IMMORTAL, INVISIBLE

Yesterday I did something I've never done before.

Yes. I played a harmonium.

My friend and I had gone on a cycle ride, and I said, "I'd like to visit that church."

We did.

It was a fine little church, still holding services to three or five communicants every third Sunday. Not much call for the harmonium. Still, when two or three are gathered together....

"What's your favourite hymn?" I asked.

"Immortal, invisible, God only wise.."

I turned to the page in the hymnal, pulled out a couple of stops, began pedalling, and gave him a few verses.

Not a bad sound, and I did a bit of Grand Wurlitzer-style lingering on some of the chords, to work the echoes and eddies of the acoustics.

"I'll have done twenty miles more than you," I said at one stage, struggling with coordinating my fingers and the pedalling you've got to do with one of these things.

We then sat in the church pews and had a long theological discussion, in which, loving man that he is, my friend accommodated my own stew pot of pagan, Zen, Catholic and downright weird.

Conclusion?

Define God as the universal, positive, elemental and harmonious flow of life force which builds and binds the Universe constantly, and asking "do you believe in God?" becomes like asking "do you believe in hands?"

That little church did its business well yesterday, congregation or no. There we were, the two of us, for a few moments, united in consideration of the sublime. The old building held, harboured and perhaps even engendered our awed and respectful tones.

Now, all together for the next verse:

But of all thy rich graces, this grace, Lord, impart
Take the veil from our faces, the vile from our heart.

KEEP THE RED FLAG FLYING HIGH

The problem I have with socialists is I've never met one.

I meet a lot of middle class people who talk a lot of guff about equality, redistribution of wealth and other principles of socialism.

But I've never actually met one who practises what he preaches.

A test of this is as follows: do you cut your own income back to the national average and redistribute the rest?

No. I didn't think so.

Measure old age in judgements.
Only the good die young.

Verba mea auribus percipe Domine, intellige clamorem meum.
Intende voci orationis meæ, Rex meus et Deus meus.
Quoniam ad te orabo: Domine mane exaudies vocem meam.
Mane astabo tibi et videbo: quoniam non Deus volens iniquitatem tu es.
Neque habitabit iuxta te malignus: neque permanebunt iniusti ante oculos tuos.
Odisti omnes, qui operantur iniquitatem: perdes omnes, qui loquuntur mendacium. Virum sanguinum et dolosum abominabitur Dominus:
ego autem in multitudine misericordiæ tuæ. Introibo in domum tuam: adorabo ad templum sanctum tuum in timore tuo.

A principle isn't a principle until it costs you something.

TEACH A WOMAN TO SEW, CLOTHE HER FOR A LIFETIME.

TEACH A MAN, HE'LL TEACH HIS ACQUAINTANCES, START A BUSINESS, AND PRETTY SOON AN ENTIRE VILLAGE IS ON THE MEND.

An ad from Oxfam.

Who thinks it's outrageously sexist?

A WEEK IN PROSPECT

Laytham
Breakfast Club
London
Amsterdam
London
Somerset
Laytham
A large bill for the Range Rover.

HIS COY MISTRESS?

TODAY'S MENU

Roasted aubergine, onion, new potatoes,and pine kernels with mint and feta. Very unctuous and nice, whilst still reasonably light. A good antidote to several very carnivorous days.

Beetroot, blood orange and balsamic salad.

A salad of rocket, lambs lettuce, black olives, celery, nuts and cucumber.

Chateau Musar 2002.

A key lime cheesecake.

L'ENFER C'EST LES AUTRES

HRD
RIP

BUSH

I'm a fan of portraiture.
I came across this remarkable protrait recently, of George Bush, by Siegfried Woldhek. You can see more of his work at http://blog.woldhek.nl/