Easter 3

OK, it’s a lovely wet April, so the flowers should be spectacular later on.  They’re not out yet — mostly.  There are a few in a couple of sunny spots, but anywhere shaded is still pretty bare, and the trees aren’t yet leafing.  Soon come, though, soon come!  I was debating pulling out a sweater today as it was all of 6C, but thought that there was no point adding to my laundry for one day!  Consider me optimistic, OK?  Perhaps even rushing the season, but it’s not cold enough to justify digging out the warm stuff that just got packed away.  As you can see, Jerry is extremely comfortable and living the life of Riley.  He’s right now rolled in Don’s blanket, pretending to be a little roti, all wrapped up and cozy.  Don is, again, watching some true crime stories — they’re mixed in with series of (real) court cases and what happens after arrest and so on… what used to be Arts & Entertainment is now all the worst of humanity all the time!  I asked him what’s the attraction for those shows and he says they’re “educational”… should I worry, do you think?  🧐 

My sleep was a bit broken last night.  I somehow managed to get myself into a pretzel and that led to some nightmares and I woke up and took a while to get back to sleep.  I use, sometimes, some ‘white noise’ to help me fall asleep, but I am questioning whether that interferes with me getting restful sleep.  I seem to wake up shortly after it turns off (I set a timer) and lately I’m finding it challenging to go back to sleep after I wake up.  My support worker (not my regular, but the one who was here yesterday) came, and she folded my laundry and made sure that I was fine before she left.  It’s a huge difference when I have someone as scheduled!  I’ll be finishing my spaghetti and shrimp for tonight, and will have to think about dinner for the rest of the week.  I’ve actually got a recipe I want to try out, so we’ll see how that unfolds.

It’s the third Sunday of Easter this weekend — Easter lasts for 8 weeks on the liturgical calendar.  It’s the most important feast of the Church and the celebratory season lasts longer than any other.  In the last couple of weeks, we’ve also had several other festivals, including Eid-al-Fitr, Holi, Navratri and in another short while, Passover, Orthodox Easter and several others.  It seems that this time of year is filled with religious festivals.  I love that.  Everyone’s celebrating something, and it’s a wonderful time to share with neighbours and friends so we can rejoice together.  For myself, I love the food aspects in particular (and I have a feeling that’s true for many others as well) although I’m happy to participate in religious ceremonies as far as I’m allowed.  What that means in many cases is that I will sit quietly during the prayers, stand when others stand, and follow along as much as possible.  Not always easy when prayers are not offered in English, but it’s still an honour to be allowed to share.  One pundit has the lovely habit of explaining what he’s doing/praying before he begins, so I understand the significance of his actions, and he’s done me the favour of answering many of my questions after the service is over.  One thing that I especially love is that in every religion that I’ve encountered there are more commonalities than meaningful differences, and I enjoy learning about them.  On that note, I wanted to share a prayer that was shared with me, and I liked it so much that I can’t keep it to myself.

FOR ALL YOUR CHILDREN

Not for ourselves alone do we pray, 

not for ourselves alone, 

but for all Your children.

Knowing our failings,

Let us be patient with those of others.

Knowing our will to goodness,

may we see in others a dignity that is human, a beauty inviolate for ever.

Every soul, Lord, is precious in Your sight, and every life is Your gift to us.

Yet one stands poised to strike the next; armies uproot vines and fig-trees, as war and war's alarms make all afraid.

Not for ourselves alone, therefore, not for ourselves alone, 

but for all Your children do we invoke Your love.

Good night!