The great Barbara Golder brought this to my attention, and it deserves a wider audience.

As New Orleans prepares for Mardi Gras, here’s some wisdom for next week and beyond on the archdiocesan website:

Let us remember the presence of God in our celebrations. Did you know that St. Thomas More, in addition to being a wise and trusted politician and statesman was also a man of great wit and humor.  Here’s a prayer authored by Thomas that seems to us a great fit for this Carnival Season and beyond!

St. Thomas More’s Prayer for Good Humor

Grant me, O Lord, good digestion, and also something to digest.
Grant me a healthy body, and the necessary good humor to maintain it.
Grant me a simple soul that knows to treasure all that is good
and that doesn’t frighten easily at the sight of evil, but rather finds the means to put things back in their place.
Give me a soul that knows not boredom, grumblings, sighs, and laments, nor excess of stress, because of that obstructing thing called “I.”
Grant me, O Lord, a sense of good humor.
Allow me the grace to be able to take a joke to discover in life a bit of joy, and to be able to share it with others.

Amen

Photo by Library of Congress on Unsplash