A Cat In My Garden Of Earthly Delights

Yesterday I mentioned how I find lawn mowing and yard work provides me with a sense of tranquility and both physical and spiritual exercise.

HA!

Doesn’t that sound pious?

Discovering the ecstasy of mental prayer is a hallmark of mature spirituality.

Wouldn’t Brother Lawrence, who wrote The Practice Of The Presence Of God, think that I’m the cat’s meow when it comes to spiritual discovery?

Well, Friday as Ginny & I cleared thorny undergrowth from the fence line and I crawled along on hands and knees in the dirt rooting out thorn vine roots between the flowers Ginny treasures, I discovered exactly where our neighbor’s cat shits.

Lots and often!

What do they feed that creature? Anchovies?

Since my discovery was not of a spiritual nature, I said a few words which aren’t exactly spiritual either.

That set the tone of my day.

Then, after working in harmony among the flowers of our garden all day, Ginny & I found ourselves at odds this evening over sex.

Looks like after 38 years of marriage we’d have ironed this sort of thing out, but we still haven’t mastered it all yet.

I think we need more hands-on practice; she thinks Agatha Christy writes a great mystery novel.

So we had this long meaningful talk about our feelings.

Just talk.

Damnit!

The person who said, “Communication is so important in marriage” had to be some blazing. flaming, tattooed, ear-ring-wearing, orange-haired whimp of a hair-dresser who wants beautiful women to cut their hair short so they’ll look plainer than he does (not that there’s anything wrong with that, you understand).

On the other hand, in his movie Octopussy, James Bond, who along with his other sterling qualities must be a true spiritual giant, said, “Actions speak louder than words”.

I, of course, remain a cool, impartial Christian gentleman amid the negations.

You know, it is so much easier to write Christian stuff than to live it; if I didn’t try to live Christian, then I could write a whole 26 volume Encyclopedia Britannica of spiritual tips for other people.

But the longer I try to follow Christ myself, the less I know about it and the fewer answers I have.

I write a lot but I’m most often at a loss for words.

Recently my heart has really been touched (how would James Bond say that?) by the postings of T. in her blog at . http://missingmybug.blogspot.com/ She’s such a beautiful lady. Her postings for the last couple of days ring with the solid majesty of reality

I’m impressed.

During our devotions after supper, Ginny read an old version of Psalm 99 which says, “The Lord is King, be the people never so impatient. He sitteth between the Cherubim, be the earth never so unquiet.”

I’m not positive what that means but I find it comforting. Especially when I’m frustrated, and without answers, and up to my elbows in unexpected cat shit, and my life is not making a whole lot of sense, and I’m impatient and unquiet—even then the Lord is King.

About that cat situation….

I’ve read that the city health department loans out these humane animal traps. Apparently, you put bait, maybe a tiny baby bird, inside and the lurking cat slinks through the dark of night; claws extended to shred the baby bird, it enters the cage —and the trap snaps shut capturing the vile creature alive.

Then the next morning, I suppose, you have to put your own shotgun through the bars to make garden mulch.

Sounds like a winner to me.