Kids know mud is good. Whether squished between the toes, splashed up from a big puddle, or patted into inedible but indelible “pies,” mud attracts little children as quickly as cupcakes and puppies.

For all of us, after the frozen frostiness of this past Winter, who isn’t looking forward to the Spring softening of hard, unyielding ground. There is something elemental, even primeval about mud. We instinctively recognize that moist, mushy earth is a sign of fruitfulness, fulfillment, and fun.

But if you don’t have melting snow or spring rains to make solid ground into malleable mud, then you have to get water from some other source. In this week’s gospel text, John’s detailed re-telling of Jesus healing of a man who had been “born blind,” that water source comes from saliva.

Jesus spits …