Pastor's Reflection - June 14, 2026

“Ollie” The Octopus

My father had a tremendous love and appreciation for the splendor of God’s creation. When he was eleven, his parents gave him John James Audubon’s book The Birds of America, and he memorized many of the birds by their Latin names.

He instilled this love and fascination with God’s creatures in my brother and me. Shortly after my fourth birthday, I remember my encounter with “Ollie” the octopus. My father came home from work and called my brother and me to his side. He said there was a tremendous problem we had to help solve: Ollie the octopus had escaped from the aquarium (of course, there was no aquarium in Pullman, Washington), and we had to find him. We began a thorough search throughout the house, looking in closets, cupboards, and even the refrigerator. Our search finally ended in the bathroom. My father slowly opened the door, and there was a tentacle draped over the top of the bathtub. Our eyes were the size of saucers! We found Ollie!

My childhood was filled with adventures in nature, including many fishing and hunting trips, as well as collecting bugs with those little plastic bug containers complete with tweezers.

Nowadays, many children sit glued to televisions, computers, and smartphones, failing to recognize the splendor of God’s creation and to see how His glory is reflected in it.

As we begin the summer months, I hope we can all find time to break away from our technology, enjoy the works of God’s creation, and be drawn into a spirit of gratitude for everything that reflects His majesty and glory.

Have a blessed summer!

In Christ,

Fr. James Northrop, Pastor