Vanishing Glasses

I guess any urban Church will have a problem with pilfering. For several years, we have had a problem with vanishing Communion glasses. During the past week or so, ten of them have disappeared. But what can one do to prevent it? I am told that they are popular as tot glasses. OBSERVATION: Prices vary, but R15 / $2 each is common -- a few times the price of an ordinary drinking glass.

Favourite Photo

This was Mirjam's favourite photo of us -- taken maybe eight years ago. We were at a stream near a cottage that we owned, in the hamlet Koperfontein, about 120km / 75mi north of Cape Town. It was a good time in our life. Sadly, shortly after this the cottage was invaded, and we felt the resultant loss deeply. You may click on the photo to enlarge to VGA.

Three Chapters A Day

One of our congregation was facing a protracted and very serious challenge. He decided to read three chapters of the Bible each day. He said: "All the worry and anxiety and fear is gone. Well, not all of it, but it is greatly reduced." OBSERVATION: Dr. George Malek writes that "faith is not birthed in a vacuum". First on his list of "originators of faith" is "the word and sacrament".

Levels Of Faith

Ministry surely can't be done without faith -- in the sense of walking by faith in God. I sense that there are three 'levels' of faith in ministry. The lowest level would be faith that things will work out the way that one expects them to. But that is hardly 'faith', and it's not helpful when things go wrong. The next level up is faith which one has learnt from the Bible, or from experience -- faith which applies where a human solution isn't clear, or isn't there. This is obviously better, yet may not be of much help in less familiar territory -- perhaps scary territory. And then, I think the highest level of faith is faith in spite of -- faith which is trust in a sovereign God, absolutely, totally, unconditionally. One finds such faith often in the Bible.

Offers Of Love

I continue to receive "offers of love" as a widower -- the most recent a few days ago. It reads in part: "A loving and caring lady, I am interested in you. Loving and caring matters a lot in life." Well, it sure does. However ... OBSERVATION: I am coming to the conclusion that there is a determined band of young women doing their homework out there -- or some agency.

Voodooism

I went for breakfast this morning with an African doctor of Médecins Sans Frontières. He said that he gave up his practice and went into international health due to accusations of voodooism. This had made his position in his practice decidedly uncomfortable, if not scary. The accusations arose, he felt, due to his "second sight" as a doctor, and his imposing and singular appearance.

Superstition

I took this rather interesting photo in the lift / elevator at our local hospital. If anyone thought that superstition was dead, this deserves a closer look. The missing floor, far from being a service floor or anything like that, simply doesn't exist. If you do find yourself on the 13th floor here, you'll know that something has gone terribly wrong.

What The Church Is About

Opposition in ministry may be heavy, and it may be "without cause", to use the words of the Psalms. This is a problem I have with some Christian leadership 'manuals', which assume that righteousness beats opposition. The point of this post, though, is that sometimes I would say to wife Mirjam: "This is not what the Church is about." She would say to me: "Yes it is." OBSERVATION: She was a co-director of the International Institute for Religious Freedom. I believe that what she meant is that suffering and persecution are the sine qua non (without which not) of the Church.

Two Calls And An Invitation

Since I began in this Church, I received three calls to go elsewhere (actually, one was an invitation -- the difference being that a call comes from a Church, an invitation from a CEO). The calls / invitation were from Australia, Kiribati, and a city to the east of here. In all three cases I declined -- even though all, in one way or another, offered me more. OBSERVATION: I think the real reason for declining was my love for my congregation here -- and in one case the interview changed the terms of the written call.

Pentecostal Pastor

Our local Pentecostal pastor told me something to this effect: "When we conceive our plans, we ask ourselves: 'Would this be possible without a miracle of God?' If it would be, then it is only human, and needs to be abandoned. If it wouldn't be, then we know that God will have to be in it." OBSERVATION: Note the 'interventionist' thinking here, which is fairly typical of the Global South.

Eighty Things

During the last week, I turned down several invitations I received -- and people must wonder (so I imagine) why the minister is in such short supply. This coming week I have 80 items on my to-do list, 32 of which are marked as priority. I surely won't get through half of them -- however, it's a useful guide, and enables me to prioritise meaningfully. OBSERVATION: I wish I could have accepted all the invitations. Perhaps I could have -- at the expense of my sanity! See also Seventy-Two Things.

