JUST ONE OF THOSE MORNINGS....

Have you ever had a morning at church where you just couldn't get focused??

The friend I usually sit by (when Sam is working) was gone today so I knew I would have to find someone else to latch onto. I decide to sit in one of the weird "5 seat" rows that we have at our church and I move right to the middle seat just hoping that other friends who I know usually sit in this area, would show up and join me. They didn't....

As we begin singing two young people (I'm going to be pretty vague here although I don't know these people and don't think any of my blog readers know them either.) sit in the two seats to my right. We are in the middle of the first song and instantly one of the person's hands is in my face. I have no problem with how someone else worships during our singing but it was just kind of distracting for me. Totally my problem. After 5 songs we sit down for the sermon. I'm doing my best to focus and then it begins. First was the humongous, I think a good 32 ounce, travel coffee mug with a flip-top lid that evidently has to be clicked shut and then re-popped open between every drink. Then came the slurping during the prayer. I know, I know coffee is hot and we are a modern church who welcomes all coffee drinkers!! Next was the chewing of the fingernails. Have you ever noticed how when some people chew their nails it makes a loud clicking noise? That was this. All I could sit there and think of was how many H1N1 (we've been calling it the high-knee flu around here as H1N1 is so cumbersome to say) germs could possibly be under those nails. Just when I finished praying that this person would be protected from all of the cultures they were ingesting, out came the anti-bacterial, fruit-scented, hand lotion. Surely that would stop the nail biting......Nope!! I should also mention that through all these noisy events there has been constant touching of the face and running of fingers through the hair. (I was thinking maybe some OCD was involved here but now my professional diagnosis is fidgetor.)

If church would have been over at this point I might not have felt the need to blog this story. Here's how it ends.....

So the next big event, again during a prayer, was knuckle cracking. I almost giggled at this turn of events. However, the cherry on the big old church sundae today, was the back rub given during the closing reflection and prayer. (No I wasn't looking during the prayer but couldn't help but notice during reflection time.) Gotta love that "right in the middle of the worship service" pda!!

No worries though....I still managed to write down a full page of notes, understand the point of the sermon and find the humor in the situation. Next week however, I'm back to my usual focused self and my assigned seat!!!!