Jake the Collie now thinks he’s Zoe. We are going through our list of house and garden chores with frequent summons to strong, practical helpful Zoe when the going gets tough. She, working on her Othello essay, has developed selective hearing. But Jake appears each time, happily wagging his tail!
Anita Mathias now has a freshly painted kitchen, painted by Roy. I so wanted to paint it lavender, like the kitchens I saw in Provence (yellow, bright blue…) but Roy said if it was lavender, I would have to do all the cooking as he wouldn’t step into it. “Haven’t you heard of feminism?” I asked him. “I want a lavender kitchen” “And you are going to Ireland in July, and will then want a green kitchen,” he growled. He won! White!
So one man, Nick Clegg, is essentially choosing the next Prime Minister of Great Britain. So much for the democratic process! It reminds me of 2000, when, after all the expense and hassle of an election, the Supreme Court essentially chose the next President of the United States.
Anita Mathias hosted a tea party today for 14 adults & 17 children, all of whom got on well & none of whom were scratched by rabbits, chased by horses, barked at by the dog, or slipped into ponds. The party motivated us to mow our grass, trim our shrubs, re-do our rock garden, paint our kitchen & walls, & get rid of 10 loitering boxes of stuff, none of which our guests would have noticed either way, but it’s good to have it done!
As I walked down the country lane outside my house, a cup of tea in hand, I saw a herd of cows, very attractive Guernseys, in our farmer-neighbour’s field. It was a beautiful bird-loud day. It could have been out of a Constable painting or a Dylan Thomas poem. Timeless England!
Apple tree in the garden covered with dazzling white blossoms, soon to be replaced by bright red apples. Thank you!
Gordon Brown’s future according to today’s Guardian. “He will resign as an MP – the modern fashion – and has sufficient international standing to get a big job, probably in tackling global poverty, the passion he acquired from the David Livingstone stories of his Presbyterian childhood.” I think that is so sweet and touching. I wish him well. Good luck and God bless, Gordon! You were a man of integrity!
Wonders never cease. Roy, who is too reserved & shy to get Facebook, has decided to have a blog (about what he reads, learns, and experiences, with lots of photos i.e. not too touchy-feely). After we all commented on the dearness of ROY having a blog, I offered him “Blogging for Dummies.” He refused, “My readers are not dummies.” Then slunk back to pick it up. I asked, “But you’ve decided you might be one?” Silence!
”Dave and Nick: extras from Four Weddings, only with executive authority over a nuclear-armed G8 power,” tweets James Kirkup.
Cameron, once asked what his favourite joke was said, “Nick Clegg.” He now says, “If we sometimes have to eat humble pie, and we sometimes have to eat our words, then I cannot think of a more excellent diet.” Amen and Amen!
The writer G.P. Taylor on Philip Pullman’s new book, “Pullman shouldn’t be a coward and should write a book about Mohammed on his birthday and see what happens!” Hilarious!
”He did not think that there was enough quiet in the world. To realise God you need silence. He loved spaces for silence, and places of silence. He encouraged the practice of retreats. He was an inspiring conductor of retreats. He thought of the religious communities as little havens of quiet scattered across society ...” Owen Chadwick on Michael Ramsey, 100th Archbishop of Canterbury
We watched “The Secret Life of Plants.” A shriveled seedpod waited for the rain to burst it open and release its seeds; fungi waited for the rain to release their myriad spores. And in our own lives, prayer releases that rain. When we do not pray, we settle into dry and barren hopelessness; we shrivel. Prayer is like rain to those seedpods, releasing hope into what we considered the intractable areas of our lives.
Can miracles happen today? Breakthroughs in creativity? In writing? In publishing? Financial miracles? Breakthroughs in health? I retain my faith in them, because you see, I am incredibly well-connected. I know a guy who can change 5 loaves to 5000; can help me walk on water, and change that water into wine. And he whispers to me, “Do not be afraid. Trust in my Father. Trust also in me.”
Read my new memoir: Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India (US) or UK.
Connect on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anitamathiaswriter/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anita.mathias/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AnitaMathias1
My book of essays: Wandering Between Two Worlds (US) or UK