A Walk in the Wetlands

As the surreal Covid year of 2020 approaches its end, and as we are about to head into the unknown (i.e. Brexit) at midnight tonight, I feel I ought to say something profound. But what?  The positive is that we are one year nearer to the time when the loving Kingdom of God will be ruling over the whole earth, restoring the peace of Eden worldwide.  So maybe that is all that needs to be said.

On Tuesday afternoon we had an outing to the Wetland Trust. The light was splendid and the Captain got some great photos.  They do limit the number of people there now, crisis-wise, but it being the school holidays there were more people around than I felt comfortable with.  I wonder more and more if this crisis won't leave me as one of those people who is afraid to set foot out of their own front door. I have always verged on it.

I could not sleep last night so got up in the early hours - and found that Alpha Papa, the Alan Partridge movie had been on!  I caught the last 15 minutes and laughed and laughed.  Which helped.

And I made myself a cup of Twinings Sleep tea - my lovely present from a thoughtful friend. The Bible verse that she had added to this teabag is Ephesians 6:10, which says:  "Finally, go on acquiring power in the Lord and in the mightiness of his strength."

Yes, our Creator, Jehovah is the source of power.  The Bible tells us that it is through the abundance of his dynamic energy that this awe-inspiring universe came to be.  So he can give us the power and the energy that we need to continue doing his will.  And in harmony with that, I note how the Field Service meeting this morning has refreshed me after a rather bad night.

Update No.9 from the Governing Body

This link contains valuable advice about continuing to keep safe during the pandemic:

https://www.jw.org/en/library/videos/#en/mediaitems/LatestVideos/docid-702020497_1_VIDEO

And these are some of the Bible principles it draws to our attention:

Proverbs 28:14 says:   "Happy is the man who is always on guard, But whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity."

This is not the time to relax our guard and get casual about taking the necessary precautions. The wise course is to stay on guard, as Ecclesiastes 7:12 tells us: "For wisdom is a protection just as money is a protection, but the advantage of knowledge is this: Wisdom preserves the life of its owner."

It is worth watching the video. There is also a Whiteboard animation:  https://www.jw.org/en/bible-teachings/peace-happiness/virus-outbreaks-whiteboard-animation/

The 25th was very quiet.  Veggie soup for lunch, followed by a mince pie for him, a yoghurt for me.  A walk in the woods for the Captain, and phone calls from Bea and to Jacks.  We Zoomed the families this week. They are all having a quiet family day too.

It all suits me as I try to stay out of Christmas as much as I can - and it was easy this year.   Its very hard on all the retailers, all the provincial theatres, all those who rely on the cash boost of Christmas to keep their businesses afloat. I do realise that, and sympathise.

Its Boxing Day (the 26th for my interational readers, if I have any) as I am starting to type this blog and we have woken up to news of a big storm sweeping across the UK, with some areas already flooded.

And this morning, the sky is overcast and the Channel is stormy. The valiant windsurfers are already out there - 8.22 in the morning as I type - their sails a splash of photogenic colour in all the grey.

Mr. Blumenthal versus Mr.Kipling

 

I like mince pies. But which are best - Mr.Kipling's or Heston Blumenthal's?   Are the two gentlemen in question prepared to FIGHT!!! it out?  Or shall we decide for ourselves?

The reason I ask this question is that Waitrose sent us a pressie with our delivery this week, which came early in view of the looming Christmas holiday. And it was a box of Heston Blumenthal mince pies. A rather lovely present. Thank you Waitrose.  I only risked half a one, but it had an interesting aniseed flavour to it.

We had another walk this afternoon.  Sunny but with an icy wind, which there should be this time of year.  We had lots of room as the tide was still out.

Captain B is a very good lockdown companion.  He makes me laugh all the time, and makes sure I get out for my walkies.

I got a card off to a friend who has just lost her sister.  I sent one of Bea's lovely Iris painting cards.  And I sent another card to an old school friend, who lives on the I.O.W, just across the water.  We have known each other since we were 5 years old.  Its all getting so like Arnold Bennett's "The Old Wives Tale" - a powerful and sad exposition of how quickly the young become old.    We had a short field service meeting in Zoom this morning and it is our big midweek get together tonight.

