A very common sight on the streets of Manhattan is two people walking their dogs and as they meet they look down at their dog, then the other person’s dog, and start talking to their own dog, “ooh, looky, another dog.” The two dogs either do their normal sniffing or growl at each other. The owners normally speak to one another and at times neighborhood friendships develop.
\nToday, while sitting at a table outdoors in the suburb of West Orange drinking coffee, I saw to families each with 16-month-old babies. These two groups of parents did the same thing with their two babies that I’ve witnessed on the streets of Manhattan with dog owners. The babies did not sniff each other, by the way, nor did they growl.
\nWhile I was sitting there drinking coffee in a few stolen moments of being still, it suddenly dawned on me that in six days I will be ordained a priest. The next thought I had centered around the fact that I will not have the time to really think about this – no pre-ordination retreat, no time to sit and really think about what this means. I have a Medical Trust conference to help with all week.
\nThis is really not the way to do this. Nothing over the past year has worked in a way that seems either normal or preferred.
\nAt least there will be a conclusion to this seven-year quest. Since graduating from seminary, I just haven’t had the time to think about what this means in a way I think I should.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A very common sight on the streets of Manhattan is two people walking their dogs and as they meet they look down at their dog, then the other person’s dog, and start talking to their own dog, “ooh, looky, another … Continue reading