First walk of the year

I stayed up too late looking for Dick Clark. It was daylight when I woke up. First memo in the new year: “Don’t do that again.”

Friar brought me the leash for our first walk of the year. He was saying, “We’re behind schedule.” It was a balmy, windy, tee-shirt day. Alabama has great weather between storms–like life itself, sometimes.

We had the road to ourselves, so the leash stayed in my pocket. As we walked, I considered changing my breath prayer. For many years it has been, “Jesus, keep me simple.” Jesus prayed to Abba. Should I?

Is “Abba” too limited? I asked Friar’s opinion about gender-neutral prayer. His eyes said, “My name is Friar (“brother”), but I’m gender-neutered. It’s not my issue.” Deer scents were far more interesting.

I searched via my phone for “gender-neutral word for Abba.” I found three sites (below). More tomorrow.

“Abba, Father: Inclusive Language and Theological Salience,” by H.E. Baber.

“Word Study: Abba-אבא,” by Chaim Bentorah.

“Abba, Amma, Adonai: An Australian Journey in Gender,” by Alexis.