Standing behind a woman in a checkout line this afternoon, I notice as she punches a speed dial number on her cell phone, then tells the person who answers, “She’s in surgery. Say lots of prayers. Say lots of prayers.”
NewMexiKen isn’t big on the prayer thing, but I feel some empathy for the woman’s anxiety and, to myself, wish well to both the woman and the patient she is so obviously concerned about.
The line moves up.
“How are you?” the cashier asks.
“Fine,” says the woman. “Well, except my dog is having surgery.”
NewMexiKen realizes how people feel about their dogs and their gods. But isn’t praying — that is, soliciting God’s favor — loathsomely self-centered when it’s your pet?
Maybe she reads Rabbi Kushner and asked her friend to pray for more patience, wisdom, and grace. Maybe she was asking that a prayer request for support be circulated out there to our collective conscientiousness. Surely it’s not selfish to ask for support for our family and pets, it’s not like praying for a parking space.