Meowmie goes to a hoomin church called Unifursity Congregational, and a few years ago they began having Animal Blessing services.  We were never asked whether or not we wanted to participate, but we got roped into it anyway.  So here's da stories uv how the Ballard Bunch got blesst.  So far we haf

Da First Yeer
Da Next Yeer It's Skye's Turn
Da Thurd Yeer, Tally Helps

Da First Yeer

One day Meowmie told Skye an me dat her church was gonna have a Animal Blessing service at the annual picnic which is close to da Autumn Equinox an the Feast of St. Francis.  She said it was the furry furst time her church had ever done this, an she an some friends were helping to plan it.  An then she kept asking Skye an me which one of us wanted to go to the service an get blesst.  We never answered, an we figgered it was just one of those hoomin fings.  We didn't know she really was gonna catnap us an take us to the Out.  But she did.  Well, she catnapped me.  Skye didn't have to go anywhere (but wait till next yeer!).  Here's how it happened.

It was a Sunday morning in the fall, an I was lying onna dining room table inna sunbeam an Skye wuz lying by the windowsill, an Meowmie came in and looked at us an said, "Tally, I chooze YEW!" which I guess was cuz she could reach me easier than she could reach Skye.  An she grabbed me an stuffed me inna tealbloo carrier bag an taked me out to the metalmonster.  An then she put a pink harness an leesh on me (to match my noze, she sed) while I was still inna bag, an she didn't even pretend it was so I could take her inna Out as a hoomin-onna-string!  An then she shut up the bag again an we drived and drived an drived to a bigbig Out, called a park.  There were lotza hoomins dere, an d*gs too.  But I was the onliest kitty there.  Just me.  An a
liddle bloo toycat Meowmie had brought along too.

We sat onna bench an Meowmie took me outta the carrier bag but didn't take that pink harness offa me.  I sniffed the bushes an stood up on my hind legs an tried to climb over the bench an get under the bushes, but Meowmie wouldn't let me -- she pulled me back wif that pink leesh.  Here we are on the bench:

Then she helded me in her arms an the hoomins all gathered around together an Meowmie an some other hoomins talked to them.  Meowmie talked about how living wif animals like d*gs an cats an ginnee pigz was a blessing for hoomins, an how they were all gonna celebrate that blessing.  Then the hoomins singed a song called "All Fings Brite an Beeyoutiful" an they didn't sing furry good -- I wiggled an put my ears back an tried to get away, but Meowmie kept holding me.  Then this male hoomin named Dave went around an scritched each d*g an ginneepig an said nice fings about them.  Here's Dave, wif some of the d*ggies:
 

An here's Meowmie's frend Janie an her d*g getting blesst:

An finally Dave came an scritched me an said nice fings about me an how I made our house a warm friendly place that Meowmie wanted to come home to.  An then he scritched that liddle bloo toycat dat Meowmie said was a "proxy" for Skye, an he called it Skye an he said nice fings about her, about how she's showing how to get along an have a noo life after a loss (cuz in January she lost Ceilidh who was her bestest friend, when Ceilidh went to the Rainbow Bridge).

An then Meowmie sed we were blesst an she put me back inna carrierbag an we went back to the metalmonster an drived home.  I love my hoomin, but she does some reeeeeeely weeeeerd fings.  But it was okay an I didn't even have to hide when I got home an I came an smurgled wif her that night just like always.

Here's the words to the song the hoomins singed:
 

All things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful,
The Lord God made them all.

Each little flower that opens,
Each little bird that sings,
God made their glowing colors,
And made their tiny wings.

Refrain

The purple-headed mountain,
The river running by,
The sunset and the morning
That brightens up the sky.

Refrain

The cold wind in the winter,
The pleasant summer sun,
The ripe fruits in the garden,
God made them every one.

Refrain

An here's the words to the song they were gonna sing at the end, but alla d*gs were ready to go play an didn't want to stand around any more since efurryd*g an cat an ginneepig had been blesst already.  So they didn't sing this song, an Meowmie said she was sorry, cuz she'd never heard it an she really liked the words:

All God's critters got a place inna choir
Some sing low, some sing higher
Some sing out loud onna telephone wire an
Some just clap their hands or paws or anything they got now.

