Harvest

Bananas in Natal.
Coulsdon celebrated harvest festival. Molly and Ella sang in the choir for the first time. We learnt about Uruguay - there are only 1000 Anglicans in a population of 3 million. Harvest samba with the CD, Through our lives for the prayers and Rutter's !All things bright and beautiful". I played Vernon Griffiths on "St George" and Flor Peeters on "Wir plufgen" "We plough the fields and scatter". At noon sat down to a lunch for £7.50 of tortillas, chili and salad and cheesecake with fruit.
To Hyderi Islamic centre in Streatham for Lambeth interfaith forum on Prisons. Ebrahim confirmed he is coming to cathedral interfaith group on 22nd although he thought it was at the Abbey. 3 excellent speakers. Ivor Smith-Cameron asked me to reserve some books for him at which point I discovered I did not have my credit card holder so I missed the discussion and came back on train and checked in the car. Tony had picked it up in the church hall so I drove to his house in glorious autumn sunshine. Watched "Big cat diary" "Antiques roadshow" "Strictly come dancing" and "Stephen Fry in America" struggling to keep awake and reading biography of Lord Snowdon.
I was very touched by a passage from a letter from Lord Hailsham after the death of his wife "I never knew until the blow fell how much I loved Mary, and even amid all the tears and tribulations of the last week I have never ceased to wonder at my good fortune at having had thirty-four years of her serene, humorous and loyal companionship". The Snowdons certainly had a strange relationship.
Have also been thinking about the meditation in "Appointed by God" on how Paul sees his weakness as a strength. What does it mean to offer up one's weakness to God? Fr Michael Dunne at dinner gave a good summary of how prayer can offer up weakness. we also discussed the idea that pain is sent as a punishment for sin which cannot be right. Why should an innocent baby suffer? The suffering can be a means for others to show compassion.