“A seagull and a crow attacked two doves at the Vatican as they were released from a window by two children and the Pope.”

The symbolism of doves has a long history associated with fertility, feminism, love and peace. As far back as the iron age in Ancient Near East and the Mediterranean the dove can be found as a symbol for the mother goddess. There is even evidence that suggests ancient Israelites believed the Canaanite goddess, Asherah (symbolized as a dove) was consort to Yahweh. As described by Dorothy Willette writing for the Biblical Archeology Society: The Enduring Symbolism of Doves; From ancient icon to biblical mainstay –  “… it is not so surprising, then, that the heirs of this Israelite religion incorporated the “feminine” symbol of the dove to represent the spirit of God (the word for “spirit,” ruach, is a feminine word in Hebrew).”

So the fact that a crow, which often symbolizes death or acts as an omen of something bad occurring, attacked a dove at the Vatican acts as an almost archetypal representation of the battle between good and evil, life and death, peace and war.

As with any symbol, our own psyche can add layers of meanings to that which might only be a normal aspect of nature (predators going after prey, the cycle of life). Still, for me at least, it connected on such a personal, deep level to events going on in my own life that it was impossible to ignore. Like the traffic ticket I received last fall, I wondered what this was trying to tell me about my life.

I have found truth and consolation in the quote from Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.” And I have discovered yet again that this year is meant to test my own intentionality. What sort of person do I want to be? How will I respond when facing feelings of hurt and anger?

My conclusion has been this- that there is one prescription for powerlessness, staying true to who I am no matter what comes at me. In this way, as a dove confronting a crow becomes the very best representation of peace and love, so my values, tested under extreme situations, show the world exactly who I am.

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> Betting Jessica and Untangling the Knot are now both available in PRINT - Find them at Amazon.com: http://amzn.com/e/B005YHFBQ2 


> For the next few weeks I will be posting once a week only on Tuesdays. Please let me know what you think of this change. Thanks. Deanne


How do you cope with difficulties? I’d love to hear from you. And to prove it, leave a comment and I’ll enter you into my drawing where one lucky January commenter will win a copy of any one of Daniel Davidson's Travel Free Guides. Check back at the end of the month to see if you’re my winner. Please note –while I love and appreciate getting Facebook posts and Twitter replies, the comment must be made on my blog, using the blog form – this way all who see the blog post can engage in a shared conversation. Thanks.

(BTW - For those of you who don’t yet know of Daniel Davidson, he’s a travel writer with great advice on saving money while traveling. Check his website for more info: http://www.freetravelideas.com/)

• It used to take a person 1 hour to milk 6 cows by hand. Today, a person can milk 100 cows in an hour with modern machines.
• Before modern milk delivery, when people traveled and wanted milk, they had to take their cows with them.
• The main breeds of dairy cows are Holstein, Guernsey, Jersey, Brown Swiss and Ayrshire.
• There are about 11 million cows in America. They will make about 57.5 billion quarts of milk this year.
• It takes 12 pounds of whole milk to make one gallon of ice cream.
• The milk mustache advertising campaign was launched in 1995.
• The natural yellow color of butter comes mainly from beta-carotene found in the grass the cows graze on.
• An average dairy cow weighs about 1,400 pounds.
• Milk is better for cooling your mouth after eating spicy food. Milk products contain casein, a protein that cleanses burning taste buds.
• There are approximately 340-350 squirts in a gallon of milk.
• Cows drink 35 gallons of water a day — the equivalent of a bathtub full of water.
• The milk bottle was invented in 1884. Plastic milk containers were introduced in 1964.
• Average U.S. cow produces 53 lb of milk per day, or 6.2 gallons.
• Consumer spending on dairy products is $74.6 billion     dollars annually about 1.33% of personal income.
• 12.27 % of the food dollar is spent on dairy products.
• In 2003, Portland, Oregon bought more ice cream per person than any other U.S. city. Looks like everyone else has a lot of catching up.
• The ice cream cone’s invention is linked to the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis. An ice cream vendor reportedly didn’t have enough dishes to keep up with the demand, so he teamed up with a waffle vendor who rolled his waffles into cones.