Our study of the Book of Ezekiel is just about to get properly under way. We are setting the scene in Genesis at the moment.  It would be so well worth joining your local JW congregation for this study - which takes half an hour a week. 

Three Grey Leaves

I have been a long time subscriber to the excellent Spectator magazine. And I was so pleased to find this poem by Alison Brackenbury (one of my favourite contemporary poets) in the current magazine:

Lost 
by Alison Brackenbury

By Coate Water, my mind believes
rain finds no end. Like three grey leaves
wet herons nestle the far shore
fearful, fond or listening for
rain’s hiss to cease. While my heart grieves
wet herons wait. Like three grey leaves.

I seemed to spend most of Saturday on the phone.  Himself left very very early to trek to the Badlands of Hampshire for metal detecting purposes, and I got the bed linen changed, a veggie chile made and the meeting attended in the morning - and the afternoon was mainly phone calls, Jen, Jean, Pat, Bea, Jackie.

And I began on these lovely apple teabags - which are very nice.  But better still a Scripture has been personally sent with each one.  A thoughtful present from a kind friend.  And I read this:

 "For I am convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor governments nor things now here nor things to come nor powers  nor height nor depth nor any other creation will be able to separate us from God’s love that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 8:38,39

I can't tell my blog how appropriate and comforting those words are at this moment.   

Not sure where Sunday went to, beyond the meeting, with an excellent talk, in which the speaker used the powerful image of the sinking ship and the lifeboat - and the purser trying to alert everyone to the fact that the ship is sinking and directing them to the lifeboat.  He wants them to listen to him urgently, and hurry to that lifeboat, get in and stay in, even if it is taking the ship a while to go down.  And we got more excellent teaching about how to teach others - how to get them to the lifeboat.

And I feel like a bit of a sinking ship myself - a sinking pedalo perhaps - a rather old and battered one.  I will be spending all afternoon at the Dentist's for the first, and presumably shortest, of my upcoming appointments.

Oh dear oh dear oh dear...

Oh and I did get a magazine and card parcelled up for one of Jean's calls, and also I replied to card from old Uni friends.  So I got a little bit of witnessing done, and must get back to my assigned roads this week - which is going to mean asking Captain B to order me some more stamps and some envelopes.  Oh dear oh dear oh dear - again.

The Captain's Sunday metal detecting trip was cancelled, due to the sudden new Covid restrictions.  Think: Bear with Sore Head (only crosser).The tabloids are speaking of a mass exodus from London to beat the midnight deadline as London moves into Tier 4. Which should help the spread no end. But it might make London nice and peaceful for Christmas.   

Foam Flowers in December

There were foam flowers heaped on the road as we drove to the Dentist on Wednesday - at just the point where a wave broke over Jackie's car when she was driving along the front many years ago.  It was a wonderful stormy day. The earth is so lovely - and the system of things on the earth at the moment is so difficult, so stressful.

Here is a quote from "A Forsaken Garden" (by Swinburne):

Heart handfast in heart as they stood, 'Look thither,'
Did he whisper ? 'look forth from the flowers to the sea;
For the foam-flowers endure when the rose-blossoms wither,
And men that love lightly may die — but we?'

And yes, I feel as transient as those foam flowers - just nowhere near as lovely.  The Captain and I have been together for more than 50 years, and married for most of them, but how much longer do we have.  We are both in the ThreescoreYearsandTen Zone.

Many years ago, as I was approaching 40 I began to think very seriously about how short a time we have to be with the people we love, how short a time we have to be on this beautiful planet.  And I began to seek for the Maker, the Creator. I wanted to know if there was any purpose behind the creation. But I also wanted to say thankyou for the beauty of it all.

And I found the truth of Jesus' words when he said:  “Keep on asking, and it will be given you; keep on seeking, and you will find; keep on knocking, and it will be opened to you." - Matthew 7:7

And when I found my Creator, Jehovah, I found a real hope - a hope of the life in perfection on the paradise earth that our first parents so tragically rejected.  

