Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time, October 31, 2021 (today’s lectionary)
All Hallows Eve (Halloween)
Miles and Jasper’s first sleepover, winding down
Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone! Therefore you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. Take to hear these words which I share with you today.
We went to the Dairy Queen. After eating about half of our substantial suppers, Miles, Jasper and I each had a kid’s cone dipped in chocolate. Miles finished his with dispatch, not as fast as I did, but quick enough. He didn’t leave a drip of ice cream anywhere.
Jasper took longer, much longer, even though I kept taking quite large bites from his quite small cone. He didn’t mind, his face contorted for an instant into a frown but then right away resolved into a sunny smile. He seemed happy to share. We were a team, eating that third ice cream cone.
I love you, Lord. You are my strength, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer. You are my rock of refuge, my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. The Lord liveth, and blessed be my rock.
While he ate Jasper stopped for a moment and looked at Margaret, then looked at me. “Body,” he said, pointing to his chest. “Eat. Healthy.” At last finished with the cone he leaped out of the booth and began pounding on things. Body. Eat. Healthy. Hyper. Sugar-smoked. Taking him home to his parents. As I put him in the car seat he was wriggling, but in a cooperative way, and he laughed, and shouted, and seemed almost about to burst.
Andi and Aki were back from Blanco and their very late anniversary getaway (June 9 was their 12 wedding anniversary). We looked at pictures, some of us, while Jasper ran around wildly, brandished a grabber like a weapon, and laughed. His eyes sparkled. His body was full of hyperlife. Andi said, “I’ll put him to bed. I think he’ll go to sleep quickly.” She knew he couldn’t last much longer.
We came home happy, and glad to be by ourselves again. It was only a couple of days, and it was wonderful, but extended time with Miles and Jasper is better meant for younger folks, like parents.
Jesus, because he remains forever, has a priesthood that does not pass away. Therefore he is always able to save those who approach God through him.
Still, it was their first sleepover, and we got to be with them for that event. After we dropped them off and as we were leaving Andi and Aki’s house, Jasper began to regain his generally stable self just a bit. In the afternoon we all got dressed up as two firefighters, one M&M and a Skittle, then drove half a block to our church’s Trunk and Treat event in the parking lot behind our apartment. We fed horses, sat on an Austin Police motorcycle, and the boys filled their pumpkins with candy.
But then they had just gotten up from naps and were not quite awake. And now, after visiting Miles’ very own Dairy Queen, his favorite restaurant in the whole world, after getting ice creamed up, they could slow down slowly again and begin to slip softly into sleep, two Halloween firefighters dreaming big rock candy dreams.
Coming home we met our neighbor Rosa in the nighttime parking lot. She showed us pictures from Saturday’s downtown Austin Viva la Vida festival and parade celebrating the Day of the Dead. Rosa is a professional seamstress and she sewed incredible costumes for two of the amazing characters surrounding the Mexic-Arte Museum Saturday morning.
Jesus has no need, as did the high priests, to offer sacrifice day after day, first for his own sins and then for those of the people; he did that once and for all when he offered himself and was made perfect forever.
I thought I would have loved that event. Perhaps next year we will go down there and celebrate too, under the big blue sky of Texas, as All Hallows Eve slips into afternoon, then night, and we settle into our own sweet dreams.
You are not far from the kingdom of God.
(Deuteronomy 6, Psalm 18, Hebrews 7, John 14)
(posted at www.davesandel.net)
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