Bud Hahn, one of the Trinity elders laid hands on pregnant Susie in 1975, and prophesied, “The child you carry will be a leader.” Most people in those days would have taken that to mean, “Its a BOY!” Which would be wrong, but the prophecy was spot on. Fittingly Joy would be born on Reformation Day, 31 October, and would come home from San Pedro Peninsula Hospital dressed in a pumpkin, made by the Ladies’ Auxiliary.
Beethoven wrote his 9th Symphony after going completely deaf. He wrote notes and rests and runs and chords with dynamics without ears ever hearing it. In some way he could probably hear it in his phenomenal mind, but on this side of the grave, he had to…
trust his gut
trust it would be beautiful
trust it would be a gift to others
do what he was made to do.
And, that is why his Ode to Joy inspires this ode to Joy.
Joy trusts her gut. And she can because her gut is so reliably trustworthy. She has an agile mind and a beautiful heart, but she lives and moves out of her gut (E1 in the gut triad). She knows what to do next, and this, like so many other things is magical to me. I either do what I want to do next, or the shiny thing that flashes before my attention. Joy knows the right thing to do next, and she does it. Even if it isn’t fun or shiny.
Beethoven’s Ode to Joy has proven and lasting beauty. He constructed it out the raw material music is made out of, but he had to trust the process and the product without actually hearing it. Joy does this with people. She sees a 6th grader and says, “I have a bass for you to practice. Look up YouTube “How to play a bass for beginners” or talk to my friend who can give you some pointers.” How many pianos, beginning guitars, drum sets, etc has she matched with middle schoolers so they have the opportunity to play in a band? I’ve lost count. I don’t know anyone who has done more to make liturgists—participants in the “work of the people," as plentiful in a local parish, as Joy. She, along with a cadre of parents, and practices, and music lesson-givers, has made Trinity the most musical church I’ve experienced. Most of the musicians are in the congregation on any given week. So they sing! Joy adds to the beauty, but sometimes it doesn’t start that way. It starts with some voice cracks, and some miss-plunks, and some dreams of celebrity. Even then it is a joyful sound, and Abba seems to adore our offering. Joy adds to the beauty in our home, in our family, on our holidays, and in her vocation. She looks for signs of beauty in our neighborhood, and is at total peace in the beauty of God’s creation—especially the beach. For her justice is beautiful. A well-made dinner is beautiful. A working dishwasher is beautiful. A well-worn marriage is beautiful. Her commitment to beauty is beautiful to me.
Like Beethoven, Joy trusts that her labor is for the sake of others and for the sake of the world. Beethoven’s Ode would become Europe’s Anthem—a song for others to sing. I don’t think I have ever heard Joy say, “We sounded good today.” I have heard her say many times, “Wow, the church sounded good today.” Her goal is not to sing for the church, but to give the church a song to sing to God, to each other, and to the world (that has nearly forgotten how to sing something beautiful).
Doing what one was made to do. Beethoven and Joy. Joy was born to lead this beautiful song. The elder was right, “This child will be a leader.” The world around might be desecrated and in various kinds of decline, but Joy is singing a beautiful song, and invite the real kids, teens, and everyone else around her to join.
Happy Birthday Joy—I’m glad you were born.
What a wonderful, loving, appreciative and appropriate explanation of Joy! She’s definitely the right one for you and for Trinity! And such a kind serving friend.
I love this, and I love her. I am blessed to call her my friend.