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Mountain View News Saturday, January 4, 2025

CHRISTOPHER Nyerges 

[Nyerges is the author of several books including “Self-Sufficient Home” 
and “How to Survive Anywhere.” He also leads wilderness classes every 
weekend. He can be reached at School of Self-Reliance, Box 41834, Eagle 
Rock, CA 90041, or www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com]


Snuggly ALBUS

This is Albus (or Albie), age 
1 yr. orange tabby, and he's 
a snuggly sweetheart who's 
looking for his forever home! 
He LOVES to cuddle and will 
nuzzle your face and hair. He 
purrs so loudly he sounds like 
a lawn mower and his meows 
sound like he's quacking 
like a duck. Truly he's a 
one of a kind little guy!! 
He's fully vetted, neutered, 
and healthy. He was born 
approximately April 2023. 
He gets along fine with 
other young & playful cats, but he's not great with dogs. 

See more pics of Albie showing off his cute poses and apply 
at https://www.lifelineforpets.org/albus.html. Can we get 
him a forever home to start off the New Year?


FINDING OUR ANSWERS

 In the Catholic Church, there is a practice known as Confession. I was 
taught how to do Confession as a child growing up in Catholic school. You 
enter the little closet-sized room and kneel. There is a partition in front of 
you and a priest is on the other side. We were taught what amounts to the 
formula for saying Confession. You tell the priest how long it has been since your last Confession 
and then you recite all the bad things you have done. The priest listens and then tells 
you what form of penance you must do in order to atone for your sins. 

Now, there are some Catholics who take this very seriously, because they want to change 
their character. They pour out their hearts to the priest and they might be in the Confes-
sional for 20 minutes while everyone else is waiting in line. Such individuals undoubtedly 
gain the most by this practice.

As a school child, I did not take it very seriously, and worked hard to think of something 
to tell the priest – little things like lies or hitting my brother. I would never dream of actually 
being serious with the priest because we were children, and were just going through 
the motions of what our parents and teachers told us we had to do. To make things worse, 
there were older boys, even some family members, who bragged that they did whatever they 
wanted – lying, stealing, sexual misconduct, drugs – and that they were always OK as long 
as they got to a Confessional before they died! I did not find that sort of mindset to be even 
pragmatic, let alone spiritual. 

In time, even though I was no longer a Catholic, I understood the profound importance of 
looking deep and revealing one’s “sins” for the end goal of improving your character. It had 
to be sincere, and it was usually painful if you were truly altering your bad character habits.

When I was under the tutelage of my guru, starting in the mid-1970s, I was taught what I 
would call a secular version of the Confession, called “Retrospection.” Retrospection was 
a review of each day before sleep, where you judge all your acts of import, either “good” 
or “bad.” This was ideally done in writing, so you don’t forget. Then, as part of the Retro-
spection, you write down how you will rectify whatever bad things you might have done 
that day. IF you were sincere, you would make that rectification as soon as humanly pos-
sible, which meant first thing the next day. You might call someone to apologize for some 
act, or you would return money that you took, or whatever it took to balance the thing you 
did. Good things were also acknowledged, though no action is required there. It’s good to 
self-recognize that you took the right action, but resting on your laurels is indul-gent.

Since I have practiced both the Confession and Retrospection, I can say that both practices 
are essential to improving your character and overcoming your own character flaws IF they 
are done with deep sincerity. To me, it really doesn’t matter what you call yourself in terms 
of religious allegiance; what really matters is that you take it to heart, and live a better life 
because of this.

Now, I have shared the above in order to put a recent dream of mine in context. In the dream, 
I was attending Mass at St. Elizabeth church in Altadena, where I also went to school for 8 
years. The church was very crowded, and I noted that people were using the Confessional, 
which is unusual for a Sunday. Anyway, when it was free, I entered the Con-fessional, and 
was about to begin the usual rigamarole. I noticed that the screen was al-most see-through, 
which was not the norm. I told the elderly priest (who I could see quite well) that I hadn’t 
been in church in decades, and then, rather than recite a litany of all my sins, I explained 
how I was trying to understand the point of my life, and anyone’s life, and always trying to 
live a life that had meaning and was not rote. I spoke for some time ex-plaining this.

After I was done talking, another priest appeared behind the screen and he addressed me 

by my name, which surprised me. At least when I was growing up, Confession was a near-ly 
secret event and the priest and parishioner never saw one another. Anyway, the priest told 
me that none of the stuff I just told them mattered much. He said that all that really mattered 
in life is if I did what I said I would do. He added that all that really matters in life is know 
what to do, and to not do, and that “how” we do everything is all that matters. 

Then he held up a paper which seemed to be a receipt for some book. “You purchased this 
some time ago,” the second priest told me. “Why haven’t you read it? The answers you seek 
are there.” I was stunned. Is this how they do Confessions now? And I was frustrated because, 
in the dream, I could not see the title of the book.

Then he held up another paper, which looked like a school transcript, and told me that I 
had signed up for some class, and that I needed to actually take the class, or finish it. “You 
will find your answers there,” he assured me, though again, I could not read the class title 
on the paper.

Finally, before departing, the younger priest told me that his life in the Confessional is very 
boring since most people go through the formula and are not sincere about changing their 
bad ways and making amends. He said I was refreshing because I shared what I was feeling 
and avoided the roteness with which I had attended to religious ceremonies most of my life. 
That made me feel good, but I was still frustrated as I woke up to a new day. What book 
was I to read? Did I already possess it? And what class did I sorta start, but didn’t follow 
through?

Needless to say, I have a lot of material to work with now in this New Year.


Pet of the Week




 Juliet is a strikingly unique 1-year-old Husky mix 
with a personality as vibrant as her appearance! 
Independent and playful, Juliet is looking for a home 
that embraces her energetic spirit and strong-willed 
nature. She loves to chew and would thrive with 
plenty of toys to keep her mind and body busy.

Though she’s a little reserved when meeting new 
people, with patience and gentle guidance, Juliet 
warms up to show her sweet and affectionate side. 
She’s a smart girl who’s eager to learn but will need 
some training to channel her excitement and become 
the well-mannered companion she’s meant to be.

Recently, Juliet had a fun outing with the Pasadena 
Humane mobile team, where she greeted visitors 
and spent time with other dogs. She enjoyed several 
walks, made a few select human friends (rewarding 
them with kisses and cuddles), and even had a playful romp with another dog. After her 
adventures, she calmly returned to the shelter, ready to rest after a full day of fun.

If you’re ready to provide Juliet with the love, structure, and playtime she craves, she’s ready 
to become your loyal and lively companion. Could you be her perfect match?

Juliet and all other dogs and cats will have their adoption fees reduced by $100 from January 
1 – 12 during the Welcome Home adoption promotion at Pasadena Humane.The normal 
adoption fee for dogs is $150. All dog adoptions include spay or neuter, microchip, and age-
appropriate vaccines. 

 Walk-in adoptions are available every day from 2:00 – 5:00. For those who prefer, adoption 
appointments are available daily from 10:30 – 1:30 and can be scheduled online. View 
photos of adoptable pets at pasadenahumane.org.

 New adopters will receive a complimentary health-and-wellness exam from VCA Animal 
Hospitals, as well as a goody bag filled with information about how to care for your pet. 

 Pets may not be available for adoption and cannot be held for potential adopters by phone 
calls or email.


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