Cards and news of old friends arrive and I am trying to respond to all of them.   And also I am continuing to witness by letter. 

My Life as a Bond Girl (and a small flare up)

One of the problem crowns suddenly fell out!  No warning. Nothing. I wasn't eating, or doing anything.   It just fell off.  So now I look all set to play the terrifying JAWS in whichever Bond movies he was in. The outer space one was one of them I think.  So, if there is a remake, they would be able to save a lot on buying and fitting metal teeth by casting me.

At the very least, I will get to frighten the horses until Wednesday afternoon, which is when the dentist can see me.  I hope its not going to flare up painwise. There is just a dull ache at the moment, which I can live with.  And most other bits of me are hurting anyway.

This is a very cute look when you are seven, but not when you are in your seventies.

On Sunday morning I wondered if I would even be able to make it as far as my own dining room to go to the meeting.  (the temporary Kingdom Hall is the kitchen when the Captain is at home, but its the dining room when he is off on one of his excursions). The pain in my left shoulder had subsided but my left knee was very bad.  And its an artificial knee too!

Anyway the painkillers - large dose of - kicked in, and I was there, at my monitor. And what a help it was.  The talk was by an Italian brother - excellent English, but very charming accent.  It was about the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ - why, according to the Bible, Jesus came to the earth to die. I was asking Captain B if, during his Protestant childhood, he had ever been taught this. And it seems not, any more than I was in my Catholic Convent days.

I wish everyone in the world could have listened to that talk. Everyone needs to. Urgently. We are all in "the valley of the decision".

I appeared at the field service meeting this morning as a lovely blue butterfly - a Common Blue (or Icarus) - on a yellow flower.  And it depends on what my dentist can do as to whether I will hatch back into a rather elderly lady for the next Zoom meeting.

Sandwich Fairy versus Tooth Fairy

I like the Sandwich Fairy. And I like the Tooth Fairy.  But which is best?  FIGHT!!   Yet it seems that the poor Tooth Fairy has already lost a fight as she is just about to lose her two front teeth. I had an emergency dental appointment this week, and not only do I have a split tooth, that will have to be crowned, but my two front teeth are rotting away under their crowns...   As I was there I mentioned what I thought was a small problem with them - and, oh dear... still its a good thing I did.   I have an appointment in January, and the dentist says he won't know what is to be done about it until he has seen what is left underneath.

And the Captain too has lost a crown and also has a fearsome appointment ahead.

This is another aspect of the ThreeScoreYearsandTen Zone I guess.  And of course I am also wondering how much this has contributed to my very poor health over the last six months?   I am dreading the appointments, but want them done and dusted and over with. What I will be left with in the way of front teeth remains to be seen.   Will I even be able to appear in public again afterwards?!   I look horrid enough on the Zoom camera as it is.

Bea of the North reminded me of that song: "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth"...  well, as I don't celebrate Christmas, I guess I will have to wait till after Armageddon when Jehovah will make all things new.  (And if I am not to be there, then I won't be needing any teeth anyway.)

And, given that we were created to last for ever - Genesis tells us that our first parents would only die if they disobeyed their Creator - I do wonder if we weren't meant to go on regrowing our teeth, as we needed them?

Let's hope we are all there to find out. Which does bring me very neatly to the conclusion of the Watchtower article about the Resurrection.

APPRECIATE JEHOVAH’S PATIENCE

17. (a) How does the resurrection show that Jehovah is patient? (b) How can we show our appreciation for Jehovah’s patience?

17 Jehovah has a fixed day and hour when he will bring an end to this old system. (Matt. 24:36) He will not become impatient and act before that time. He has a longing to resurrect the dead, but he is patient. (Job 14:14, 15) He is waiting until the right time arrives to raise them to life. (John 5:28) We have good reasons to appreciate Jehovah’s patience. Just think: Because Jehovah is patient, many people, including us, have had time “to attain to repentance.” (2 Pet. 3:9) Jehovah wants as many people as possible to have the opportunity to gain everlasting life. So let us show that we appreciate his patience. How? By earnestly looking for those who are “rightly disposed for everlasting life” and helping them to love Jehovah and serve him. (Acts 13:48) Then they will benefit from Jehovah’s patience, just as we have.

