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*** Here’s my favorite pair of red shoes, made by Fitzwell—so comfortable!  ***

*** Here’s my favorite pair of red shoes, made by Fitzwell—so comfortable! ***

 

How did I miss this? Red shoes are a papal tradition that originated with the early Roman Republic. And never mind the Devil Wears Prada…did you know the Pope was rumored to wear it, too? The Vatican has denied it, claiming his shoes are made by a cobbler in Rome’s Borgo Pio neighborhood. It doesn’t bother me if he wears Prada, but I guess some people think it’s inappropriate. (Wink, wink.)

With his resignation, the Pope sacrifices his right to wear red shoes. I guess. (I don’t understand this, but whatever.) Ditto for his Twitter account. That would be a tough one for me—the former, not the latter. It sounds like heaven to retire in a nice quiet place to write, pray, play the piano, and read from a vast personal collection of books. Can you imagine how much more time one might have without the worry of Twitter, Facebook –not to mention the souls of 1.3 billion people? Lots more, I’ll wager.

No wonder the Pope is ready for retirement. I feel sorry for him because he’s an introvert who is expected to be “on” all the time. Rumor has it they’re looking for someone with a little more “pizzazz” to replace him. It seems that he’s too bookish for this brave new world where we’re all measured by how many people “like” us.

Pope Benedict has also been betrayed by some of his closest allies. I like the way he forgave them. The ability to love people who don’t love you back is haute terre. Not that I’m a good example of that, but I’m working on it—and I have been to Terre Haute, Indiana.

Earlier this week, a good friend and I agreed that the number one obstacle in our prayer life is that we are never still. We shouldn’t have to retire to a monastery to achieve that.

Will you take some time today and be still? There might be a message you need to send or receive, but it’ll never happen if the line is already busy. I’ll try if you will! What do you most admire about the Pope?

226Where the pope stands

Here’s where the Pope stands when he addresses his public. I took this picture on a visit to Rome in 2007—an unforgettable trip with friends.

Trevi Fountain

Rome’s Trevi Fountains. I can hardly believe that I took this photo with a point-and-shoot camera. It still takes my breath away.

Life is short. Wear the good stuff.