Seven
July is the seventh month and I’m blessed to be the seventh child in the family. I heard that the number is special to gamblers (lucky seven) and to God (He created the earth in six days and rested on the seventh day).
“God ug gamblers gyod?” my friend Rosse asked. “Murag extremes man na sila.” That’s because seven has extreme implications and applications. There are seven deadly sins and seven vices, but also seven virtues of Christianhood and seven seals in the Book of Revelation.
Seven is powerful. It symbolizes the totality of the created universe (it consists of two parts: 3 = sky, plus 4 = earth). Lest we forget, Jesus left us seven last words to reflect upon. There are seven petitions in the Our Father, and it is the number of divine abundance. At the extreme, it is the number of punishment, purification and penitence.
It’s a blessing to be in seven. How about you? What is your birth rank?
Rain
And so the rainy days are here again. I’m sure my grammar teacher would disapprove—an introduction that begins with a conclusion. It would be a valid complaint.
My teacher would say, “Lilith, you can’t do that. Did something happen before it rained? Why make a conclusion at the start? And you can’t start a new paragraph with ‘and.’”
I would probably reply: “Ma’am, let me explain.”
Before Mr. Rain arrived, Mr. Hot Days lorded it over the rivers and the farms. Between the unbearable drought and the maddening mud, something more terrible happened. No, not politicians finding new ways—after five years of silence—to start early political campaigns.
There were bills to pay with nonexistent money. After two missed bills you stood the chance of groping in the dark at night and having an umbrella for roof. More terrible than the extreme elements were concerns about food, health and relationships.
And so the rainy days are here again, Ma’am. Rain or shine, you will have a long spell called life that needs attention.
And heaven
When you’re happy, you’re in seventh heaven. The picture makes heaven, God’s dwelling place, a desirable destination to aspire for while you’re still here on earth.
It’s like asking a child, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Likewise, we can ask ourselves, “Where do I want to go when I die?” I’m sure you will not seriously answer, “Hell, I want to be in hell, which God has reserved for satan and this fallen angel’s gang.”
We can’t take heaven and God lightly. The prophet Isaiah said of God: “Heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool.” It means God is huge and our final home is majestic.