Crane's Corner: 6-29-21 Shepherd of the Fairway.

Crane's Corner

How many people do we meet in a lifetime? Hundreds? Thousands? I suppose the answer depends on where you live, what you do and how receptive you are to your fellow humans.

Let’s agree over a lifetime, it’s a significant number. Now, of all those people you’ve met--outside of your family, how many really touched you? Connected with you.

My list isn’t terribly long, and as of this morning it’s one name shorter, but the loss is profound. My good friend, Mike Vander Dussen died the other morning. Mike and I met on a golf course, paired up as two single players one Friday morning at Rancho Murieta. Meeting Mike, a big strapping guy blaring Dire Straits out of a speaker on his custom golf cart, a cigar clenched in his mouth and a premixed canned Margarita in his left hand, he extended his right hand, flashed a beautiful smile and introduced himself.

“Hi, I’m Pastor Mike” Pastor? It was true. Mike’s flock was in South Sacramento and Elk Grove, at the Impact Community Church. Perfectly named for this man of the cloth, who had a very big impact on everyone he met. Including me. Mike was my friend. My Golf Coach. My human encyclopedia of Rock and Roll. He was my fairway therapist. My conscience. He was wise and faithful, dispensing advice if you asked, never judgemental. He could keep a secret. He knew the Bible by heart, and could find the right verse for every situation. He was patient, I never heard him say a word in anger,

On one of our first days on the course, the difference in our golf skills was readily apparent. Mike was playing even par, I was--well getting a lot of golf for the money, Finally, overcome by frustration I went through a litany of cursing, at one point yelling out the name of Mike’s boss, also known as the son of God. Mike approached me as asked, “why is it that you aren’t screaming out the name of your wife or your sons? Why are you taking the Lord’s name in vain? All he’s ever done is sacrifice for you. He loves you. Besides he’s performed a lot of miracles, but that was before he saw you play golf”

He had made his point, with gravity and humor. I made it a point to never take God’s name in vain, at least on the golf course.

For years Mike and I played a couple of times a month, and I soon learned that I enjoyed our conversations, our 4 hours of sharing and maybe another hour at the 19th hole, better than the game itself.

He put up with a lot having me as a partner. Once on Rancho North’s 17th hole, I sliced one right off the tee, cracking the windshield of his Baby Blue Golf Cart. I apologized profusely, pulled out my wallet and watched as Mike convulsed in laughter. He wouldn’t take a dime, all he said was “Bet you can’t do that again”.

A few years ago, having heard Crane’s Corner and seasoned in the writing of a weekly sermon or lesson as he called it, he proposed we write a book together. He sent me some sermons, I started going through earlier commentaries and I even wrote the forward to the book. We had the title Jesus Has My Bag. And even wrote forward, which read in part:

Just for the record:

We’re not monks. We rarely play a round without a couple of cold beers, or a glass of good wine, and of course a couple of cigars. We’ll also share some tales from the Amador Wine Country and some of our favorite recipes, all in keeping with the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. We know, in the miracle of the loaves and fishes and the story of The Last Supper, the Lord’s emphasis on sustenance and sharing; as to wine, well Mary didn’t ask her son to turn the water into Lemonade and Iced Tea.

Apparently she left that to Arnold Palmer.

More.... to see the rest of the story, visit www.edcranescorner.com/blog-page/