WE FORGOT TO MENTION THE MOST IMPORTANT THING!
On Sunday, February 16th, the Annual Barkus Parade is held in the French Quarter of New Orleans. It’s part of the Mardi Gras Celebrations that prepare us for Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. It also raises money for our local ASPCA!
The Barkus Parade has been going strong for years and years. We always offer some medals to folks on the Parade Route. A fun thing happened one year! We gave a Saint Francis, patron of animal lovers, medal to a lady. It turned out that she was a broadcaster, Angela Hill, for WWL Television in New Orleans. Who knew!?
A week or so later, we received mail from Angela Hill, who was actually a well-known Anchor for the TV Station. She is now a spokesperson for Peoples Health in New Orleans. We appreciated her Thank You note. It’s nice when people take a moment to thank us for gifts we offer. We love Thank You notes.
Speaking of “Gifts We Offer” – To celebrate the Barkus Parade, and dogs in general, we will be offering a free medal to anyone who orders a hand-painted saint medal this week. Of course, it will be Saint Rocco, patron saint of dogs and dog lovers. Or maybe Saint Francis of Assisi, patron of animal lovers. Or maybe Saint Gertrude, patron of cat lovers, but probably not saint Gertrude unless you ask us to send her. Then we will.
It’s funny people sometimes say they are a “Dog Person” or a “Cat Person.” I guess we are “BiPetual” here! We have the greatest dog, Gem, a Rescue who is 10 years old, hard of hearing, nearly blind with cataracts, and taking medicines for arthritis and heartworm. Saint Alphonsus of Liguori is the patron for those facing arthritic challenges justsoyouknow. And Gem is the sweetest dog! She is a gem! And we also have a Rescue Kitty from the ASPCA. Her real name is Francine but you can call her “Frenchy.” She is an orange tabby and a very nice feline. Our neighbor, Mark, wants to adopt her so we let her have sleepovers at his house often.
That’s it for this extra e mail – I can’t believe we forgot to mention the Barkus Parade in the least e mail. This is my error, not Emily’s. If you can, go to the Barkus Parade in the lower French Quarter on Sunday! I can promise you this: You’ll be “doggone glad” you did!
John Fisher - John of Rochester - Patron Saint Teaching, Writing, Longdon, England
Saints for Sinners$29.95
Vatican Cross, "Pax et Bonum," Peace and Goodness Be With You, Franciscan, Rome
Saints for Sinners$29.95