St. Robert Bellarmine Parish celebrates St. Francis feastday

Bailey, you have been blessed.”

“Mum”

Bailey, a 15-year-old ginger tabby cat, sat patiently in his carrier.

Anxious of any new adventure, he gave his mum a wondering look.

He finally asked her, “where are we, what are we doing here, and will we get home in time for dinner?”

Mum gently lifted him from his carrier and patiently explained to him that they were at the St. Robert Bellarmine Fellowship Hall to celebrate the feast of St. Francis ... and before mum could finish, Bailey interrupted her. “A FEAST!! Does this mean that I get a meal?”

Not really knowing how to explain that we were honoring St. Francis, mum decided to ignore Bailey for the moment.

Now cats are curious, so it only took Bailey a moment to spot a furry friend close to him.

“Mum,” he shouted. “Who is that and why is he so bouncy?”

“Shhhhhhhh,” mum whispered.

She quietly explained that the dog’s name was Mojo. He was a very young, energetic and immaculately groomed Pomeranian.

Unimpressed, Bailey then spotted a bird on a parishioner’s shoulder. He then announced that “if that thing flies in his direction, I’ll jump up and knock that sucker out of the sky!”

Now, mum did not have the heart to tell him that Joy, the parrot, was a stuffed animal.

Looking down at Bailey, mum saw how comfortable he was on her lap. He was a big boy, maybe a bit overweight, but not too bad.

“Bailey,” she whispered, “I think I need to put you on a diet.” Bailey instantly sat up. Mum continued, “maybe I’ll just cut your treats back a bit.”

“Oh no, how can you even consider doing that,” was his response. “I have seen you inhale an entire sack of Cheetos, and now you want to deny me my two little treats at bedtime!”

He had a point. Mum regretted bringing the subject up.

As the service began, Father Michael Murphy, pastor of St. Robert Bellarmine Parish and of St. Jude Parish in Richland, introduced the parishioners of the parish choir. The entrance song was “The Prayer of St. Francis,” sung a cappella.

Bailey seemed to be limp in his mum’s arms. “What a beautiful song,” Bailey quietly declared. “Why can’t we have music like this at home? Why do we always have to listen to Taylor Swift?”

Mum informed him that it was her house so she was in charge of the music.

Throughout the Mass, Bailey continued with various inquisitive questions. Then he saw Lang, the rabbit, sitting behind us. Also, Sprinkles, the cat and Schnauzers Murphy and Little Lucy were spotted.

Before he could announce that two more cats were in the room, mum scolded him and told him to turn around and quit gawking.

“We are in Church,” mum abruptly said. Then after a brief period of silence, Bailey boldly defended his actions by declaring, “we are sitting in a basketball court and it smells like sweaty feet in here!”

The Mass continued, and thankfully, Bailey took a nap. Then, he suddenly awakened.

“Why is that man throwing water on me and why is he wearing such interesting clothes?” he shouted.

A bit embarrassed, mum explained to Bailey that Fr. Murphy was a holy man and the water was holy water.

“Bailey, you have been blessed,” she said.

Now mum, a childless woman who had cats, wondered if a child was as exhausting to raise than that of a cat. One wonders.

As a finale to this evening, Bailey still pondered: “Mum, what does it mean to be blessed?”

Looking for an uncomplicated answer, mum simply responded, “Bailey, in your case, your little halo is not as crooked as it has been!”

Ms. Heidbreder is a member of St. Robert Bellarmine Parish and Bailey is one of her rescued cats.