Monday, July 31, 2023
Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Priest
Jasper’s 4th Birthday
(click here to listen to or read today’s scriptures)
Being four, being there – Jasper’s 4th birthday
The Kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. It is the smallest of all seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.
Jasper has been waiting a long time for this day! He is getting better with numbers and words, with balls and bats, with his hands and with his feet. He takes fewer and shorter naps, and uses longer words. He has decided to avoid all camera lenses for the indefinite future. He loves to stick out his tongue, however, and sometimes allows himself to be photographed if everyone else in the picture also sticks out their tongues.
The Kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.
Yesterday was his birthday party, Paw Patrol-themed from start to finish for a short hour, enough for Jasper and several of his friends. He and our family had a meal together, with four kinds of homemade dumplings, cake and ice cream. And we sang to him, and he opened his presents, and was alternately thrilled and disappointed.
How can you prepare in a few hours to celebrate something you’ve looked forward to for 300 plus days. After the joy of being three wears off, here comes four. Let’s get ready, and polish the silver, swab the decks, put on our best clothes, we are beset with anticipation! Now … it’s come. What else is there to do?
I think Andi and Aki go with the flow, and they listen to him while he talks every which direction about how to have his party. And then, they do it. Jasper jumps up and down, he is too excited to breathe. And then, now today, we’ll sing his birthday song to him, have a special meal just for him, and read a special book maybe, and get on to getting ready for year five. 365 days away, or wait … 366? Next year is a leap year. Yep. Three hundred and sixty six.
As we were reminded yesterday in Sunday School, in Lao Tzu’s (and Chairman Mao’s) words, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Thus Jasper’s fourth year begins and proceeds apace, moment by moment, day by day. As his Grandpa Ken’s 74th year began on Friday, as Margaret’s 74th year begins October 9, and mine on November 17 … oh, dear Lord, three things I pray: to see thee more clearly, love thee more dearly, follow thee more nearly.
Let not my lord be angry, Aaron said to Moses his brother. I told the people, “Let anyone who has gold jewelry take it off.” They gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this golden calf!
There is no hurry. All of us are going to die, or so it has always been, with one Exception. I want to hang around kids like Jasper and Miles for all I’m worth, for as long as I can. And I continue to pray that unlike Moses’ brother Aaron, when those boys are given jewels they will not cast them into the fire, but pour them all back out upon the altar of their Heavenly Father.
(Exodus 32, Psalm 106, James 1, Matthew 13)
(posted at www.davesandel.net)
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