Christ Animated

I've watched days stumble past - Not bothering or risking a second glance. Like the dead who don't know they've risen again, They mean nothing even to themselves. My dog is Pain - goes wherever go I - A constant presence who loves to bite. His coat is dirty, rough and sparse, Unpleasant to touch, but familiar at heart. A new day coming, another black pyre boat, Offering embrace, as a thick winter coat. So I bundle myself and duck my head, And venture out into the shuffling dead... ... Pain at my side, running slightly ahead.

I write a weekly column for a local newspaper, that's centered around my home community. When there's no community news for me to share, however, I write about other things. Here is one of my recent columns. I hope you like it. In C. S. Lewis' classic book The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, the young heroine Lucy enters the magical land of Narnia where she soon meets a faun named Mr. Tumnus. “Pleased to meet you, Mr. Tumnus. I'm Lucy Pevensie”. She holds out her hand to the faun, who looks at it curiously. “Oh, you shake it,” she explains. “Why?” inquires Mr. Tumnus. “I … I don't know,” is her honest reply. Later on, her older brother Peter encounters a large beaver, not yet understanding that the animals in this strange world can talk. “Here, boy,” he says, holding out his hand to the beaver. “Tsk, tsk, tsk.” Mr. Beaver stares at his hand for a moment, then says, “I ain't going to smell it, if that's what you want”. Holding out our hands in for...