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Mental Health Check In
Dear Friends,
People have been asking me how I am doing lately. It does seem odd that I have been here for almost three months and yet I haven’t met most of the congregation face-to-face. But don’t worry that I have been neglected. I have received cards, emails and texts with well wishes, comments on sermons, articles that people found interesting, or jokes. I have felt very welcomed by St. Andrew’s and Santa Barbara feels like home already. However, on Tuesday I received one of the warmest welcomes I could ever imagine. It totally took me off guard and made my week.
I was stopping by Pamela Polan’s house to pick up some plants that she had for me. As I entered through the gate, her cat Bruce came running out to greet me (not something many cats will do for a human). But it didn’t stop there. Bruce stood up on his hind legs and hugged my legs (literally). I was a little concerned about his claws so I brushed him off. But he did it again. So I brushed him off again. The third time he did it I realized he wanted to be picked up. So, I picked him up and he wrapped his paws around my collar and purred. It was the first time I have been greeted with a hug by a cat! I’m not going to lie, I miss hugs.
Thank you God for our four-legged friends! They have been the best companions through this whole mess of a pandemic. I hope that you are doing well and hanging in there. I hope you have someone there to hug you during this long isolation. And, most of all, I hope that you feel God reaching out to you in each moment. Especially when God sends a cat to do it.
Blessings,
Jen
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