Sunday, April 17, 2011

Hits and Misses and Holy Week

Well gang, for those of you playing along at home, you'll note yesterday was a skip day but I'd just used one on Thursday! Yesterday was not on the skip day schedule! But the sun came out and way lead onto way. So I owe one before all is said and done. Which it kind of almost is! Today is Palm Sunday. We're at the one week countdown mark. Woo!

Palm Sunday is one of the longest masses of the year because the readings tell the story of the end of Jesus's last week once he gets to Jerusalem. For this occasion, the congregation is usually allowed to sit because - eh, it takes a while. Today however, I also noticed Palm Sunday is the only day where everybody is kind of given a toy to play with. Not really, that's probably sacrilege, but the Palm fronds that are blessed and then waved to reenact the adoration of Jesus as he rode into town really are a great source of distraction and fidgeting for young and old alike. Today the frond action was intense. A small girl, I'd guess she was maybe 4, used hers to try to tickle her mother's nose ever so slightly while her mother was kneeling to observe the death of Jesus. The girl was understandably confused when her mother did not find her joke tickles as amusing as they indeed were. I liked this girl. And so too did the man in the pew in front of me who made her a cross out of his palm frond. The girl was surprised and, well, completely tickled. A new toy of a sort made from the toy she had too. She showed her mom and aunt her new palm cross with surprise and pleasure. An unexpected gift from a stranger. But as cute as the little girl's face was in showing off her cross to family, it was nothing compared to the man in the pew behind her. Her delight was his. Pretty good stuff. He made her another one before the story was over!

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