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Kathy Bankson's son, Bo Bankson, had osteogenesis imperfecta, a rare gene mutation that made his bones fracture with little or no trauma. His mother cared for him all his life, which ended when he was just 23 years old. He died in his sleep in September 2002, on a Sunday morning as he lay in his bed. Months after the death, Kathy Bankson's grief was still raw, and she dreaded coming home every day to an empty house.
On a spring day in 2003, Bankson was walking on the campus of De Anza College, still drowning in her sorrow. She missed her son. She missed having someone to take care of, someone to greet her when she came home.
Bankson saw a robin on a sidewalk and prayed a silent prayer, 'Help me,' to St. Francis, the patron saint of animals.
'Standing on that sidewalk, I knew I was going to go home to that empty house,' Bankson, 47, said. 'I knew I needed help. The robin prompted me to pray, and I finally asked for the help I desperately needed.'
As the feast day for St. Francis approaches Tuesday — often accompanied by blessing ceremonies for pets and other animals — The Bee asked readers to share how their pets are a blessing to them.
Bankson's is one such story.
Within a week of that day at De Anza College, Bankson received a phone call from the county veterinarian, asking if she could take a litter of puppies until they were old enough to adopt.
She hand-fed them for six weeks, and when it was time to give them up, she and her daughter chose one to keep. Or perhaps the poodle mix chose them.
'One of the (puppies) would watch everything I did,' Bankson said. 'She would wait for me while the other puppies played. She had chosen us to be her family. We named her Checkers. The puppies were a turning point for me. I believe they saved my life.'
Blessings of animals traditionally are held around the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, which is this Tuesday in Christian traditions. St. Francis was the son of a rich merchant; he turned to a life of poverty, devoted to caring for lepers, the poor and the sick. He is known for his sensitivity to and love for all things, and as founder of the Franciscan order.
The patron of animals, birds and environmentalists, St. Francis is said to have tamed a wild wolf and to have preached to birds. He often is pictured with a bird sitting on his outstretched hand.
'The blessing of the animals is one way we can get to ritualize in a sacred context the way we are blessed by the animals in our life,' Brady said. Though some people ask for prayers for their pets because they are in ill health, or to wish them long life, 'the most common prayer request I get is just gratitude for how much love and joy this pet has brought into their lives,' Brady said. 'People in turn want their pets to be happy.'
The love we receive from our pets can also be a 'means of grace and a channel of God's love to us,' Brady added. 'It reminds us we are lovable people. That unconditional quality is the same with God's love for us.'
Bankson — who prayed to St. Francis and now has a fluffy white Checkers leaping to see her when she comes home — is healing. Bankson realizes that though she will always miss her son, life will go on. There is still room for happiness. 'I was dying of a broken heart,' Bankson said. 'This little dog put the pieces of it back together.'
Her son used to say that when she times were hard, to look out for the 'bluebird of happiness' ready to bonk her on the head and say, 'Pay attention.' One day while shopping, Bankson found a doggie toy in the shape of a bluebird.
'Whenever I'm down, that bluebird of happiness shows up, covered in doggie drool and wanting to fly,' she said. 'Checkers can catch it midair if she's fast enough.'
Modesto Bee
Bless the Beasts
Published: Saturday, October 1st, 2005
By AMY WHITEBEE STAFF WRITER
Rating:  [5 of 5 Stars!] |
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