Listen to the bass, it's the one onna bottom
Where the bullfrog groans and the hippopotamus
Moans and groans with a big to-do
The old cow just goes moo.

The dogs and the cats they take up the middle
The hummingbird hums and the cricket fiddles
The donkey brays and the pony neights
And the old coyote howls.

Refrain

Listen to the top where the little birds sing
On the melody with the high note ringing
The hoot owl hollers over everything
And the jay bird disagrees.

Singing in the nighttime, singing in the day,
The little duck quacks and is on his way;
The possum ain't got much to say,
And the porcupine talks to himself.

Refrain

It's a simple song, a living song everywhere
By the ox and the fox and the grizzly bear
The grumpy alligator and the hawk above
The sly raccoon and the turtle dove.

Refrain

Da Next Yeer It'z Skye's Turn

So that was how I got blesst da furst yeer uv da Animal Blessing at Meowmie's church.  But yew know, dey had another Blessing da next yeer!   Like once wuzn't enuff fur dem!  I shudda known, cuz Meowmie kept asking us fings like "Who wan'ts to git blesst this yeer?" an "Tally, do you want to git blesst agin?"  an "Skye, how bout you coming to git blesst this yeer?"

Well, sure enuff, one Sunday morning inna summer-almost-fall, Meowmie got up an dis time she grabbed Skye!  She put Skye inna noo Sherpa bag, an off they went.  They drived and drived and drived.  They stopped once an Meowmie went into da store an camed out wif smoked sammun -- she tried to make Skye feel bedder by giving her smoked sammun while she wuz riding inna Sherpa bag, but Skye told me dat didn't work.  She wuzn't gonna be bought so easy as all dat.

When dey got to da big Out, Meowmie an Skye found da church picnic place, an dey sat dere onna bench (Skye stayed in her bag an meowed once inna while, onna chance Meowmie had forgotten she wuz dere), an watched alla hoomins.  Dey were running around an walking around an fixing food an once Meowmie taked Skye outta her bag an helded her.  Usually Skye doesn't like to be held close or cuddle, but there inna big Out fulla strange hoomins, she snuggled reel close to Meowmie.  A liddle girl came an petted Skye, but Skye wudn't luk at her.  An den da hoomins started talking an singing (I remember dat singing -- it wuz awful -- but Skye didn't mind, an she even stayed reel quiet in Meowmie's arms while Meowmie singed da Lord uv da Dance song (which she really likes, cuz it'z all full uv mythic images she sez).

Here's Skye in her Sherpa bag:

An den da hoomins wif animals went round back uv da picnic place, down where dey could see da lake an da downtown Seattle skyeline, an dey had da Animal Blessing.  Just like last yeer, Meowmie had da onliest kitty dere -- alla rest were d*gs.  Meowmie readed a poem called Psalm 104 bout how God created da werld an loves da animals an fishies an efurryfing just as much as he loves hoomins an da hoomins don't intrude between da love uv God an alla rest uv Creation -- da hoomins are just one part uv da whole fing an da lions an donkeys an whales an rabbits are just as important (an hoomins shudn't be so fulla demselves -- Meowmie sez dat, not da poem, but Meowmie sez dat's whut hoomins who read da poem shud learn).

Here's some uv da hoomins an d*gs at Skye's blessing:
 

An den Dave (dat's da hoomin inna white robe inna pikchurs anna same hoomin who gaved da blessings da yeer I went) went around to efurry hoomin an d*g an kitty an gaved a blessing.  Da hoomin wud say da d*g's or kitty's name (well, like I sed, Skye wuz da onliest kitty), an den say whut wuz speshul bout dat d*g or kitty.  An den Dave wud pet da d*g or kitty wif a liddle wadder an say nice fings.  An den when efurrywun hadda blessing, dat wuz da end.  I wuzn't dere, of course, but Meowmie hadda liddle brown toy kitty in her pocket an she sed I got blesst by proxy when Skye wuz blesst.  I like dat lotz bedder den riding inna metalmonster!

