#AdventUs WAR

#AdventUs War from Joelle Colville-Hanson on Vimeo.

War

Ever since Tommy, the undisputed head of the cat household died, Freddy and Tally, the two boys who were left have been fighting over the head of household position.  

Sometimes fur flies and awful screeching sounds are made.  But no one is ever really hurt.  

No one wins.  No one loses.  No one is the head of the household.  

And the girls ignore them anyway.

I wish we could wage war the way the cats do. 

Friday Five - Healing Edition

I haven't done a RevGalBlogPals Friday Five for awhile but they are doing a Healing Space Edition today.  Besides waking up this morning to news of a manhunt, international terrorists on a killing spree, a shootout and a city on lockdown, I have a bit of stress going on in my own life so a Heaing Space is a good thing to think about.  So five healing things:

1. A piece of music

I love the hymn "How Can I Keep from Singing?"  Enya's version sounds very healing to me today



2.  A Place

I just look out the window to the bird feeders and watch them, along with the antics of the squirrels, skunk and woodchuck that come by for their share, to be very healing.

3. A favorite food (they call it "comfort food" for a reason)

I always make ham stock from the Easter ham and the other day I made gumbo.  Gumbo requires a dark roux and a dark roux requires your constant attention for about 10 to 15 minutes.  Just stirring and attending to the roux, watching it turn that rich Carmel color can be very healing.

4. A recreational pastime (that you watch or participate in)

I don't live anywhere near a skating rink but I need to get my skates out and drive to one.  Soon.

5. A poem, Scripture passage or other literature that speaks to comfort you.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
 Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

Philippians 4:4-9

 BONUS: People, animals, friends, family - share a picture of one or many of these who warm your heart.

Sweety - the cat that I took in because I thought was pregnant
, was not pregnant but has turned into a very sweet affectionate cat.

 

This is Tommy my oldest cat.  Probably close to 20 years old, his tongue is hanging out because he only has two teeth left.  He is skin and bones and not long for this world.  I think he knows it and is very affectionate, saying his goodbye. He wants to tell me everything is going to be okay.  I believe him.

On Taming Feral Cats & Grace

So Mama kitty is in the house.  

She let me pet her and rubbed up against me this morning.  Now normally I like to take this more slowly but she is BIG and the weather has been terrible and it could snow any day.  And I need to have access to those kittens to tame them if there's any chance of them finding another home.  I'm not going to stay here and can't be raising dozens of barn cats.  So I picked up by the scruff of the neck and put her in her own room.  She's not happy and there won't be any petting for awhile.

But she will get used to it.  She'll be warm and fed and realize soon just how safe she really is.  I think she will turn out to be a friendly cat.

I've never had any trouble taming feral cats.  But this is the secret.  Patience and letting them be.  I've had cats live in my house for months and even years who never wanted much to do with me.   Eventually, they came around.  I still have one who will run away if I approach her but every time I sit down she jumps up in my lap. 

There's a show on Animal Planet called "My Cat from Hell" where this guy with tattoos and a goatee and a guitar case full of cat toys goes around solving the cat problems of  stupid cat owners who have no business having cats.  

I could do his job but I'm not nearly as interesting looking as he is.  

The most common problem is these idiots chase the cat and pick them up when the cat obviously does not want to be held and then are surprised that the cat has tried to rip their face off. The secret to cats is letting them decide the parameters of the relationship.   

You want to control an animal, get a dog. 

 Most shelters will euthanize feral cats because nobody wants a cat that just lives there and doesn't give you anything back.   But to me, letting a feral cat share your home is a way to express grace.  You take care of the cat, love it, take care of its needs and demand nothing back from it.   When it is ready to reciprocate, you appreciate and accept, however, it does that.  I believe that is what God does with us. 

 I wish we could be free enough to love others this way.

So now Mama Kitty is hiding and fearful and I wish I could make her understand that all I want to do is care for her and she is better off with me.  Is that  not like Adam and Eve hiding from God in fear when all God wants to do is enjoy a cool walk in the garden with them?  I will be patient with her as God is patient with us.  And pray to have the same patience with people.

Vocation, Creation and Yes, a Pregnant Stray Cat IS My Neighbor

 First it was the orange tom cat that showed up stalking my bird feeders.  I had no problem chasing him away.  He never got any birds but he always came back.  He looked skinny but I was strong.  No feeding him.


Then the pretty orange and white showed up.  She was eating the peanuts for the birds.  So I put the peanuts on the roof of the shed and she jumped up on the roof to eat the peanuts.  Well I figured if she was eating the bird seed I was feeding her anyway, so I started feeding her.

  And of course the orange Tom showed up for his share.

At first I thought "She's  not that skinny, she's eating somewhere else"  Then it became clear that she's not that skinny because she is pregnant.  And the orange Tom is no doubt the Baby Daddy. Just what I need.  One of my life's challenges is NOT to become one of those crazy women you see on Animal Hoarders.  This is not helping.

After awhile I decided to just give in to my secret piety which tells me God sends me these creatures to take care of.  Just go with it.  Buy her the special food for kittens and pregnant cats.

