all creatures big and small

sadly i didn't have enough hands yesterday to take photos of the most adorable event. yesterday was oct 4 and to those of you in the Catholic faith may recognize this as the feast day of Saint Francis of Assisi. still lost? St. Francis is the patron saint of animals. Therefore on his feast day churches across the country conduct a blessing of the animals. now some churches make it short and sweet - even conducting a "drive by" blessing as pets hang their heads out the car windows and others have a full prayer service. Regardless, it really is a precious site to witness.

yesterday, the creature (my hubby seems to think this is an appropriate nickname) and i went to st. charles borromeo in kettering for their blessing of the pets. Come one, come all! it was packed! Dogs, cats, rabbits and even hamsters in tupperware containers were present to receive their blessing. People sang, dogs howled! My dog danced. To conclude the service two lines were formed and each pet received a personal blessing, st. francis dog tag, holy water and sign of the cross on their foreheads - it was like a baptism for my creature. I was a very proud dog momma.

welcome to the faith, paisley francis rabon (that's his religious name)

For further reading on the Blessing of the Pets