18. Why should we be patient with others?

18 Jehovah will patiently wait until the end of the thousand years before he expects us to be perfect. Until that time, Jehovah is willing to overlook our sins. Surely, then, we have reason to look for the good in others and to be patient with them. Consider the example of one sister whose husband began suffering from severe anxiety attacks and stopped attending meetings. “This was very painful for me,” she says. “Our plans for our future as a family were turned upside down.” Yet through it all, this loving wife was patient with her husband. She relied on Jehovah and never gave up. Like Jehovah, she looked past the problem and focused on the good things about her husband. She says, “My husband has wonderful qualities, and he is working to recover, little by little.” How important it is that we are patient with those in our family or congregation who are trying to overcome difficult challenges!

19. What should we be determined to do?

19 Jesus and the angels were joyful when the earth was first created. But imagine how happy they will be to see the earth full of perfect people, who love and serve Jehovah. Imagine the joy that those who were brought from the earth to heaven to rule with Christ will feel as they see mankind benefiting from their work. (Rev. 4:4, 9-11; 5:9, 10) And imagine living when tears of joy replace tears of pain, when sickness, sorrow, and death are gone forever. (Rev. 21:4) Until then, be determined to imitate your loving, wise, and patient Father. If you do, you will maintain your joy, no matter what trials you face. (Jas. 1:2-4) How thankful we can be for Jehovah’s promise that “there is going to be a resurrection”!​—Acts

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2020526#h=64

Talking to Texas

Captain Butterfly had a shorter more local detecting day on Sunday so he was able to return in time to watch the Rugby Match between England and France.  I believe England scored more runs (or some such things) than France did.  What puzzles me is why anyone risks going near that ball at all.  Whoever gets it is set upon by a load of guys built like steamrollers, and if and when he emerges he is usually not only mud-stained but blood-stained.

Terrifying.  If  - shudder - I ever found myself on a rugby pitch I would hurtle away from that ball as fast as my zimmer could carry me.

I began to reply to the cards that start to come at this time of year.  One contained a letter from an old Uni friend, telling what happened when they embarked on a cruise, just before the Covid Crisis struck.  And it contained an interesting sidelight on the times we are living in, as the ship carried precautions against pirates - water cannons on deck for example!

They did make it back safely, thank God. But it was in no way the holiday they had been hoping for.

We had a  lovely surprise on Monday when the Chuckmeister and his daughter Joy appeared on our screens for a video chat.  We were friends with Chuck and Mary on Planet Expat, holidayed with them (they too were divers), had weekends in Bahrain together, met up in Oz (on our respective repats) and missed them very much when they finally retired to Texas.  Many happy memories.

Threescore years and ten goes so quickly. So quickly.  So here is the next extract from the Watchtower article on the Resurrection, still under the heading "Appreciate Jehovah's Wisdom".  Please don't forget that Jehovah is the very Source of wisdom. We cannot go wrong if we listen to him.

16. What questions do you need to ask yourself, and how can the answers help you to know how much you trust in Jehovah?

16 If enemies of Jehovah threaten you with death, will you be willing to entrust him with your life? How can you know? One way is to ask yourself, ‘Do the small decisions I make each day give evidence that I trust in Jehovah?’ (Luke 16:10) Another question could be, ‘Does my lifestyle prove that I trust in Jehovah’s promise to care for my material needs if I seek his Kingdom first?’ (Matt. 6:31-33) If the answer to those questions is yes, then you prove that you trust in Jehovah, and you will be prepared for any trial that comes your way.​—Prov. 3:5, 6.

