Today I am holding many prayers in my heart and mind – for our country, for those trying to serve this country with values we grew up believing in, for Pope Leo XIV and his upcoming surgery, for families dealing with the devastation of storms, floods and other natural disasters and for friends dealing with the loss of loved ones or who are facing serious illness.

We need some common sense and a good dose of decency. We need to walk the talk of being a Christian nation, which means loving those who don’t believe what we believe and don’t follow Christ. We need to care for each other in ways I believe in my heart we are capable of.

I turn to the words of Wendell Berry who died on August 31 of this year.

A section of his poem, Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front

So, friends, every day do something
that won’t compute. Love the Lord.
Love the world. Work for nothing.
Take all that you have and be poor.
Love someone who does not deserve it.
Denounce the government and embrace
the flag. Hope to live in that free
republic for which it stands.
Give your approval to all you cannot
understand. Praise ignorance, for what man
has not encountered he has not destroyed.

Wishing you a week of abundant peace, Deena

St Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our defense…

Image: Photo I captured in Rome. St. Michael on top of Castel Sant’Angelo by the Pont Sant’Angelo bridge.