Infelicitous Letter

We instructed one of our Church leadership to write a thank you letter. He ran it past me before he sent it. I commented that it was a very nice letter -- warm, well put, and spiritually encouraging. But then the recipient of the letter asked to see me. Just as a matter of formality, she said, was I aware that our leadership was sending out letters like this? One couldn't call this English, she said -- the grammar and spelling were all wrong, and not all the words were English -- and (it had been written on lined paper) it didn't even follow the lines -- nor did it have a printed letterhead. OBSERVATION: I really hadn't paid any attention to those things. I said so to our complainant. (We subsequently printed a letterhead).

Old Time's Sake (Photo)

This one's just for old time's sake: my (then) Canadian assistant at the piano, and three members of our Church's Youth Choir. You may click on the photo to enlarge to VGA.

Coming Of Age

A Zulu member gave me her coming-of-age photo this morning. It would be one of the nicest Zulu coming-of-age photos on the Internet, but I wouldn't wish to compromise her privacy by placing it here. She stands radiant in the sunshine in the Zulu hills with her mother -- dressed in a colourful beadwork dress, animal skin, and a headdress made of many banknotes -- her coming-of-age gifts. We rejoiced with her, and it is a special privilege to have this photo.

Hot Right Now

It's hard to predict which of my posts will become "hot right now". At the moment, three of them are "hottest of the hot" (in the South African All Blogs Hot Right Now list). I wouldn't have predicted that any of them would get there. They are: Not Uneventful, Good Friday Song, and Local Transvestite.

Still Tearful (A Little)

It's nearly four months since wife Mirjam died, and I'm still (a little) tearful. So when it comes to Church services, when I rehearse the service beforehand as I usually do, I mark parts where I get emotional -- then brace myself and get through them in the service. But yesterday I conducted Holy Communion -- and since it's a regular liturgy, I thought it would be fine. Then I hit the passage: "We would deepen our sense of fellowship ... with all the company of heaven," and I got stuck. I asked the congregation to sing the verse of a hymn while I got myself back together.

Local Transvestite

A few months ago, I met one of our local transvestites on a street corner. I said to him: "Why do you wear that?" He said: "It makes me look pretty." We spoke for a while. Recently I met him again. He said to me: "I have AIDS, Father. I don't feel too good about that. Will you still stop and greet me?"

Good Friday Song

This morning, in our Good Friday service, P. sang a song -- fitting both for the solemnity and devotion of the occasion. She received warm applause. Several years ago, her husband was gunned down at her side. She herself was wounded by a bullet. She has the most amazing testimony to God's power and goodness (see also Look For God's Hand).

Not Uneventful

Shall we say that life has not been uneventful. A little too eventful, sadly, for a blog -- and it's meant to be a blog that records the interesting bits. I wrote to our Church attorney today: "It's like the funny farm, only a little more serious." She considered that the book will be a hit. OBSERVATION: Look out for it at your local newsagent. Yet far from being a litigous lot, we derive comfort and wisdom from good attorneys in a very complex world.

House Visits

One of our congregation was sentenced to five years in prison today (the magistrate said that a life sentence was called for, but there were mitigating circumstances). His defence lodged an appeal -- yet the conditions of bail were tightened. As from Sunday, our congregant isn't allowed to attend Church. Apparently, when the defence questioned this, the magistrate said: "The minister will just have to conduct services at his [our congregant's] house!" OBSERVATION: Anything you say, your Honour.

Rejection

This week I had the audacity to approach the Harvard Theological Review with a paper (I showed it to the editors). This journal, needless to say, is the cream of the crop. One of the editors surely gave me the swiftest chop I have ever received. Within the hour I had a klap and "Voetsek!" (a slap and "Get lost!" -- I'm speaking figuratively). OBSERVATION: This does illustrate something useful, though. The journal process is typically a very slow and painful one, and it might help to contact the editor(s) personally. It wasn't all bad news, though, as the editor thought it was "a very fine... paper". However, it wasn't suitable for the Review.

Cape Town City Bowl

.
This is called Cape Town's City Bowl, and the reason will be clear. I took this photo on a walk last night. Our Church is on the other side of that hill. On the right in the distance is Robben (Seal) Island, where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned.

A Minister's Black Gown

I only once heard an explanation for the minister's black gown. Dr. George Malek said to Mirjam and me: "Black is death! A minister must die!" OBSERVATION: There is rich significance in this I think. Let the reader interpret.

