I thought working in the patch
would be mostly about setting it up and working each day to sell
pumpkins and pumpkin foods. I was wrong. It was much, much more.
So many interesting people came to visit. Some were looking for pumpkins. Others were looking for more.
There
was a man who told me his pastor wasn't helpful to him and asked if I
knew of a "good pastor." Another young couple said they always admired
the church building and wondered if they could be married here. Many
children came and shrieked with delight as they found the "front door"
of the patch designed by Steve Weurth. Some kids practiced their math
skills by helping me count the prices of the pumpkins they chose.
A
grandfather named Michael brought his 10 grandchildren. They had
planned to go to a place in Illinois. When his son needed surgery and
chemo for throat cancer at Barnes, they came here instead. (He went
away with a gift of a beautiful pumpkin from all or us at LPUMC for his
son, along with our prayers for his recovery.)
Some
came from out of town to visit their families in Lafayette Square. I
could see they were pleased when they learned where the money we raised
went and how the Navajo and Hopi in New Mexico were helped to earn a
livelihood by 2100 churches across the U.S. who hold patches and sell
their pumpkins every year.
Some
days Patrick just came by to take a break from his duties and we had a
chance to enjoy the afternoon sun and a cup of coffee together.
One
day I realized this was a ministry as much as it was a fund raiser.
Maybe God didn't see it the way we all do. Maybe God saw it as a way to
give and receive love and fellowship and support and laughter to each
other, to friends and to strangers who now were no longer strangers.
As someone said: "God comes to us disguised as our life." I think God spend most of October in the parking lot.
Michael Desmond
