{"id":5249,"date":"2012-12-10T22:56:21","date_gmt":"2012-12-11T06:56:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/?p=5249"},"modified":"2012-12-11T07:42:45","modified_gmt":"2012-12-11T15:42:45","slug":"tis-the-season-for-shepherds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/2012\/12\/10\/tis-the-season-for-shepherds\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Tis the Season . . . for Shepherds"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a><\/h6>\n

‘Tis the season to remember again that which no season should forget. I’m always grateful when it arrives.<\/p>\n

Again this year we unboxed our creche, the one we got in some Mexico City market many years ago. (Or was it Tlaquepaque, outside of Guadlajara?) Though some arms are missing and wings fallen off, Anne’s got it arranged better than ever inside a relic cabinet from India. I’ve always admired the delicate look and attention to detail on the bisque fired clay. And that’s not to mention the scene it represents, sentimental as it is.<\/p>\n

The shepherds are there, reminiscent of the real ones, also made of clay, though breathed with life.<\/p>\n

There they are, gazing in wide-eyed wonder . . . not so much at the baby, but for what they’d just beheld . . . glorified beings ripping open the sky and announcing a wonder not to miss.<\/p>\n

Wonder it was that it was revealed at all, but particularly revealed to them. Shepherds!<\/p>\n

Shepherds, out-door dwellers, months-unbathed bottom-rungers . . . but not overlooked, and that’s the point, as no one is from heaven.<\/p>\n

Shepherds, the sort of which would not be welcome anywhere indoors, but here at home among the beasts. Perhaps that’s why the Christ was born outside.<\/p>\n

Or maybe so nothing would obstruct heaven’s view.<\/p>\n

Yet, there’s reason more: There was a king, years before, who’d been a shepherd first. He’d risen to greatness and been given promise that from his line would the greatest come. And that in Bethlehem.<\/p>\n

So, shepherds, the time has come; you’re all welcome here.<\/p>\n

But wait, there’s more. Both shepherds and kings and all between: You’re more like sheep than you know.<\/p>\n

And the baby you’re gawking at, your shepherd he’s become.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

______________
\nCurrently in Seattle.
\nNext: The Wisemen<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Shepherds, a group we hardly consider till it comes to this season. But they’re real people like the rest of us, and in need of one.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5249"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5249"}],"version-history":[{"count":38,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5249\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5294,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5249\/revisions\/5294"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}