All posts by Fr Tom Tirman

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Bond, James Bond…….

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I almost didn’t post this picture……there is nothing worse than having a four year old who thinks he is James Bond, and who looks better than you do with a gun and no shirt…..plus, his biceps seem more formed.

But I will post it nonetheless. Ben’s good buddies Gabe and Bella are back from Michigan and they got together this afternoon for a pool party. Of course I could not go….it is a work day, but it clearly didn’t prevent any of them from having fun. And on a day that has seen more than its share of stress for me, this picture was a welcome gift.
But it is now 10:30pm and I am home really for the first time today of any significant length. AND fortunately that length will include a good night’s sleep (I hope). I have already found that James Bond is in my bed, and although his mom is asleep, he is up awaiting my return to talk about some secret mission. He is going to be sadly disappointed, as I am ready to put out to pasture as they say.
But it is good to make it home, and good to see my bed. My mom is about the same, yet in a 20 minute visit all I got was an “okay.” She is not in pain, and we are all thankful for that.
So off to bed I go!
Goodnight my friends and God Bless!
Tommy+
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What a Calamity!

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With all that is happening I needed a break, and my cousin Chrissy provided me with one tonight. She is a wonderful young woman who has always been as sweet as the day is long, but she also has an alter-ego……”#33 – Chrissy Calamity.” That’s right, my dear sweet cousin is a certified killer, a REAL Roller Derby skater!

And tonight she invited us to come out and watch a match in Indianapolis, and I have to say that it was one of the most amazing things I have ever witnessed in my life! I was pulling for her and her team all the way, and I was surprised at how very competitive it was.
Of course I came to this as an ice hockey player. I was sure, coming from what is often said to be the toughest sport in the world, that watching some young women (not all of them were young) skating in circles and trying to get by each other would bore me. BUT, these women are tough. They wear a lot less in terms of padding (and clothes) than your run of the mill hockey player, and they get A LOT more contact (almost constant) than we ever do. PLUS, I cannot roller skate (it is VERY different from ice skating) and when you fall on a roller rink YOU STOP. On ice we slide. Sure occasionally someone gets teed into the boards, but that is rare. These women get it all the time.
But in all honesty, it was just what I needed. Scotty and Ben had a blast too (we sat next to Aunt Suzie, my mom’s sister and Chrissy’s mom). It took my mind off, ever so briefly, of what is happening with my mom. It was a real blessing to me.
As for my mom, she vacillates between reality and wherever she is. Today she was able to talk, though not much. She asked me how her parents were (her first question to me in years, and only the second I know of, since she asked my cousin Steve what he was looking at yesterday). I told her all about her mom, my grandma, who is just now in assisted living in Goshen (but still at 95 as sharp as a tack). And then sadly, I had to remind her that my grandpa, her dad, died some 15 years ago. That seemed to disturb her, but she forgot it all in just a few minutes.
Life does take some turns….some sad, some joyous. Today has been a day for both.
But tonight my cousin really gave me a remarkable gift, and it couldn’t have been at a better time.
Goodnight my friends and God Bless!
Tommy+
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A day of transitions……

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We have had a rough few days here in Indiana….thus this post is delayed. My mom, who has Alzheimer’s and is in a nursing home here, has taken a turn for the worse. I did not want to post too soon, because my Uncle will be talking to her mom, my grandma about this Saturday. There is nothing more disrespectful than hearing something so personal second-hand. We just wanted to make sure she heard about it Saturday, and in person.

But my mom has made the decision to stop all treatment, and she has done this at a time that she is already sick. The IV with the important antibiotics was disconnected tonight at 9pm, per her wishes, and although I am not a medical doctor, I can say I believe they have not yet got that infection under control. I anticipate her getting worse and not better, but in truth, it is her decision and I respect her for that.
So today is a day of uncertainty. although we are pretty sure of it’s direction. Please keep her and us in your prayers. I will update you on this daily, but for now the waters are calm.
Goodnight my friends and God Bless!
Tommy+
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A healthy meal……

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I sent her this picture…..she could not make it out as you will not be able to either. She seemed to think it was a cute little bunny who made its way into her garden for a snack. After all, everyone loves bunnies.

But the truth is that it was a pretty good-sized groundhog, or woodchuck. And it was not there to chuck wood, it was there to eat leaves….which I hope makes her feel better. It really kills me that that garden is full of vegetables and that cute little woodchuck just wants to eat the leaves.
Sadly however, I scared it away when I tried to sneak around to get a better picture. I do hope it comes back. It clearly was not afraid of our plastic owl, and it seemed pretty hungry. And I am sure it was not its first time there….along with all the raccoons, squirrels, and birds we have been sharing with as well. It was just cool to see it. It stayed on the peripheries for just a second and then went into the center of the garden (with the owl). Amanda would have had a stroke of her own seeing it. But it really did make my day.
Anyway, there really are plenty of veggies to go around there. We send a lot to the Christian Center, eat a lot ourselves, and apparently feed every rodent (not the filthy stinky icky kind) within within our neighborhood. It’s fun, and I have a bird’s eye view from my office.
I needed to see that today too. I have enough on my mind. It was nice to just see the little woodchuck have a time of it. It deserved it.
It was probably tired form all that chucking of wood.
Goodnight my friends and God Bless!
Tommy+
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A night of incredible blessings……..

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Tonight we enjoyed a marvelous celebration where three men were ordained Deacon by Bishop Loomis at St. Anne’s in Anderson. We welcome to our staff (not really, they were already on it but their titles have changed) the Reverend Deacon Kim Akers, the Reverend Deacon Skip Beyer, and the Reverend Deacon Robert Jennings. All three are pretty good guys (well, at least two of them are) and it was a real blessing to be a part of this celebration.

