Prayers in Triplicate

There's a nice rhythm of threes. Particularly in prayer. So at the house on the hill with the big J barn we often bless "friends, family and loved ones."



When I finally started paying attention to the prayers and on days when I wasn't ready to bolt from my knees to run down the driveway at least to the point of the hill where Mr. Clegg would be able to see me, I began to think about this. My friends and all of my family were always my loved ones. Fortunately, I have been blessed I suppose to not have any family whom I don't also love.

We also blessed our "pets, animals and livestock." It has taken many years of living away from the farm to feel like any prayer is complete without that appeal. I started thinking about that trio too. (Maybe we could shorten our standard mantras and I wouldn't have to run to catch the bus!) After all our creatures would have been covered in the category of "loved ones" equally well. That's still holds true today. We like everything we feed and then some. I can even admit that snakes have beautiful skin when I dare to look at them and even though I ardently avoid personal experiences with them. Pets. Too many to count. With genealogies and names and lots of cavorting. Animals. Animals. I suppose the chickens might fall under that label. Chickens are strange. And noisy. And smell. So maybe if we blessed our loved ones and the animals, we'd be good to go.

Then it hit me. Oh dear. That explains it. The ground hogs.

My dad has waged war on those critters for years. Smoke bombs, barbed wire, stamping, tractors. Some wailing and gnashing of teeth. He waves his hand, they taunt him with leisurely forages in the lawn. He blocks their holes. He plows their tunnels. They return. They multiply. Their holes return. They multiply. Their holes riddle the fields. They even moved in under a portion of the shop.

They're silly kind of animals. All chubby and indolent with their grazing. When they run, it's all chubby waddling. Fast. When they stand I'm reminded of prairie dogs with their noses in the wind.

But it's clear. The ground hogs will win because along with every spider, snapping turtle snake, rat, raccoon, rabbit, bull frog and lady bug the animals on our 45 acres are in protective blessed custody. We ask for it!

Come to think of it, there are many, many animals that I'm glad God blesses here and everywhere because of or in spite of our efforts. What an amazing, diverse world we enjoy. Perhaps our prayer pleas are moments in which we pause to think of ways we can bless: make a request into an action we complete ourselves or we surrender: when we admit we have no control over all those holes.