Two phrases have attached themselves to my brain this morning. One from the Book of Common Prayer reading for the day - "the oppressor" - as in "he shall crush the oppressor" and "deliver me...from the oppressor." The other from a dear friend - "so little of what we do requires immediate attention, except self-care." Oppression. Just saying the word is difficult. You have to form the "O" by dropping your jaw, causing a lowering of your facial expression, making a smile impossible. And then the "ppression" is something that comes out sounding like Gollum's "ppressiouss" from Lord of the Rings; there's a devilish "ssss" to the word.

So much seems oppressive in our lives. There's outright, literal oppression in places like Iraq or New Orleans, we've got gas prices above $3 a gallon while oil companies are making $1300 a second, now there are liquid bomb scares which stir the pot of anxiety and fear yet again, fighting (what a descriptive word) traffic morning and evening...and then the paper says that the fashions for the fall will be the styles of the 80's...oppression, indeed. All these things which seem, at least, to need or cry out for immediate attention...but maybe the real need is self-care. No, not some Gollum-in-the-cave-by-himself stuff, but rather an attentiveness to our own hearts and souls that are being "crushed" daily or held captive by the oppressor. I remember Buechner talking about a time when his daughter was quite sick. He was desperately trying to help her, when others intervened and told him he couldn't help her without first helping himself. When the plane's in trouble, you put the oxygen mask on yourself first - then you can help your child. Love your neighbor as yourself. That phrase is so easily spoken and so carelessly lived. And at the risk of sounding simple, I believe that the path to self-care is hinged on one little word - "no." Having the courage to say "no" to people, places and things which cry out for our immediate attention; people who seem to be always in crisis mode, places that seem to always have one more thing on the list, things that always seem to need me and no one else will do...no, no, no, no, no. Or at least, "not right now" - "not today" - "not until I take care of myself first" - then I can honestly speak into your life or see your situation clearly. Being a "yes-man" gets me promotions and the applause of those around me; being a "no-man' generates looks of condescension or ventings of outright anger. But the plane feels like it's going down...reach for the mask first...and then "see" what's really necessary. All things are possible, but not all are profitable. Save us, O Lord from the oppressor which seeks to crush us. Teach us to say, "No."