blessings on the beasts

My favorite picture from last year's blessing when we went 

to the local campground to bless the pets 

of the homeless population there (other campers, too).

We honor St. Francis today with our annual blessing of the animals. I'm trying to steal a moment here before heading to the church for that occasion. When that's over I'll head to the university for homecoming events and to hang out at the church booth!

It's been a loooonnnng week. And to think that I forgot to mention that I had a newsletter to write and put out when I itemized my list of to dos earlier! It turned out to be eight pages long--not bad for a small, struggling church! At least we're busy while we're at it.

Ken is off to the mountain this weekend on the closing retreat with his Companions in Christ class. It's been a great experience for him to lead the group, and though he's been ambivalent at times about doing it again immediately (January), I think the impending reality that he will miss his role, and the community formed, has led him to offer it again. So says the newsletter, anyway!

Tomorrow we dedicate our new plantings, and I am even fairly relaxed about Tuesday's breast cancer service. I've recruited two wonderful sopranos to sing Andrew Lloyd Webber's Pie Jesu. They will sing at the end of the service, before the blessing and dismissal, and while they sing members of the congregation will be invited to light congregational candles from the pascal candle in the sanctuary, a symbol of the lives lost whose light shines on in love and our memories. At the dismissal those with candles will be asked to place them in a large metal tub filled with sand outside the door, where the collective light will shine and burn until the candles burn out. I get goosebumps thinking about it. Now we just cross our fingers and offer prayers that people will come to the service! It DID get a "best bets" write up in the coming events section of the paper yesterday. Thank you for that, Tennessean!

Off to get dressed and try to visit blogs before I head out the door. I sure have missed you all this week!

friday five: pets

Juliet and Dooley on my 50th birthday

At RevGals Jan ruminates about pets. She invites us to "Tell us about the animals in your lives. If you have no pets, give examples of friends' pets or imaginary ones!"


1. Did you grow up with pets?
You betcha! A cocker spaniel when I was a wee thing, and then a cat. When I was eleven my parents gave me a dog for Christmas, and the rest, as they say, is history.

2. Do you have any pets now?
Three dogs (see picture below): Rigel (German Shorthaired Pointer), Juliet (AkitaGgreyhound mix), and McKinlee (Yellow Lab/Jack Russell mix)

3. What is the funniest or worst thing any of your pets have ever done?
I have a terrible memory for antics or stories unless evoked by something, but there is one thing that comes to mind. When my husband and I were dating we were watching TV one evening. My dog, Dooley (seen above on the right) was lying next to Ken and was fussing about something. "GRRRRRRR," he kept going. I finally looked at him and said with conviction, "Dooley, use your indoor voice." He turned his head away and went, "grrrrrr."

4. Who is/was your favorite pet?
I have loved all my dogs equally, but I will say that when Dooley died a couple of years ago from congestive heart failure, the grief was the worst I ever experienced with a pet. I continue to miss him dreadully.

5. How did you train your different pets?
What makes you think I train my pets? Seriously, we don't want to have this conversation.

BONUS: Pictures of a pet or one you wish you could have.

blessings continue

These are my favorite pictures from the blessing service we did down at the campground. That's Scooter on the left, and Sandy on the right. We didn't have a big turnout, which wasn't a huge surprise, especially considering that it was raining. Once we were there I was also reminded that life without walls, so to speak, also means that time and punctuality are all relative. It was still a wonderful hour with people who loved their pets and felt honored to have their pets recognized as vital parts of their lives. Today I will print out their blessing certificates and some of these pictures to take to them.

There's lots coming up on our calendar, and it's time for me to hunker down and get organized. I need to work on publicity for the breast cancer service as well as locate an organist and soloist. Our own organist has a regular commitment on the night of the week in question, and her usual substitute is, well, let's just say inadequate and leave it at that. Unfortunately I think the other musicians I know also practice that same night, so this may prove to be a challenge. In any event my work is cut out for me. Now to get to it!

Rain or shine, may your day be filled with light and blessings!

and they were blessed

That's Princess Lilly in my arms, looking back toward her mama. And in her mama's arms is Lady Sarah, a chicken. Both of these beloved pets received blessings yesterday at our blessing of animals event. I loved blessing the chicken! It was such a beautiful day, and it truly felt like God was smiling on all creation.

And then, out of nowhere, an idea popped into my head. A campground a few miles down the road from the church is home to a lot of families that have been displaced for various reasons: Hurricanes, floods, foreclosures--you name it. Today I will go there after church and offer blessings to their pets, too. It isn't much to offer, but it is something. And I picked up dog biscuits and some cat treats to distribute, too.

As a church we have talked about ways to minister to these families, but have felt "outmissioned" by the larger churches with resources that trample what we have. But today I will invite members of my parish to join me, and perhaps there will be some spark of outreach that will result. I can only pray for that. In the meantime we will bless the four-legged loved ones, and ask God to bless the hopes and dreams of the families who call the campground home.