Happy Spring!

Today is April Fool's Day, apparently, unless I'm mistaken, coming from the advent of the Gregorian calendar, which moved the beginning of the year from somewhere in late March or early April to January 1st. Those Christians who continued to celebrate the new year in April were labeled by the Church as "April Fools". Wouldn't it be just like the church to label 'fools' even though it makes much more sense to begin the year with Spring instead of in Winter. Goes to show, I guess.

I made it through the whole day without one April Fool's joke or prank. I gave them up long ago when, while I was Rector of St. Paul's in New Haven, there was a baptism in late March. The Bishop of Arkansas, of all places, flew out to do it because it was his grandchild.

The Bishop and a wonderful, extremely active member of the parish, who happened to be an African-American woman, and I were in the sacristy, getting vested and talking about March Madness of that year.

The finals were coming up and Georgetown University was one of the teams in the running. Carol said, when Georgetown came up, "I hate Georgetown's team."

At the time, Georgetown was an all black team with a black coach, John Thompson. I was astonished when Carol said that and quipped, much to my later regret, "Carol, you must be a racist...."

The bishop and Carol and I laughed.

We did the baptism and the Bishop's grandchild filled his diaper and soiled his satin baptismal suit just as his grandfather poured the water and made the child a Christian. Irony not lost on either the Bishop or me.

A few weeks later, the church secretary brought a letter into my office from Carol. Marge was visibly shaken when she handed it to me. "Remember what day it is," she told me.

"It's Tuesday," I said. "I know that."

The letter explained that Carol was leaving the parish and filing a discrimination law suit against me because I had called her a 'racist' about Georgetown's basketball team.

I went ballistic, leaped out of my chair and ran into Marge's office screaming, 'GET CAROL ON THE PHONE....MY LIFE AS I KNOW IT IS OVER....'

Marge looked at me, obviously concerned for my mental health, and said, calmly, 'remember what day it is...."

'IT'S TUESDAY, FOR GOD SAKE!', I said, 'CALL CAROL...."

"OK, enough," Marge told me. "I regret agreeing to this," she said, handing me another envelope.

I opened it and in Carol's handwriting, the page said only  this:

April Fool, love Carol

It took me several hours to get over my anxiety and recover my equilibrium.

Since that day, 25 or more years ago, I've sworn off April Fool pranks.

Carol got me as good as a liberal can be got.....What an April Fool I was....