Any cat owner will tell you that the worst thing about having a cat is hairballs. The hacking sound that announces their appearance seems extraterrestrial, and the result of all that peristalsis and gagging is a specimen that causes the same reaction in the one who is left to dispose of it. This non - digestible mix of hair, saliva and stomach juices is a product of the cat’s grooming practice. Instead of spitting out the loose hair that comes from licking themselves, cats swallow it. Eventually, this byproduct accumulates in the digestive system, and if it can’t move on through, it makes an unsightly return appearance on some surface in your living area. From start to finish, hairballs are the dark side of any feline fancy.
There are some things that can help lower the incidents of hairball production. A lubricating jell that tastes like salmon or chicken to our feline friends can help to keep things moving in the right direction in their digestive track. Regular and frequent brushing can eliminate the quantity of loose hair available for inadvertent ingestion. Still, if you have a cat, you will have hairballs from time to time, no matter how many interventions you stage to avoid them. It comes with the territory.
Sin, weakness of character and foibles come with the human territory. No matter how we try to get rid of them, these elements of our fallen condition are intractable. It’s a struggle to cough them up and admit that they are part of our behavior. Their deposits on the surface of our personal and social histories are often messy and even heart wrenching at times. And often, it seems, we keep reproducing the same sort of residues of self-serving and self-seeking egoism. We lie, cheat, slander and steal, and what is left is only the tattered strands of what was once a trusting relationship. We are unfaithful to others, indulging our lusts for power and pleasure, and what remains are broken hearts and friendships. We forget to acknowledge God in our lives through regular prayer and worship, respect for all life, and witnessing to our faith, and so we just go along with others’ expectations and wonder why nothing ever changes. When we sin, we groom ourselves and swallow the unpleasant consequences, until they come back as messy piles of hurt humanity in our world.
That’s why we all need this Lenten season. It is our yearly chance to change our way of doing things -- to begin grooming others rather than ourselves, to help others see themselves as valuable in God’s sight and able to share their gifts and talents with others. Lent stops us from gagging on our own egos and leaving a mess of arrogant and high handed behavior behind. Lenten prayer, fasting and almsgiving can help brush away the loose ends of our lives, instead of swallowing them from view so that no one will know our weakness. Lent is a chance to get the essential elements of our lives all flowing in the direction of Christ.
I am sure that Baxter would avoid hairballs if he could. The convulsions they put him through can’t be pleasant. They usually start with a groan and end with his running away from the mess. But Baxter is stuck with hairballs. He’s a cat. As human beings, we have a choice to deal differently with the residue of our sin and failures. Lent offers us the opportunity to make this choice. Take it.