I Quit A Postgraduate Course

I quit my latest course at Fuller Theological Seminary today. The reason, I said, was that in spite of extreme efforts, I was unable to access or obtain the kind of materials required by the course. The playing fields, I said, were tilted against Africa. Ironically, this was a course on the Global South, with assignments such as: "In what ways can we better understand and respect one another?" They would probably grant me an "incomplete" for the course now, which means 50%. However, my lowest achievement so far has been 92.5%, so this really distresses me -- not to speak of the effort and expense. Unless they pull a rabbit out of the hat.
.
NOTE: It looks as though they have pulled a rabbit out of the hat. With grateful thanks.

Theological Paper

My latest paper was published on-line yesterday, in the on-line version of the theological journal Conspectus. In this paper, I "deconstruct" what is probably the most popular Christian leadership model in the world today. Very simply, this means that I look for evidence that supporters of the model may say things that undermine it. In fact, I discovered a large "weight of evidence" for this, which is presented with around 200 citations.

Dog Solution

Doggone it, but yapping dogs can be a nuisance. Here's a solution. My lips are sealed as to its origin. First, create a "connection" in your neigbours' minds -- drop them a note from "Your Neighbour" about their dog. The next step relies on the fact that people have a keen sense of smell about their homes: they don't like alien smells there. If the neighbours ignore your plight, you then obtain some pungent perfume (there is also a "dark side" to this suggestion) and liberally anoint the neighbours' dog with it. The dog won't be harmed -- what's good for Coco Chanel (or whoever) can't be bad for the dog. However, the neighbours may well reject their dog until it is "clean" again -- and make the connection.

Plum Pie

Wife Mirjam was a first class ... call her chef. Her cooking was of such finesse and excellence, it was unbeatable. And she enjoyed it. Mostly, she followed Swiss recipes (she was Swiss). I took this photo of a "staple" recipe of hers -- plum pie -- because I knew that it might be the last. But she managed to make another pie after this. OBSERVATION: I failed to mention her cooking (and several other things) in my tribute to her. In a way, the tribute was too soon -- it was too close to all the suffering and turmoil. But she wanted that tribute from me.

Dealing With Many Languages

Our Church's lingua franca is English. However, English is a minority (birth) language in our Church. So our domestic workers have been entrusted with the organisation of our Mother's Day service on the 8th of May. However, large parts of the service were tentatively put down as being in Afrikaans and Zulu. This morning I was in conversation with one of our organisers. In the past, in general, we have handled things as follows: If there is a familiar item (e.g. the benediction) then the use of another language is fine. If there is an original item (e.g. the main prayer), then another language may be used in part. Alternatively, a non-English item should be introduced with English so that all would know the gist of what is to come. OBSERVATION: In short, it may be summed up as "love" -- love for the whole congregation through the language(s) we use.

Disruption Of Demons

A young woman came to see me. She said: "Demons are disrupting my life. I always had a stable existence before." As I often do, I sought first to ascertain her spiritual "status". This was sound. On this basis I said: "God will not permit any demons to harm you. Rather, He is working a blessing in your life. He has favoured you."

Things Will Break ...

The story is told of a policeman who was having a very dull day. His partner said to him: "Have faith in human nature! Things will break!" Much the same may be said for ministry. If it's a very dull week (as I had last week), don't go looking for work. My next week is looking like pandemonium before it's begun.

Proteas

As winter approaches, the proteas are beginning to blossom on our mountain (pictured). Our area has unique vegetation, which one finds nowhere else in the world. It includes these typical flowers, which blossom in abundance. The photo is in VGA if you click on it.

God As Champion

A man came to see me in the vestry. He and his wife, he said, had needed Dutch courage to beg -- so they downed ten litres (21 pints) of wine. He surely drank most of it, as he collapsed at a garage, and was narrowly saved from death. Now he was alcohol-free -- and religious. He said: "God is on my side now. With God, I can handle anything that comes my way. I don't need the wine any more." However, I found that a sense of sin was missing. God was his champion, and that seemed to be the beginning and the end of it. I had limited time with this session -- however, I made it clear to him that God is your champion not simply because you are born, but because you are born again.

