Yard work

This morning, I spent about two and a half hours outside working in my yard, mowing the lawn (mostly grass in the front, mostly weeds in the back) and trimming trees and bushes. Between recent trips and the almost ever-present rain here in Florida, it had been a while since I'd done much, and that was pretty obvious.
The grass was higher so I had to mow some areas twice, and a bougainvillea -- beautiful when in flower but, oh, look out for those thorns! -- was running amok over and around my A/C unit.

And as I was mowing my lawn, I got to thinking (and this is a sample of how my crazy mind works, by the way) that it's a bit like going to confession, yard work. The longer you leave it, the more daunting it seems to be to make yourself get up and take action because it just gets harder. It's easy to persuade yourself that you're fine, it can wait another week. Or, "let me just enjoy this morning off, I'll get to it this afternoon." With the yard work, it's kind of just there, reminding you every time you leave or come home that, hey, this needs doing. With confession, though, if I don't go often, a part of me just feels slightly off.

But once you've done it, there's almost nothing more satisfying, although cleansing your soul is far more important than trimming the verge. :)

***
Today is also the feast day of St. Bonaventure, who is a doctor of the Church, and I wanted to share this quote of his:

"Christ is both the way and the door. Christ is the staircase and the vehicle, like the “throne of mercy over the Ark of the Covenant,” and 'the mystery hidden from the ages.' A man should turn his full attention to this throne of mercy, and should gaze at him hanging on the cross, full of faith, hope, and charity, devoted, full of wonder and joy, marked by gratitude, and open to praise and jubilation. Then such a man will make with Christ a 'pasch, that is, a passing-over. Through the branches of the cross he will pass over the Red Sea, leaving Egypt and entering the desert. There he will taste the hidden manna, and rest with Christ in the sepulcher, as if he were dead to things outside. He will experience, as much as is possible for one who is still living, what was promised to the thief who hung beside Christ: 'Today you will be with me in paradise.'"  from Journey of the Mind to God by Saint Bonaventure

St. Bonaventure, pray for us!