O Death, Where Is Thy Sting?

by austin pfeiffer

The past week was an incredible apex for our community. We saw the realization of many dreams. On Monday our chickens arrived and immediately one was laying. We continued the week with two eggs a day, using them in our homes and sharing a few with friends. On Saturday, Paul and Erin and I went to the farmer's market at the Joel and signed up for our CSA with Mill River Farm AND we ordered two chicks from them to add to our coop.

On Friday we had our sixth Critical Mass W-S, where we had 15 riders hitting our downtown. It was exciting to ride past all the restaurants, people's curiosity tickled and the energy of liberated bikers, safely riding together through these streets so foreign to human-powered vehicles. It was a beautiful night, ending with sweet companionship at Krankie's where we drank New Belgium beers and signed people up for Team Wonderbike.

On Saturday night we brewed another beer, what we're calling the Roulette American Ale, because it was brewed by two Americans, with American hops, malt, and yeast...plus Paul and I don't know what we're doing, so its a gamble whether it will taste good or kill you. The weekend was capped off with a huge community dinner on Easter Sunday night. We had friends from all over the city bringing food, good wine and beer, mingling on our front porch, checking out the chickens, getting to know each other, bringing community together.

It was a full life, a seizing of breath, air, passion, sweetness. Carpe Diem is the romantic mantra of fullness, spontaneity, and excitement. In Christianity we have something else, its 1 Corinthians 15:55..."WHERE O DEATH IS THY STING?" Taunting death we live unfettered by the chains of mediocrity, enjoying God's earth, his animals, and his people with depth and breadth. Ending a week so rich does not charm the words "Carpe Diem" off my lips, but bubbles up into a victory yelp of a pastor here in Winston, Hunter Dockery, who said last night with mockery, barb, and provocation, "O DEATH, O DEATH, WHERE IS THY STING?"