Look Ma, I'm Pope!

This new Pope thing is freaking me out. Not because I'm Catholic. I am. Because I'm a human...a mother. I realize that not much has changed, but as I watched Pope Benedict XVI appear at the papal window (don't you love how everything is "papal"? Like when you get married and everything is "bridal.") all I could think was what was his family thinking? He's 78 years old, so it's highly unlikely that his mother is alive. But just this morning, I read a comment by his brother who said something to the effect of "Yeah, my brother's a great guy, but they should pick someone younger and healthier." So if the brother of the new Pope doesn't even think he's a good choice, what does that mean? And as I watched Benny (hey, we're close - I'm part German), I couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking as he stood on that balcony waving to hundreds of thousands of people. He did the papal wave thing and then he clasped his hands together over his head as if to say: "I won! I won the election! Look at me! Yay me!"

We interrupt this posting to state that the opinions of this blogger or its management are strictly not endorsed by the Catholic church. The Pope is not only papal, he's infallible. The person writing this blog is probably now damned to hell.

Seriously, do you think that someone ran up to him with a TV camera and a microphone and said: "Joseph Ratzinger, you've just been named the 265th pope. What are you going to do now?" And he'll reply: "I'm going to ride in the Popemobile and then I'm going to Euro Disney!"

It's all so confusing. This guy is holding the most revered office in the world. People kiss his ring...daily. Was he like you or me? Did he go out drinking with his friends? Did he ever skip church on Sunday? But the most important question is: Was he nice to his mother?