Having an epiphany on the Epiphany
Okay, so I didn't really have an epiphany. And it wasn't really the Epiphany, just the Solemnity of the Epiphany. But close enough.

I went to mass by myself this morning as my parents were serving communion at the early mass (8 a.m.), and as I'm on vacation (or at least that's how I like to think of it) I opted for the more human hour of 9:30. I lucked out. I got the "good" priest. Father Ricardo came to Belvidere from Mexico a couple of years ago after he got ordained. He's a really funny guy, and he likes to tell stories. These are two traits I like in a priest. He started off his homily with a story. (Apologies. I won't be able to do his broken English justice. It's really quite endearing.)

"Last night, while I was doing some research for today's homily, I opened one of my Christmas presents. It was from Debi, the parish secretary. She had given me some coffee from the Gloria Jean's. It was very good. It was so good I took six cups. With the caffeine, I was all, how you say, like jelly."

imagine a short, balding Hispanic man in his thirties jiggling about wildly

"When I went to bed last night I vowed never to take more than two cups of coffee. ... This morning I had three. So I am again a bit ..."

again with the jiggling about wildly

"how you say, crazy."

Then he launched into his homily. He started out talking about the number of magi and wondering why we think there are three. His grandmother always used to say there were four. He explained the magi were kings and used to living in palaces and such. So they started out as four, but halfway there one of them quit because it was too difficult. The desert is very hot during the day and very cold at night.

"Kind of like Belvidere in the winter. Now my grandmother always said, imagine him doing an impression of his elderly Mexican grandmother'He was not a wise man. He was estupid. I always felt sorry for him, though. He miss Christmas.'"

Father Ricardo then branched off from the magi theme and gave a homily that I've been needing to hear for a long time.

So I was already really happy with mass, but there was more. There was a lullaby that needed to be sung. At the beginning of mass someone had carried a baby in the basket up to the altar. I was confused. But the baby wasn't moving, so I decided it wasn't real. But I was still confused. Then at the end of mass, Father Ricardo asked if we could give him five minutes. There is a Hispanic tradition of singing a lullaby to the baby Jesus on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and today, the Epiphany. He wanted to share this with us. He called all of the children in the congregation up to the altar. Then he asked the choir to sing the entrance song again ("We Three Kings"). He asked the rest of us to lullaby along. He meant hum, so we did. He then took the baby Jesus doll out of the basket and handed it the first child in line. As the choir sang and we hummed, the kids all took turns rocking the baby Jesus to sleep. It was so cute. Father Ricardo hummed along and then started talking.

"Go to sleep, baby Jesus. We love you, baby Jesus. We want to hug you. Are you hungry, baby Jesus? Look at those feet. Baby Jesus has the most beautiful feet, doesn't he? We love you, baby Jesus. Go to sleep."

So for the first time in a long time, I left church smiling. That means a lot to me.

(P.S. Props to all of you who actually make it to the end of this mammoth blog entry.)