February 27, 2026

There is a pair of deer who have been visiting my office window at church this week. They usually come around in the early afternoon, snacking on birdseed spilled from the feeder the Sunday Club kids have been caring for. It is such a treat to see them sniffing around and peering into my window with great curiosity. I am curious about them, too. Where do they come from? Where do they go when they aren't at Saint Anne's? Where do they sleep? Are they finding enough to eat? What pulls them to Saint Anne's each afternoon? 

As I watched the deer this week, I started thinking about how wonderful it would be if we humans were just as curious about one another. Certainly, we do that within our Saint Anne's community. We ask one another where we grew up, where we live now, and what pulls us back to church each week. But what if it became ordinary to strike up a conversation with the person in front of us at the grocery store, or with someone we pass on a neighborhood walk? What if, instead of feeling disconnected from people whose lives look very different from ours, we grew curious about their stories? How might that change the way we see others and the world around us?

Maybe those deer at my window are more than a fun distraction; maybe they are an invitation to practice a wide curiosity that draws us closer to the neighbors God places in our path each day. My prayer for you this week is for just that opportunity to arise - and for it to put a smile on your face and in your heart.