The Cost Of One

One would think that when two are reduced to one, household costs would be halved. In my situation, this has not been the case at all. There are various factors involved. One is that I'll walk into a supermarket, and say to myself: "Wow. I can have anything I like for dinner ... anything at all ... beef stroganoff, chocolate mousse ..." Then add to this the feeling: "The winter is past ... The flowers appear on the earth ..." (Song 2:11-12) and one has a rather disastrous mix. Also, it is not only spending on me, but spending on others that has gone up like this. Another factor is that a wife, I am discovering, plans expenses like a military operation. And another is her efficient use of all that she has bought. Finally, in our case, there was her own modest income with which she was not sparing. I am beginning to suspect that marriage might make good economic sense ... assuming that one takes a responsible wife.

Beru Pastors 1966

I was delighted to see the Republic of Kiribati enter my top ten audience this week for the first time. I have posted many Kiribati-related posts in the past -- however, three days ago I posted an "historic" photo. To celebrate the moment, therefore, here is another "historic" photo: the pastors and teachers of Beru, 1966. I am at the front. The tall man at the rear is my maternal grandfather Wilhelm Olivet. I wonder whether I recognise Otiuea, second from the right at the rear. He later became a cabinet minister. I visited him in his retirement. You may click on the photo to enlarge to 465k.

No Caption

.
Don't ask me what I was saying here, but it's a photo that should do well for a caption competition. It's a wedding rehearsal, and whatever it is that I'm saying, it's pleasing to the bride. You may click on the photo to enlarge to 250k.

Sensationalism

This morning I have listened to (on-line video) lectures from my seminary in LA, on the theology of the Global South. But there is a strong tendency in the Global North for what one might term sensationalism. If there's anything sensational about the Church in the South, this will be seized upon and augmented. In actual fact, the Church in the South is quite conventional, by and large -- although there are of course pervasive differences between South and North. On this blog, I have conveyed my personal experience of many Local Churches.

Chided

It is seldom that I am chided in a leadership meeting, but tonight I was. I had failed to pay attention to a leadership resolution -- in fact, I wasn't sure that I could remember it -- yet I should have remembered it. It was one of those cases where, for me, the detail got lost in the noise. Fortunately we have a good-hearted leadership, so it was more a case of: "Good grief Thomas, what were you thinking?" I apologised, and promised to abide by the resolution.

ATS Bible Dictionary

We usually hand out a Sermon Outline in Church -- and often, on the back of it, I place an extract from the famous ATS Bible Dictionary. In this way, members can familiarise themselves with a wide range of Biblical themes. Usually, the ATS Bible Dictionary deals with Bible topics in a brief, punchy way. However, it was not written for an urban congregation in Africa. As an example, this coming Sunday I have selected a piece titled 'ATONEMENT'. This uses words such as 'penitents', 'peculiarity', 'variance', 'propitiation', 'impending' -- words which many in our Church would surely fail to understand. Mostly, therefore, I do a major work of translation -- yet the original material serves as an excellent guide.

Growing Old

A frail, elderly member asked me today how she might feel that she had the Holy Spirit. I said that she might not feel it, but there were some pretty good signs. One of the signs I listed was spiritual fruit. It is very common for people to decline spiritually in old age. They become more bitter, more angry, more frustrated, and so on. But with the Christian, the very opposite may be true. There is love, joy, peace, and so on. At any rate, one often sees a marked contrast -- as is the case with the member I visited today.

Seasons [1]

I have found that a minister, over the years, goes through hugely different seasons -- in various ways. Ten years ago, I was very popular for high-society weddings. I conducted weddings at Groot Constantia (pictured), the Mount Nelson, Zevenwacht, and so on. It doesn't get more prestigious. At the time, our Church leadership placed a limit on my weddings of one per month. Now, I may have one wedding a year.

Flashback 1968

Here's another flashback to my youth. This is the congregation at Banraeaba, Tarawa atoll, about 1968. That's the old Church in the background (now a large concrete structure). Apart from my father (far left), and my sister (towards the right), I believe I recognise Baraniko (a Church luminary), who passed away in 1984 -- next to my sister. And I wonder whether that could be Koae next to me, a well known pastor. You may click on the photo to enlarge to 400k.

"The Lord Stood Near"

A member, experiencing a severe crisis, asked to see me on Sunday. She described an experience to me that she found hard to put into words. I would describe it like this: Jesus Christ had been both in her and around her, in tangible, visible form. I said to her: "Paul had a similar experience. The Lord stood near him [Acts 23:11]. It's the assurance of God's blessing at this time". OBSERVATION: I have come across such experiences several times in ministry.