So here I am in Dubuque for our Theological Conference and the theme is Vocations.  Stanley Olson from Wartburg Seminary is our presenter.  He starts out asking us who is the neighbor God is calling us to serve.  Everyone shouts out - the sick, the lonely, the outcast, the immigrant,  you know the drill.  When it was my turn I answered "A pregnant stray cat"  Everyone laughed but I was not joking.  Is not creation our neighbor?  St. Francis, whose day was not so long ago, would certainly agree.  Is it not just a holy a calling to care for animals, plants and even the earth as it is to care for people?

"God is milking the cows through the vocation of the milkmaid", Luther said.  God is taking care of this pregnant queen through me.  

Friday Five - More Randomness

 

So the RevGalBlogPals are into Spontaneous Thinking today...  In honer of that I offer a randam picture of a Goldfinch in a tree right outside my window.  I took it with a new camera I bought for myself because I was not happy with the zoom on my other cheaper one.  I keep an envelope stuffed with cash that people give me for gifts and save up until I want something for myself.  I thought this was a good use of that cash.  How is that for a random thought?
So...
1.  What religion/faith besides yours captures your curiosity and why?  Both Quakers and Roman Catholicism.  I know, they are totally opposite right?  That's probably why. I like Roman Catholic stuff in worship way too much to ever be a Quaker but I am appreciate their simplicity idea of just shutting up until the Spirit speaks and listening to other people speak.  I don't think I could ever do that which is why I think it's important. 
And sometimes I think the Roman Catholic church is really the one true church.  Just really screwed up. 

2.  What is the first or most memorable pop song you ever learned as a kid?

I remember watching the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan show the first time.  And we all went to school the next day singing "She loves you YEA YEA YEA"

3.  If God were a color.....(finish this sentence creatively) Not a color - the RAINBOW.  Of course.

4.  If you were going to make a sandwich right now for lunch, and you magically had all the items you need for it, what would that sandwich be?

 Grilled fresh Sourdough bread from San Francisco,  smoked extra sharp ceddar cheese, applewood smoked bacon and thinly sliced honey crisp apple.

5.  How are you doing?  Really, how are you? Really?  Well I had a rough night last night as I suffer from acid reflex and I seemed to suffer all the ways you can from it last night.  Not just heartburn but nausea , coughing, burning throat.  Okay, well you DID ask! (And don't bother commenting all the things in my diet I need to give up--I won't do I tell you!)

But the good thing was as I was walking around (lying down makes it worse) I looked out my window where their is a light and saw my woodchuck wandering around looking for trouble.  He didn't seem to find any as my flowers were all intact this morning.

Bonus:  What are you enjoying/loving right now? 

Having always had a lot of cats and letting them roam pretty free (no comments about THAT either) I never felt like I should have a bird feeder.  My cats are all elderly and we live in open country now so they only go out with supervision now so I put out a finch feeder with thistle right out side my window.  It did not take long before I had goldfinches and house finches.  In an attempt to attract different birds I've put out sunflower seeds and grape jelly on my picnic table.  All that attracted was more finches but they are delightful to watch.  They are very busy.  I know there are blue jays and cardinals I see once in a while but they don't care to come.  But I'm happy with the finches.

  

And I'm taking off for the Synod Assembly and am expecting it to actually be an enjoyable experience.  And I'm convening the hearings for the Social Statement on Criminal Justice   It's been very stressful trying to decide what to wear.

Legend of the Tabby

It was cold in the Manger and Baby Jesus was shivering and fussing.  

Mary asked the stable animals to move in closer to provide more warmth.  A tabby cat jumped into the manger and curled up beside the Baby Jesus who settled down and fell asleep.  

In gratitude Mary bestowed her initial M on the tabby's forehead.  

To this day every Tabby cat has a notable M on their forehead. 

This is a true story, I don't care what Father Anonymous says.

More Things that Make me Smile...

Tommy & Freddy cuddling...

Grape Hyacinth

Molly 2009-2010

 

Be thou comforted, little dog, Thou too in Resurrection shall have a little golden tail.~

Martin Luther (died on this day 1546)

Some animals want and need to be wild.  Some animals want and need to be with people.  Molly was a feral cat who wanted to live with people.  

She showed up crying in my garage last winter.  It was so cold it took little coaxing to get her to come into my house.  She promptly made a beeline for the basement and found a cubby hole to hide in.  

Everyday I would come downstairs and sweet talk her.  She liked to be talked to.  She would come out of hiding to listen to me talk to her.  Pretty soon she was coming upstairs to eat with the other cats.   She made friends with Mr. Boots.  Well, I think she wanted something from Mr. Boots he was not physically capable of providing her but she seemed content with his affection.

While laying in the same bed with Mr. Boots she let me pet her.  And she realized she liked being pet.  She became one of the sweetest, most affectionate of all my kitties.  

I noticed last night she didn't come up to bed with me which was a little unusual.  Then this morning when she did not come to eat I knew something was wrong.  I found her sitting in the basement, lethargic and with labored breathing.  


By the time I got her to the vet she was having an extremely difficult time breathing and so we put her out of her pain.  She had fluid on the lungs.  Lots of reasons for that.  It was something of a shock since it came on so suddenly.  My pretty little Mollie.  I'm so glad I took her in and gave her the home she so obviously longed for.