One Cold, Dark Night....

When our furnace died, one terribly cold night, it became an opportunity to huddle together and focus on the warmth that comes from faith, family and love…

It began at 4 p.m. when our gas furnace rocked and rattled. The serviceman confirmed what we suspected. The blower was shot. Unfortunately, the nearest supplier was an hour’s drive away and our serviceman didn’t have time to take out the old one and drive that distance to get it fixed or replaced. He advised us to bring build up a fire in the fireplace.

So, this could have been the start of a nice, change-of-pace, cozy night. Except one of our fireplaces was labeled “dangerous” the last time it was checked. And the other fireplace is in the back of the house and doesn’t send heat very far into the house.

The temperature was dropping fast. It was five degrees outside according to the thermostat but colder than that with the wind chill. Brigit, age 11, was coughing in allergic reaction to chimney smoke. I was in denial. This couldn’t be happening, or could it?

As the warmth inside the house quickly dissolved, we huddled together in one room. Under a pile of blankets we watched the old Titanic movie. Not the love story version, but the original film, showing terror, heroism and devastation. It all happened in a single night back in 1912.

It gave us the opportunity to talk about what we would do in that situation, faced with jumping into the frigid ocean. “I’d move my legs a lot and pray hard,” someone said.

We piled on blankets and pretended we were living in the earlier times when cold nights were an everyday experience. And we tried to be thankful for our blessings…for the blankets that came as Christmas presents and for movies that helped us keep our perspective about our troubles.

Especially we prayed for Jurgen, my husband. He is in seventies and has health problems. But he courageously kept the fire going in our back room fireplace so that we had one spot of warmth in the house.

When dawn finally came, it was as if our eyes were opened in a new way. Light brought a feeling of renewal and warmth. All things are possible when there is Light.

I share this story by way of saying that any time of trouble offers an opportunity to be renewed in faith. The contrast of warmth and cold, fire and ice, light and dark are important images for us. We are called to trust in Jesus when there is cold, ice and darkness.

Then the Light of the World will shine for us. And then the darkness is conquered. The warmth is re-kindled.

From our family to yours, we pray that our eyes will be opened. The Light is always there dispersing the darkness if we but turn in faith to Him.

And then “the peace which transcends all understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4: 6-7) Isn’t it amazing to think that St. Paul wrote those words while he was in dark prison cell?! Clearly, he could see the Light.

J. M. J. and Doe-Re-Mi

When I attended Catholic schools, a LONG time ago, we were required to print the letters “J. M. J.” on the top of every page before we began to write. It was meant to remind us to pray to Jesus, Mary and Joseph for help.

Although it became a writing habit, more than a prayer, it a lovely idea. J. M. J. help me in this work. I dedicate this page to you.

I was thinking about this invocation to the Holy Family, as the Advent season unfolds with new challenges at our house. There have been animal deaths and computer problems. Lots of ending and opportunities for new beginnings.

Just a couple weeks before the new year in the church calendar began, Brigit’s barnyard cat was hit by a car. Then right after that her indoor cat, Doe-Re-Mi, started howling in pain. We rushed Doe to the vet in the middle of the night only to be told that our singing cat had a string wrapped around her intestines. The cost for surgery would start at $900 and was likely to be closer to $1500. The cost for our nighttime visit was already $200.

At home we faced costly computer problems and a greatly reduced income. We couldn’t spend that kind of money.

Brigit, age 11, held the limp cat in her arms as we talked about the decision we had to make. Our animals are important to us here at Sagging Acres. We love our cats, dogs, goats, horses, donkey, chickens, roosters and ducks. But animals are not humans with an immortal soul. It was a distinction we now had to discuss for the first time in my young daughter’s life.

If Brigit had been holding a child instead of a cat, we would clearly spend every dollar, go into debt and take every action. But our cat, though she was precious to us and we desperately wanted to save her, was not a child. And we had to make the right decision for our family’s health and well-being.

We prayed together. This was a difficult moment for me. How much more so for an 11-year-old…

Brigit took in three pregnant, feral cats 18 months ago and was very responsible about finding homes for the kittens and getting the adult cats spayed and neutered. But two cats stood out in this group. One was Sox, a male cat who greeted us every morning as we walked out to the barnyard. He was killed as he tried to cross the road in front of our house. Then there was the kitten, who seemed to respond to lilting sounds. Brigit would sing, “Do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti…” And the kitten ended the song, on pitch, with, “Doe!”

We brought this calico kitten inside the house.  She became famous for singing, diving into laundry baskets and for using the bookcases as mountain-climbing exercise. We have 22 bookcases which provided her with a lifetime of scaling experience and gave her the opportunity to send lots of pretty knick-knacks crashing to the floor.

Now, we stood over a cold, steel table, with our singing cat hunched around her distended stomach. She was an independent cat who only seemed to “tolerate” being held by humans. But now, for one instant, as the needle came down that would end her life, Doe-Re-Mi looked up at us in love. She seemed to say, “Thank you for a good life.”

These were just two of the endings that preceded this Advent. Now we start over. The season of Advent calls us to renew our commitment to virtue. Not simply to prepare for the birthday of Jesus, but to prepare for His Second Coming. Then we will be judged for all the decisions we make. So we pray that the decision we made about Doe was the right one.

As human beings we are made in the image of God. Our souls distinguish us from the animals we care for. That means we are called to respect human life in a most special, sacred way. We are also called to be stewards of creation and to extend respect, love and care to all of God’s amazing creatures.

I hope Brigit will feel blessed by the time we had with our special cat friends and to entrust them now to God’s merciful care.

During this holy season, we begin again to renew our lives under the guidance of the Holy Family. J. M. J. I offer you this page in our family history. Strengthen our family and all families. Amen.