In Spain (and a Flare up)

Last night was the Memorial service for Simon, who died in Spain - where he and his family live.  There were 285 of us attending in Zoom.   The ceremony - short and simple - was half in Spanish and half in English.  All I could understand of the Spanish side was that the brother conducting the service read Ecclesiastes 9:5,6:  "For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing at all, nor do they have any more reward, because all memory of them is forgotten. Also, their love and their hate and their jealousy have already perished, and they no longer have any share in what is done under the sun."  At least I am pretty sure I heard those words, in Spanish.

  

These are powerful words. People have such fear for the dead, and  such fear of them.  Yet there is no need. They are conscious of nothing at all. There are no dreams in the sleep of death.  But all who remain in Jehovah's memory, held safe in "the everlasting arms" have such a wonderful awakening ahead of them. They will next open their eyes in an earth truly at peace, in paradise.

So I hope that when that time comes I will be able to meet Simon.  I know his mother, but have never met either of her children.   This is a sad sad time for her, even though she knows she will see him again. Losing a child must be one of the hardest things to come to terms with.

On a much lesser scale, but also caused by the tragic decision our first parents made in Eden (there was no death and no sickness in that paradise garden) my arthritis has flared up again - right leg, top half - and my skin condition has been driving me insane.  Captain B left at the crack of dawn - and I got down as much pain killing as I am allowed with my breakfast and hobbled back to bed.  I slept till lunchtime and do feel a bit better now.  It is the meeting tonight and before it starts I have to get Captain B's supper on the table - chicken curry - heated up by my own fair hands - and a fresh fruit salad.

The Covid Crisis remains with us in the shape of a couple of new variations that seem to be taking hold, but no-one as yet seems to know how effective the vaccines will be.  It has been, and is, an impressive vaccine rollout though.