So that was how we got blesst, an how Meowmie sed efurry hoomin who lives wif cats an d*gs an other animals are already blesst, but sometimes it's nice to say it out loud in front of efurryone an celebrate alla love an da way alla creation is connected together.  An then da hoomins say AMEN.
 
 

Tally Helps (Da Third Yeer)

The yeer after Skye got blesst, there wuzn't an Animal Blessing, cuz it wuz scheduled to happen da Sunday after September 11, and dat wuz such a badbad day that no hoomins wanted to do ennyfing like usual.  An so the next Animal Blessing wuz da following yeer, an inna meantime, Skye went to da Rainbow Bridge, and I, Talisker Pippin, was finally Furst and Onliest Kitty inna house.   But that meant I had to help Meowmie wif da Animal Blessing.

One noo fing for this yeer was that there wuz a noo hoomin minister at Meowmie's church.  Her name is Catherine, an she lives wif d*gs an kitties an sheeps an efurryfing!  Two of her d*gs even come to her werkoffiss at church wif her.  They're border collies an are named Jake an Lizzie.  Lizzie likes to put her feets on Meowmie an kiss her (even when Catherine sez No!).  Meowmie reely likes that, but she smells like d*g when she comes home afterwards!

Da other noo fing was dat the Animal Blessing didn't happen atta same time as da Church Picnic.  It happened on its furry own day, in October, on da Sunday after da Feast of St. Francis, an it happened inna In, right inna Chapel inna Church.  To make sure alla hoomins inna church knew about the Animal Blessing, Meowmie set up a table inna Narthex before church for a couple Sundays, an had flyers about the Animal Blessing service anna sign an liddle stuffed animals so efurryone would stop an look an take a flyer an decide to come.  For the sign, she used pictures of some of our friends: Paddy an Azad an Giuliani an Kiri an my winkwink Pandy inna tree!  Here's her sign an her table:
 
 

The service was inna afternoon, an Meowmie an I went early to help set up.  I word my pink leash dat matches my noze, an I had my Sherpa Bag carrier onna windowsill right by da stained glass window.  I sat there an watched, an sometimes I climbed back inna carrier to get outta da way an git some peace an quiet.  Here I am by da window:
 
 

An here are Meowmie an me (da writing onna wall in back are words to da songs da hoomins singed.  They didn't sing any bedder than they did da furst yeer, an I still put my ears back an tried to get away.  But it still didn't do any good.  I hadda listen to Meowmie an alla hoomins sing.  Hoomin singing iz not a pritty fing!  The other picture is Catherine an her d*g Jake.  Catherine has a stole round her neck that has animals on it -- she wears it speshully for Animal Blessings.
 
 

When da service started, Meowmie read some words calling da hoomins together to celebrate da animals, an then she read some of Psalm 104, which tells how alla creatures an animals an plants an hoomins are all part of God's gudgud creation.  An I sat onna communion table an helped her read.  An a hoomin named Kate said Fangu for alla wild animals inna mountains.  An then there were some of those songs an Catherine talked about remembering efurryone who had gone to da Rainbow Bridge.  An then any animal who wanted to git blesst could. Their hoomins brought them to Dave or to Catherine an Dave an Catherine talked to them an told them what gud kitties or doggies or guinea pigs they were an what a blessing they were to their hoomins.  When it wuz my turn, Dave petted me an talked right to me reel serious an private an sed I wuz holy an a priestess an helped show Meowmie all bout love.  Dave iz a smart hoomin.  An he gives gudgud pets.

An here is Dave blessing Jake, an then inna next picture you can see Dave an Catherine an a buncha hoomins an animals all getting blesst.
 
 

Here you can see Dave talking to a guinea pig who's hiding way inna back of da carrier, an next is Dave an a liddle hoomin gurl wif her cats in their carriers.
 

And after alla reading an singing an blessing was ofur, efurryone went home.  An so did Meowmie an me.  And I got sammun.

An dat's enuff! 
AMEN!