Friday 30 March 2012

Do Angels get bored?


Neat wings, but not biblical.















I was pondering on Angels whilst drying myself after my early morning swim. Not the seraphim and cherubim, but the common and garden Guardian Angel that stands behind our respective shoulders.

The thought came from nowhere, though that’s not strictly true. I’d seen ten minutes of a Sunday programme where this very nice lady said she’d seen her first guardian angel as a child and has continued to see them ever since. She caused some flickers of interest and unease when she assured the audience that she could see each of their guardian angels, and continued to extol their virtues and how indebted we are to them.

So the thought came from somewhere, but why think of it now? Had my forty five lengths triggered a neural impulse, or was my own guardian angel just plain bored and bent on mischief? Reminding me it was there? Did it feel undervalued?

I dry with a large white towel. I start with my back, pulling it back and forth diagonally from shoulder to buttock, changing direction with a brisk twirl to the other shoulder before attacking the small of my back. That’s a horizontal movement. The arms come next, then my front with particular attention to buttocks and groin. Then it’s the legs, calves and shins, in front and behind, leaving the toes till last. The whole process takes about fifteen minutes from shower to leaving the changing room dressed.

And my question is this: What is my guardian angel doing during moments like these? What is it doing for much of my mundane and boring life, those long tracts of time - eating, sleeping or, as we do everyday, operating on automatic?

Raphael and Gabriel do the important stuff, like appearing at crucial moments with crucial messages. But what do they do in those great tracts of time in between?

And Guardian Angels: Listening to those interminable pub conversations; shopping trips, Zumba classes, line dancing, squash, drying in between the toes. Even the angels of Jagger and Richards, Bill Gates and Obama must find it heavy going after a time. Not withstanding being privy to their innermost thoughts…it must tire…after a time. When all is said and done, the famous are like all of us: tossers at heart.

So does a Guardian Angel get bored? It is one of the great mysteries of life.

























And how do Guardian Angels propagate to keep in line with population growth?

13 comments:

Maria Zannini said...

You have the most intriguing thoughts!

I'm sure angels go off and do other things--especially when they're bored. After all we don't work 24 hours a day. Why should they?

Misha Gerrick said...

Nah... there are a lot of things that angels do that most people don't see or think about. :-)

Mike Keyton said...

Maria, you're suggesting I don't have a Guardian Angel constantly over my shoulder? I don't know whether to be relieved or slightly alarmed. Where we live ambulances don't always get there in time - what if that was the case with angels : )

Mike Keyton said...

Misha, you're suggesting Angels multitask. I thought only women did that.

Angela Brown said...

It's quite possible the angels stay there, slightly bored, enjoying the quiet of the moment since they know something is bound to happen sooner than later. They may have a manicure kit nearby, picking their nails clean from the last little mess they helped with. But it could be time is a different thing to them, that our time is but a flash to them and the times we consider boring and mundane are minutes and hours compared to our days and weeks.

Could be I'm overthinking it...which wouldn't be the first time :-)

Mike Keyton said...

Angela - I like your idea of time relativity but answer me this - how does the supply of guardian angels keep up with population growth? And to think we used to discuss how many angels could dance on the tip of a pin : )

Jay Paoloni said...

I was embarrassed every time I got undressed, or took a shower, and often said something like: "I know you're guarding me, but could you... you know... look somewhere else?"
I stopped saying that when I almost slipped on a patch of liquid soap while getting out of the tub.
So, I hope my guardian angel still guards me when I comb, or brush my teeth, or take the pizza out of the oven.

Mike Keyton said...

Hmm, there are other things I wish my Guardian Angel didn't know about :)

Unknown said...

My biggest worry as a child was that there weren't enough angels to go round. I didn't mind (too much) having to share but I did worry that mine wouldn't be able to get to me in time in an emergency because he/she would be too busy dealing with everyone else. Frightening stuff.

Claudia Zurc said...

Oh, Mike! Another thought-provoking post. I love angels! That's why I own a few books about them ;) Although I've never seen one, (but I wish I had) I know they're there, close to me. I do carry two prayer cards of my guardian angel: one in my wallet and one in my handbag ;) Double protection, hey, it doesn't hurt, right?

Mike Keyton said...

I believe in them too, Claudia. I enjoy not understanding

Anonymous said...

I don't think that each Angel is allocated 1 human to watch at all times I think they have several to watch over and I believe our lives are planned out, and they were created by God to watch out for us so its kind of built into them to love us unconditionally in a sense, I'm a Muslim revert but I still believe that God gave them abilitys and a purpose to watch over us at particular times, but especially when making choices, After all God is all seeing all knowing and has created them to do this job, There are ex Angels that were corrupted yes, but they were corrupted and cast out for a reason, because they were doing something God didn't create them to do and they were punished for it, I don't need to explain that as its kind of known really, but I don't think they have time to be bored or get bored watching us, considering watching us is what certain Angels were created to do and they know the punishment if they go corrupt, but I believe like when we read or watch tv, their downtime or time they do have spare, if any at all would be like watching something they are built to love, and are built to love this job also, personally thats what I believe but, many people have so many different and interesting views

Mike Keyton said...

Thanks anon. This is so long ago I'd forgotten I'd written it :) So thanks for the memory. I enjoyed re-reading it along with the comments.