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2020526#h=64

The Return of the Sandwich Fairy

The Sandwich Fairy is busy again now that Metal Detecting is being allowed and packed lunches are back on the menu.   So the cake I made is already coming in useful, and a slice of it was consumed somewhere in a field near Stonehenge on Saturday. I hope Captain B left some crumbs for the birds.

Apparently it snowed further North overnight Thursday/Friday - Bea sent us a photo of her garden looking lovely under a light coating of snow.   Nothing here as yet, though it is a little colder.  But I feel I want to blog the De La Mare poem about the beauty of the snow again.  For me, it is a real Paradise earth poem, praising the jewel-like beauty of the snow, and talking of "unnumbered Springs". That is what I want for the Captain and me and our families and our friends - for all of us - unnumbered Springs on this lovely planet, all restored to the Paradise Jehovah always intended it to be.

THERE BLOOMS NO BUD IN MAY

Walter de la Mare

There blooms no bud in May
Can for its white compare
With snow at break of day,
On fields forlorn and bare.

For shadow it hath rose,
Azure, and amethyst;
And every air that blows
Dies out in beauteous mist.

It hangs the frozen bough
With flowers on which the night
Wheeling her darkness through
Scatters a starry light.

Fearful of its pale glare
In flocks the starlings rise;
Slide through the frosty air,
And perch with plaintive cries.

Only the inky rook,
Hunched cold in ruffled wings,
Its snowy nest forsook,
Caws of unnumbered Springs.

http://www.public-domain-poetry.com/walter-de-la-mare/there-blooms-no-bud-in-may-33460

A Picture of Summer

As December begins, a fb friend, Marcin, sends me a picture of him and his dog on a sunny Oz beach, on the first day of summer in the Land Down Under.  On Wednesday we had a splendid sunrise, more pink than red, with clouds of pink and gray arching over the sea.   

Jehovah gives us a masterpiece every morning.

Captain Butterfly and I hosted a Zoom meeting and we "shared screen" from our respective seats at the dining room table.

I got back to my letter writing on Tuesday.  I found myself devoting Wednesday to the Supermarket Delivery - I am so feeble now that just getting that put away exhausts me - to talking to my siblings on Zoom, to friends on the phone, and also making a large fruit cake.  I usually make two this time of year - one for the Captain's packed lunches and one for the Butterfly Conservation AGM.  Well, only a virtual cake would have been needed for the AGM this year, so I thought I would use up all the dried fruit I had left and re-stock the freezer.

And today, Thursday, the Captain's alarm went off in the early hours as metal detecting has restarted. METAL DETECTING HAS RE-STARTED!!!!   I am feeling a bit gloomy and in a lot of pain - but have the short field service meeting to look forward to - and after I am hosting a Zoom meeting. 

Yesterday evening I hosted a Zoom meeting for a friend and even shared my blog on screen with her.  I am feeling quite the techny nerd (rather than just a nerd) but it is all due to the kind and patient teaching I have had  - and of course lots of help from Captain Butterfly, who is not quite so patient but knows his stuff, and, poor guy. he has to keep solving my computer problems for me (which may explain a certain lack of patience at times).

And I have another letter from the Government, who are keeping an eye on me.  The extra restrictions have been eased again, but I am still to be extra careful, which is what I am being anyway.  We both are. 

But, if the worst comes to the worst... here is the hope in the next instalment of the article about the resurrection. And actually after our lovely meetings this morning, plus my painkillers kicking in, I am feeling a lot better.  Once again I ask myself, how do you cope if you don't have the Kingdom hope?

APPRECIATE JEHOVAH’S WISDOM

15. How does the resurrection give evidence of Jehovah’s wisdom?

15 The threat of death is a powerful weapon. Those under Satan’s control use it to force people to betray their friends or to give up their convictions. But that threat is powerless against us. We know that if our enemies kill us, Jehovah will restore us to life. (Rev. 2:10) We are convinced that nothing they do can sever our attachment to Jehovah. (Rom. 8:35-39) What remarkable wisdom Jehovah has shown by giving us the resurrection hope! By means of it, he disarms Satan of one of his most effective weapons and at the same time arms us with unbreakable courage.