The other day we were at our kitchen table and I asked who wanted to pray before breakfast on Sabbath. My son, Keating, said, “I will”. He then launched into The Lord’s Prayer. The whole thing…
“Our Father…Thy Kingdom come, they will be done…Forgive us our trespassesas we forgive those who trespass against us…”
He ended and we all said, “Amen.”
He then started again…
“Our Father…Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done…Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors…”
My son, prayed The Lord’s Prayer twice, so that he could include two of the predominant ways people say that prayer in the Christian tradition. How ecumenical and welcoming he is.
“What? No way. You’re just trying to get me to open up.”
“Nope. I’m serious.”
I then laid down, because I was starting to crash coming down from the rush of adrenalin and sobering up to the reality of the trouble I was going to be in when my parents got home. So I closed my eyes and hoped that when I woke up, it would have all been a dream.
When I was a kid, I was described as “having lots of energy”. I was energetic, emotional, gregarious, and on occasion, known to be angry. Now let me state, I was the instigator of most of the chaos and typical scuffles between me and my brothers. I liked to poke the bear and get attention. Also, my older brother, who is much more cool, calm, and collected than I ever was or will ever be seemed to like to watch me spiral out.
Did you know winter doesn’t begin on November 1st. Or on Black Friday. Or on December 1st. The first day of winter begins on a day called the winter solstice or midwinter. This date is either December 21st or 22nd. That day, right before Christmas is the day winter technically begins.
I recently borrowed a pressure washer from someone. When I started to rinse off an area on the side of my house that had mud and grime, stuff started to come off that I didn’t even know was there. Stains that had tinted the grout around the bricks. Dirt that had found its way into the crevices of the exterior of the house. And more stuff started to fall away from the cleansing water that I didn’t even realize was making my house dirty. I felt so accomplished after I finished one side of my house…that I started to work on the fence.
