faith | Sneaking Bliss

Today is All Saint’s Day. I once had a wonderful golden retriever with today as her birthday, we named her All Hallow’s Tessa. A well bred, well trained, loveable girl. But this is not about how well she hunted or the number of spirits she lifted when visiting nursing homes and the sick.

This is about how she changed the course of a little boy’s life.

When placing puppies from a litter we scrutinize each possible owner with an application and references. Since our dogs are high energy bird dogs, almost all owners are hunters or families that include dogs in activities.

Such was one new owner, a young boy soon to be 11 years old. He had waited for a puppy and proved to his mom that he was ready. Of course. she knew she would have to provide a safety net. The application was in and approved before the pups were born.

We assist our owners in pup selection. We spend weeks with the pups and know their personalities. Truth be told, the puppies choose. Milo would pick up his puppy last.

I often post photos of pups online so the new owners can watch them grow. Everyone liked the little boy with the blue ribbon, his photos were most commented on.

The day came for pups to go home. One by one the new owner’s came. Each time little blue boy sniffed the air, walked about ten feet from the other pups and just laid down. He was waiting, these were not his people.

Finally Milo came. His mother got out of the car. I will never forget her words, “We have a problem.”

She went on to explain. Milo informed her at breakfast that the little blue boy would be his pup. God told him in a dream.

I smiled. I told her it all worked out, little blue boy waited for Milo.

She grew pale and said, “But we don’t do God.”

I smiled again, “Apparently, Milo does.”

While we spoke, Milo slipped from the car and his puppy met him in the grass.

Milo told us he looked up Tessa’s name and read about All Saint’s Day. So when in his dream, God told him the little blue boy was his puppy, he believed God. His mom was visibly shaken as she took care of the paperwork. Nothing like an awakening to rattle an atheist to the core. Been there. A door had opened, Milo boldly walked through. His mom cautiously followed.

God slipping a little bliss through the back door.

Tessa all ready for a visit. She was an active participant in Rx Pets. She often carried a basket of fun while cheering people.

This photo was taken a few weeks before she died, spring 2012. Today is the first birthday without her. Many lives were touched by this wonderful girl.

Interesting how one thing leads to another. I was asked to participate in liturgical environment planning. Just for a season. Nothing official or formal. I think part of the plan was for me to learn a bit more about the faith I had awakened to as an adult. A little backdoor catechesis perhaps. Not sure at what point I became a regular team member. I spent many years that followed as a part of the liturgical design team in our local parish.

Liturgical environment planning involves reading sacred scripture for the applicable period and designing the way the surrounding environment will look. The key to designing sacred space for worship is presenting an environment that supports and enriches the written word without adding to or detracting from it.

Using brainstorming notes from the liturgy team, and the colors designated for the season, I would bounce ideas around and watch faces for the tell tale sign of ah ha.

Sometimes using imagery, sometimes just color and shape, but always the surrounding area is designed to invite into the story. A successful design will awaken the listeners to the fullness of sacred word spoken. An unsuccessful one will leave them perplexed.

I realize now, this was the first time I illustrated. It was also the first time I publicly presented art other than photography. A seed planted long ago was nurtured.

I imagine the process is the same, regardless of your faith tradition. People have been illustrating the sacred since before it was written word.

Should you have the chance to participate in such an endeavor in your personal faith tradition, I encourage you to do so. You may find it to be enriching, rewarding and enlightening. You may even come a bit closer to bliss.

Form and color practice to present to the liturgy team for review. I sneaked into my husband’s watercolors, this was this was the second time using watercolors since I was a child. (I have since remedied that dry spell.)

The final piece. The background is painted with dyes on cotton muslin. The wheat is painted with dyes on felt. For the last 9 years it occasionally appears during the late summer/autumn ordinary season. 6’x9′