Letters from Ascension Hermitage and Sanctuary

Little Boy and all of us at Sanctuary House hope you have a very safe and happy Halloween . . . and don't eat all of the candy (or cat treats, as the case may be) all at once!  

No, this isn't a post about religion - it's about our two Plymouth Rock hens, Faith and Hope! For some reason, as often happens, the other hens in our little flock began picking on Faith. She was so eager to get away from them that she even tried to come into the house! Of course, I explained to her that trading mean chickens for excited beagles wasn't such a great idea, but I moved her to another safe area instead. Her sister Hope was glad to go with her. I suggested to their best friend, Penny, that she could move too, but rather than let me pick her up she ran the other way - I guess that means "no thanks!" Even life with chickens is never dull!  

The last two nights have been so bright that at one point I thought I had left a light on - but it's only the Hunter's Moon. I took this picture last night and thought of it again when I came to this prayer: Look down, O God, from your heavenly throne, illuminate the darkness of this night with your celestial brightness, and from the children of light banish the deeds of darkness; through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen. Have a restful and bright night!  

As anyone with siblings can tell you, there are just sometimes - or even most of the times - when you don't want to share. And cats are no different. Possum the cat shares food dishes with others, but he wants to drink alone! He's glad for his sister and brother cats to drink at another time, but when he drinks the water dish is all his! We hope you are having a happy day!  

This morning is chilly and overcast but Mec joined me for Morning Prayer outdoors! Her idea of prayer usually includes a lot of sniffing and running and checking the fence line, but she is a beagle after all - always doing beagle things! And when she thinks we've prayed long enough, she always comes close to check my pockets for treats - her prayers are always answered! We hope you are having a great day and a friend to join you in prayer.  

And the newest member of Sanctuary House is Alban, the cat! Alban's person is a long-time friend and a supporter of Ascension Hermitage & Sanctuary. About seven years ago, when she adopted Alban from the Wicomico County Humane Society, she asked me if I would take him if anything happened to her. I sort of laughed because we're the same age and at the time, she was in better health than I was. I was sure that she would outlive me! But now she's in hospice care with serious heart failure, so as promised I have brought Alban home with me. Alban is less than thrilled, as you can imagine, but he's only been here for an hour - so we're still getting used to each other. Neither of us was really expecting this change. He's fine with me but is not at all eager to move into a clowder of other cats and doesn't really appreciate barking dogs either. For now, the upstairs bathroom is his own private room with a window looking into the woods and plenty of room for a ...