constantly expanding their gift.

Their parents recognized the gift,
and did what they could,
are doing what they can,
to bring out the gift.

Their teachers recognized the gift,
and did what they could to make the gift more.

And, together,
the community around these young people
are bringing this gift to others. . .
. . .which is how I came upon them
at the Irish festival.

The thing is,
when you celebrate the gifts
that our Good and Gracious God has given you,
well,
that plain and simply is
a song of praise to the Master Designer.

Enough of Rubi’s Ramblings.
Here they are
in a video I took in Wyandotte, MI.
Don’t forget to visit them at their website:
FiddlersRestrung.com