Bad Cat

Message for worship at West Richmond Friends Meeting, 17th of Tenth Month, 2021

Speaker: Katie Breslin

Scripture: Jonah 4

A few weeks ago, Sam and I adopted a dog named Rufus—or Rufus Bones as one of our friends cleverly named him. If you follow me on social media, you will undoubtedly see photos of this 10-year-old, retired rabbit-hunting beagle. He has become a welcome companion for daily walks and even more household entertainment for those of us who live and visit with us. Rufus isn’t the only pet that we adopted this year. He is joined by two cats, Jada and Willow. Jada, I adopted when I first moved to Richmond. Adopting her was one of the first signs I would stay in Richmond, and she has seen me through multiple years in seminary. Willow, Sam, and I adopted around the beginning of the year. She was a kitten when we first got her, the daughter of a neighbor's cat, and she stood out from her siblings because she has a very bushy orange tail. You can see a photo of her on the bulletin. This is why a few weeks ago Ben Richmond asked me if I had an animal ministry, recognizing that I had adopted another pet just a few months prior. I never thought of myself as an animal person, but ever since Ben said that, I’ve been thinking about how good it feels to coincide with animals.