Requesting A Re-Mark

I requested a re-mark of my previous term at Fuller Theological Seminary -- however, it was an informal request, as I didn't know where to lodge the formal one. I complained that my marks were "too high and there is insufficient motivation for such a high grade". But then it occurred to me that I was seeking to overturn America. I might be seen as a subversive. I cancelled my request. Fuller commented that my marks were "in alignment with the other grades you received". So long as they're not in alignment with the grades the whole class received. Perhaps I should ask for a re-mark of my entire degree ...

Comparing 3-Wheelers

In December, I replaced my three-wheel pickup with ... a three-wheel pickup. The old one was a Bajaj, the new one is a Mahindra (both made in India). The Mahindra apparently is intended as an answer to the Bajaj. Here is a technical comparison (shown -- you may click on it to enlarge). OBSERVATION: Looking at the two vehicles parked in the street, they might seem rather similar. However, the specs show that they are very different. One sees even in the specs that the Mahindra is more clumsy to drive -- but it has a lot more pulling power. What is not seen here is that the Mahindra is robustly and simply built, while the Bajaj is more slight and complex. Regrets to US readers, this is (almost) all metric.

Membership And Faith

Several months ago, a young man applied for Church membership. I asked him the paramount question: "Have you received Jesus Christ as your Saviour?" The answer was a straight "No." This was therefore explained to him, and this morning he met with our elders and me. This time it was "Yes," and he thanked us for "so much new life" (motioning with his hands) that was welling up within him.

Taking A Chance

Here's an example how I take a chance on new (spiritual) talent in our Church. I asked a young man whether he would read a short liturgy in Church, and introduce it with a few words of his own. However, he said that he couldn't read English -- only French. But later in the week, he told me that he could speak English, so he could say a prayer in Church. I arranged for us to meet at the Church, to run him through his paces. However, he kept "blanking out". He said that he'd ask his father to coach him -- which he did. But about twenty minutes before he was to say the prayer in Church, he withdrew. OBSERVATION: We were almost there. Perhaps a year from now, he'll be ready for something. He certainly showed the potential.

Keys And More Keys

I recently took this photo in our local urban park. As for the meaning of this, one can only surmise: 1. We have all lost the key. 2. This is what our society has come to: keys and more keys. 3. One of our Church staff has lost the keys again ... You may click on the photo to enlarge to VGA.

Spiritual Warfare [2]

Following on from a recent post ... a minister needs to be ready at all times, I feel, for spiritual warfare. Are you ready when you spin around in the aisle? Are you ready when you check your e-mails? Are you ready when you say the benediction after an uplifting service? Are you ready when you fetch your coffee at the hatch? Are you ready when you step out into the street? In my experience, the readiness needs to be all the greater after "Elijah moments" -- one will remember Elijah's implosion after the triumph on Mt. Carmel. OBSERVATION: However, one shouldn't get the idea that I myself am under siege. Not at all. I feel surrounded by extraordinary love and support. I am again speaking here about something that is "par for the course" for Christian ministry.

A Will And No Way

It's more than three months since wife Mirjam's death, and we don't (officially) have an executor. That is, we can't even begin to execute the will -- in spite of the fact that she appointed a very competent executor, and everyone is in harmonious agreement over what should happen. While I'm not permitted to quote, I can surely say that it has more than a little to do with the Apparat -- although those two words "to do" seem a little strange to the context! In the meantime, due to a curious twist, I don't even own the chair I'm now sitting on (I will).

Cum Laude, Kind Of

With the close of my most recent term at Fuller Theological Seminary, I passed a significant milestone. I cannot fail to obtain cum laude for my second Master's degree (as I did for the first). Or I should say, I cannot fail to obtain the equivalent of cum laude. Fuller, the Bolsheviks, do not recognise the term cum laude. However, if they did, I could flunk everything now, and I'd still obtain it.
.
NOTE: I almost immediately received this comment from a postgraduate student: "Nuts. The better the reputation of the university, the easier it is to score high marks." Could be. In which case it would be: you pays for your marks.

