I saw a post from Eleanor Parker about today: "Today is Plough Monday, the first Monday after Epiphany. This was traditionally the first day back at work after the Christmas holiday, and it was celebrated by blessing tools of work - a way of starting off the new year well, but also an excuse for some last Christmas festivity!"
My first thought is that she had dates wrong; it feels like it's been a small ice age since Epiphany. But I knew better--she's an expert on medieval times and customs, after all. Then I looked at the calendar: a week ago was Epiphany, so today is, indeed, the first Monday after Epiphany.
I love the idea of blessing the tools of our work as we settle into our post-holiday rhythms. I love the idea of blessing the tools of our work periodically, since work takes up so much of most of our lives. Most of us would be blessing electronics, and I do love this laptop where I do so much work.
As I got to campus last week, on Monday which was Epiphany, I said a prayer for all of us: faculty gathered for a day of meeting, training, and eating before the semester started, a prayer for the students who were getting ready for class, a prayer for all the support staff who make our lives better.
I would like to be the kind of person who offers these kinds of prayers at the start of every day, at every arrival and departure. It's much easier to be aware of these kinds of prayer opportunities as the calendar changes, as semesters start, as we look back at how our ancestors lived.
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