This is the way things happen.

A friend said, “You’ve got to meet a woman named Beth Howard. She has a project called The World Needs More Pie.” It sounded interesting. Beth uses pie baking as a way to connect people…as a way to make peace. She has traveled around the world baking pies in 10 countries. She has delivered pies to a grieving community in Newtown, CT.

So I said, “Sounds good.” And then a thousand things landed on my plate and I never met Beth.

A few months ago my friend nudged again…this time through social media and suddenly it was easy to comment and say, “Hey Beth…we should talk.” A week later we talked and a week after that we agreed to plan an event together.

Today, we spent four hours baking pie. Just a dozen people in the basement of the Lake Harriet Spiritual Community, learning about pie and getting to know one another. Tomorrow we will share those 20 pies at a reception after we talk at the 10:30 service. If you are in the area, you should probably come.

Can pie make peace? Of course it can. You should come hear how it has done just that tomorrow morning. I’m reading Beth’s book, Ms. American Pie. In it she shares some of her pie-deology. Here is a snapshot of some of the highlights:

-Pie builds community.

-Pie is not about politics.

-Pie knows no cultural or geographical boundaries.

-Pie heals.

-Pie is not about competition.

-Pie is meant to be shared.

-Pie makes people happy…and happy people make the world a better place.

Come out tomorrow and hear more. Beth will talk about pie. I will talk about art and storytelling. And we’ll all eat pie.

You can, too.