Careless Check-Up

One of our congregation, H., had chemotherapy for breast cancer -- which was unsuccessful. Then she had radiation therapy. This is the story she told me. She presented herself at the hospital for her first check-up, a few weeks later. A trainee doctor asked her, without examination: "When would you like to see us again? In six months? Four?" H. said: "You are the doctor, you should know. Make it three." A supervising doctor looked in. She said to H. from a distance: "Are you cured? Lift up your T-shirt!" H. lifted her T-shirt. The supervising doctor said: "You look fine!" H. said: "Don't you want to do a mammogram?" The trainee doctor said: "It's OK, we have that already." H. said: "But that was before my chemotherapy." Apart from lifting up her T-shirt, however, H. left the hospital without a check-up. I said to H. afterwards: "This is not a light matter. You can't be cavalier about it." She said: "I know. I'll be there in three months' time, and will insist on a close examination." She said: "As far as I can tell, the growth has gone. God has given me a second chance." OBSERVATION: Sadly, H. died of cancer the following year.

Wedding Prankster

Here's a photo from my most recent wedding. This was the point in the ceremony where I say: "If anyone can show just cause why they may not lawfully be married ..." A man in the congregation put up his hand. He was a prankster.

Minutes Typo

.
One gets typos, and then one gets typos. I saw this one in minutes I was asked to check this morning. OBSERVATION: I hate checking minutes, as I find it tedious. However, it is a very useful exercise. It refreshes my memory, and keeps me on course. I typically need to do this once or twice a month.

No Proposals

I recently blogged about my late wife's avoidance (a positive attribute, overall) of decisions -- see No Decisions. Related to this, I have a personal policy in ministry of avoiding proposals. In my early ministry, I regularly made proposals. Now I make proposals only if I consider them to be truly pressing -- which is relatively rare. Instead, I ask questions, have discussions, or reformulate other people's suggestions as proposals.

Spiritual Warfare

Ministry is spiritual warfare. I seek to keep myself on a 'war' footing 24/7 -- and ideally would not let that slip for a minute (sometimes I do). This does not mean that anyone would recognise that I am on a war footing -- one might speak more gently of spiritual preparedness. This having been said, with my wife's recent death, I lost all ability to be on a war footing. The smallest assault had me in tatters. Only recently did I come under assault to discover that my defences were up again, as well as my ability to be proactive. OBSERVATION: Talk of 'assault' might sound strange to an outsider, yet it is very common in ministry. I should think weekly. By assault I mean direct attack of a spiritual nature. For a (somewhat) related post, see Free From Conflict.

Three Blondes (Not)

On Sunday, three generations of women (pictured) attended our Church together. I commented: "You're all beautiful! And you're all blonde!" One of them confessed: "I'm not blonde." I'm sure to be in trouble if I tell you which one.

Readership

Regrettably, I needed to take this post down (again). The reason is that patterns seemed to be emerging as they did after the original "Readership" post, which at that time seemed to correlate with a crippling cyber-attack on my office. (This time my connection has a professional eye on it).

Gun-Toting Husband

A man in our Church died -- a faithful churchgoer. I went to his home, where he lay dead in bed, as if lying in state. His much younger widow and two young men sat at the foot of the bed. The young men were handling packets of ammunition -- one after another -- and then a gun. Then one of them jumped up and carried it all out the door. His widow said to me: “I know you admired the old man, but he pointed that gun at me a few times. He said that if I didn't obey him, he'd kill me.”

Young Beauty

Our office secretary turned around in her pew this morning and snapped this young beauty. One never knows who such children might become in the Kingdom one day. You may click on the image to enlarge to 110k.

No Decisions

I learnt the following from wife Mirjam (my late wife) -- or rather, it surely rubbed off on me. She seldom announced decisions, and she seldom explained them. She just did it (or not). OBSERVATION: This gave her a quiet potency that often went unnoticed. At the same time, it occasionally created problems where definite decisions seemed pressing. I myself have a far more marked tendency to make decisions, and to explain them.

Bigger Than The Facts

Some things are, in a sense, "bigger than the facts". With regard to troublemakers in the Church, one of our deacons recently said something like this: "Suppose we have a hundred members, and one of them is the source of discontent over and over again. The other ninety-nine are all content. Where does the problem lie?"

Wedding Day Blues

I conducted a wedding today. The bride was about two hours late -- and last night she was admitted to hospital with nerves (an asthma attack). At starting time, it was about as close to total chaos as I have seen. I did some reading in a corner (I took that along in case), and humoured all the people who hurried to me and apologised. OBSERVATION: For all that, it turned out to be a really happy wedding. All's well that ends well. The photo shows the man who was billed "Organist".