And of course it is always a blessing to get to be with my good friend the Bishop. Doc is an amazing man with a real servant’s heart. He always does a great job wherever he goes, yet I always feel badly in that I think we often exhaust him. I am sure the other guys who do my job feel the same way too. I am led to remember that line that about 1000 celebrities think is about them, that they are “the busiest guy in show business.” That appears to be always up for grabs. Doc however is truly the busiest Bishop in the Church, and we love him and appreciate him. And he drives more miles in a month the Mario Andretti did in a lifetime.
But the big news it that we now have three more deacons and are looking ahead to the future. It has been a night of incredible blessing. And although I would love to stay up some more and contemplate all of it, I think instead I will go to sleep and get some blessing from my bed!
Goodnight my friends and God Bless!
Tommy+
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Home Sweet Home………

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Oh the beautiful town of Edgewood, Indiana! Of course when I arrived, there was really no welcoming committee. I carried in all my bags alone, and even the dog didn’t seem that interested. But if you do not catch him during the 45 minutes he is up per day he isn’t really responsible. But arriving when late afternoon did avail me the opportunity to unpack and get a few things settled.

There were however problems. One, I have spent the better part of the last week sleeping in hotels with the temperature turned down to at least 60 degrees. I found our house a little bit warmer than that. Two, I had not had access to enough office equipment on my trip to get the things done that I had to do for the ordinations that are scheduled for tomorrow night…….so I also had a TON of work waiting for me here. Fortunately, even after they all returned home, there was no parade or speeches to be made. We just ate dinner and I could get back at it.
But nonetheless, it is good to be home. The next few days will be packed with plenty to do, but the end of the week should free itself up and perhaps give me a couple of days to just relax.
If I can just figure out how to make it 60 degrees here that would be awesome!
Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+
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Progress…….

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Although our government seems incapable of it, I believe I am making progress as I am now half way home. I will arrive at my house tomorrow and believe it or not, sleep in my own bed. I am looking forward to it. To be honest, I am really tired of carrying everything around.

Another blessing in all of this is that I feel I am making a lot of progress on a lot of the things I have had going through my mind. I just wish I were further along in these thoughts though. My mind goes a mile a minute, and it always has. Post stroke however my fast moving mind was my worst enemy…..now I am pretty confident I can handle it. My mind still whirls, but off the meds I am seeing I have a much clearer understanding of that than I did before.
No, clearly the function is a bit, if not grossly, backward, but I feel I have a line on it. I am excited abut the possibilities. I am sick of medicines and fact that I may be free of them in just a few days is clearly progress to me!!
Goodnight my friends and God Bless!
Tommy+
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Lot’s of thinking to do……

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One of the benefits of travel is that I have a bit more time to reflect upon the happenings in my life and the directions and paths upon which I travel. I have to confess that I have been more than dissatisfied by many of the decisions that I have made in my life, and although as a pastor I confess that I tend to feel “God led,” some of this mess I call my life, if not the majority of it, I cannot blame on Him.

But I am just 50, which is really just a kid in my family, and I am considering a few “course corrections” in my life.
One, I will be TOTALLY off the meds that cause the weight gain NEXT WEEK. I am struggling to adjust to the loss of them. What I can say though is that the problems that they treated in the beginning, though clearly still there, seem much more manageable than it was at the beginning. I am going to give it a shot in a week ALMOST med free!
But the other is this general dis-ease of feeling that both my life and ministry are not quite in sync with where God wants them to be. I have tonight and tomorrow night away from home and in the hotels I intend to spend some time alone working through these issues. I feel confident that they are significant for me.
But for now I must head to bed. It is about 11:30 and the day is well past over for me. Pray for me as I leave the beautiful Pittsburgh area and make my way into Ohio. I will make a presentation tomorrow night in Madison. So even tomorrow will be a busy day!
Goodnight my friends and God Bless!
Tommy+
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Running on empty……

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I had the opportunity to not only celebrate the opening Eucharist at the Anglican 4th Day Conference, but to speak at it as well. And it was a great honor and privilege…….that’s for sure.

But in all honesty, I am really happy my parts for today in all of this is over. It’s not that I haven’t had a great time, its rather that I have been exhausted. Sometimes the best laid plans figure to be a bit too much, and although I would like to confess that this is the end of my time, the truth is today was just the half way point of my trip. I have a few more days before I see the familiar sites of home.
I do however love to ravel on these trips. I LOVE hotels, the peace and quiet, and the ability to fill much of my free time with relaxation. It is good for me, and I am happy to do it.
Sadly, work comes along soon enough…….as it will in the morning. So for now I will hit the hay as they say. But I am sure there is no hay here. They actually have a bellman here. It’s a bit too swanky for my Hicksville tastes!
Goodnight my friends and God Bless!
Tommy+
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Pittsburgh is disturbing…….

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Gee whiz……I hope my this isn’t an indicator of what I am in for here, but I had a headache today, AND I had forgotten to bring black socks (white socks look stupid with clergy wear), so I made my way to the Wal-Mart to buy some Advil and socks.

What I saw however was disturbing……a bunch of little birds……..carnivorous, deranged, weird little birds, all fighting over a piece of fried CHICKEN that had been dropped in the parking lot! WHAT IS WRONG WITH THESE GUYS???
It reminded me of a cartoon I used to have on my office wall of a cow cooking hamburgers on a grill and the other cows standing with him saying, “You’re sick Jesse, sick sick sick.” Of course that was a cartoon, and it was funny. But these little killers are actually out there waiting for us! I mean, what happens when that chicken is gone? Will they seek out the weak and helpless? I mean, I have a pretty bad headache!
So I will be on the lookout all day and weekend.
Death by sparrow will not be happening to me.
Goodnight my friends and God Bless!
Tommy+