Total Rip-off Tuesday

Ooooh, there was so much good stuff to rip-off today, I had a hard time making up my mind. I decided to go with NPR's "A Global History, Told Through 100 Objects", a book by Neil McGregor- fascinating stuff!

...MacGregor sought to include objects used for pleasure. One such object is from America's own backyard: a North American otter pipe from Ohio.
"One of the great pleasures for a lot of humanity has been smoking. It's not something one should say very loudly in public, but for most of history it appears to have been true," he says.
The otter pipe was found among a collection of little stone pipes that were interred 2,000 years ago in burial mounds in Ohio.
This particular pipe, which is about the same size as a kazoo, was carved in the shape of an otter. MacGregor guesses that the pipe's otter design was intended to add something extra to the user's smoking experience.
"As you smoke it, you're eye to eye with this little animal that appears just to have bobbed up from below the water, he says."Tobacco was probably mildly hallucinogenic, so presumably you and the otter really got going into some kind of relationship as you had your smoke."

Make sure you click on the link above and check out the photos.

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Trying to "end run" God

If you're a football fan, you know what an end run is. From Merriam-Webster:
a football play in which the ballcarrier attempts to run wide around the end of the line We try to "end run" God a lot. I do. I figure I know better. I've got this - no need to worry the Big Guy about such a trivial thing.

Of course, it never works.

Like the puppy above, when we try and evade the tough obstacle (even though we KNOW we will eventually have to do it), we end up - well, off in the bushes.

But oh! How I wished my way worked. I'd love to take a flying leap and land smoothly and gracefully. People would be in awe, as if watching Simone Biles nail a balance beam routine that no one else would even attempt. I would shyly look down and blush - just lightly - and acknowledge (But humbly! Oh so humbly!) my achievement.

But no: I am the one pulling myself out of the bushes, scratches all over my legs and twigs in my hair. I'd hear that gentle but loving voice of God saying, &quo…

Crossing Guard

I saw you
today
as you guided
your little man across that busy street.

You were wearing some
big man boots
and
watching cars and lights.

Your little man had on
black sneakers and
a Mickey Mouse hat
that bounced
as he walked.

He wasn't watching nothing but
your big man boots
and
the white stripes of the crosswalk.

Just before
he got to the sidewalk again,
his step bounced a bit
- he hopped over
a spot where the asphalt broke.

You turned to look,
holding out a hand to
your little man.
Not rushed or angry,
just making sure
he got up
on that sidewalk.

Then you walked on,
in your big man boots,
face into a cold Michigan wind,
with the little man behind,
his hat bouncing.

Be Transfigured

From today's readings:

Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother, John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them; his face shone like the and his clothes became white as light.

...we possess the prophetic message that is altogether reliable. You will do well to be attentive to it as to a lamp shining in a dark place until day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

Today we celebrate the Transfiguration. For whatever reason, Jesus brought three of His disciples to Mount Tabor to witness this miracle. They weren't sure what they were seeing, but they knew enough to throw themselves to the ground in the presence of Almighty God. St. Peter (who never did anything halfway) excitedly declares that he will erect tents on the mountain as a way of memorializing the event. But Jesus tells him and the others that they are not to tell people what they witnessed - at least not yet.

In the second reading, the requirement to be quiet has bee…

Kissing the Leper

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