A stormy day

It has been raining all day - with high winds - and a stormy English Channel.  The balcony flowers are blowing about.

Jean and I managed two hours on the door to door preaching work yesterday.   I couldn't have done that without my injection - thank you the Hospital.  We found quite a few at home and have a lot of return visits to do.

Jean loved my father's poem.  She said it made her cry.   And she could see it was like hearing him speak.

This is going to be a busy week as its the Circuit Overseers visit.  I hope to be out on the doors every day apart from Friday.  We have an extra meeting on the Tuesday night, and several special talks from the C.O.

This gives a great feeling of being cared for - of how Jehovah looks after his people.   How would I be feeling now if I hadn't been taught what the Bible says?   What hope would I have?

Captain B and I are just looking out over the wonderful waves on the Channel.   The speak of the dynamic energy of their Creator.

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The Jawbone Gang

The Jawbone Gang, by Penny Grubb, published by Robert Hale, had its London launch yesterday.   Pen gave us another funny and informative speech and reading, and ALCS hosted it as brilliantly as usual.

We - Captain B, Jacks and me - arrived (via train and tube) just on time.

Danny and Gabi came so it was a chance to catch up with them - they hope to get down here for a weekend by the sea at some stage.

I am wondering if we will have another summer full of visitors like last year, or not.

Things I must do today are to shop, return or renew my library books, and study.  And Col has his Butterfly Transect to do.  He assures me he is just counting them, not actually transecting them.

Thank goodness that the Victorian passion for killing them and pinning them to things has gone out of fashion.  What was the impulse that made people want to kill something beautiful as soon as they saw it?  

Jacks and I spent the train journey back doing the Crossword in the free newspaper and having a sort of fugue(? if that is the right word) about what happens as you get older.   We realised that the news in Christmas cards and letters now tends towards the "and John had his second bypass this year", "and sadly Mary's Alzheimers is worse" area.

And then we sit there realising that we can't remember who John and Mary are.

Aaaarrrgh

Anyway, a great launch and a mini family reunion.

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Rain!

We had a heavy shower of rain this morning - badly needed.  I don't know if its enough to signal to the clever grass on our green that its safe to start greening up again. We shall see. Maybe it can tell if there is more on the way?

I was so pleased to see a tiny 3 minute snippet on the telly last night about Evolution/Creation, with a Scottish scientist, a Dr.Noble, saying that while Natural Selection and Gene Mutations certainly played a part in the variety of life, the evidence for design is very strong.

And where there is design, there has to be a Designer.  


“Raise your eyes high up and see. Who has created these things? It is the One who is bringing forth the army of them even by number, all of whom he calls even by name. Due to the abundance of dynamic energy, he also being vigorous in power, not one [of them] is missing... Have you not come to know or have you not heard? Jehovah, the Creator of the extremities of the earth, is a God to time indefinite. He does not tire out or grow weary. There is no searching out of his understanding."  - Isaiah 40:26-28

I wish that Captain Butterfly had been there to hear it, but he was out at his Treasure Hunters meeting.

I have a horrible feeling that I didn't do much of anything yesterday.   The Channel was so beautiful, it was like being in The Maldives and looking out on the turquoise Indian Ocean.   It sparkled and gleam in various shades of blue and turquoise - and was covered in waves of a fluorescent whiteness.

I did study and make us a vegetable fried rice for our lunch.   With organic brown rice too.

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The Zimmer Twins

Audrey and I were out on the doors this morning doing magazine deliveries.   A lot of complicated driving and not many magazines delivered sadly.  However, we had one very good talk on the doorsteps with a lady I have been calling on for a while, and we can go back.

We started our day in Zimmer-twin fashion as Audrey got her seatbelt stuck in the door of her car and we could neither extract it nor get the door open.  Thankfully a passing hero - a Sir Walter Raleigh style gentleman with strong hands - came to our rescue and extracted us.

I got back to find that Captain Butterfly has taken himself off to Somerset in search of  LARGE Blues.  He did ring when I was having my lunch but it didn't get much beyond "Hello, I'm in Somerset.  There's one now!!! (sounds as of camera being wielded to a giant rushing of wings) - Bye"

I am trying to think what on earth I did yesterday.  I must have done something...   Richard, our Financial Advisor, came round in the morning. We haven't seen him since our Expat days.  It was like old times to have cups of tea and a chat with him.  We were saying how sorry we were to see the destruction of the lovely Pearl Roundabout in Bahrain. It was my favourite piece of modern civic statuary.

Its a lovely island, but not Paradise, anymore than anywhere else is at the moment.  The News is scarier all the time, and Mick took care to remind us at the group this morning what good news we have for people.  

And Col and i went to the Farm Shop and stocked up with honey and strawberries and things.

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A Sunday in Retirement

Went to the Hall this morning - increased my Watchtower order, gave Jean the poem I promised her and failed to hand in my not at homes as the brother with the map we were working Saturday morning has gone on holiday.

Jean and I did about an hour and twenty minutes yesterday morning.  We had to work a big block of flats, all by intercom, which is not easy. But it was a great morning out.  We had some good conversations that we hope to go back on.

As Captain B was out butterflying I went to Jean's for a coffee afterwards.

We have had some rain today!  But not nearly enough as my father - country boy and gardener - would say were he here.

Its his poem I have given to Jean.  Its the only poem he ever wrote as far as we know.  Its about the last time he saw his mother - before the war and then the iron curtain came between them.

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A Zimmer Designed by Q

We spent yesterday morning at the hospital -  mostly waiting for a blood test - as I got an appointment with my lovely arthritis doctor and got my emergency injection.   An injection that I always want to call 'silicon', but is, I believe 'steroid'.

It had the effect of making me feel quite ill for the rest of the day, but it has very much improved my walking.  I could almost have been said to have sprung out of bed this morning.  Almost.

When the phone call telling me I am the next Bond girl finally comes I will book up for the silicon injections.  And pop down to the Lab so Q can provide me with my specially designed zimmer frame, on which I shall hurtle about chasing (or escaping from) all the baddies.

I'm not sure if they are going to call the next James Bond: "For Your Eyes Only"  or  "The Casting Director Should Have Gone to Specsavers".

I had intended to spend yesterday cooking for Jacks tonight, but instead spent this morning shopping (thank you Cooks of Rustington) and now hope to provide homemade (tho not by me) chicken casserole, followed by a small cheeseboard and strawberries and cream.

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Still no rain...

...the last of May and still no rain.  We went to the hospital yesterday morning, I had a couple of appointments, then we shopped (got strawberries) and went to Mill Hill so Col could do his butterfly transect (don't ask).

Captain B was called off on a search yesterday.  I did manage to get myself off the sofa, hobbled about doing housework.  I phoned Aunt Jo, wrote out a thank you card for the BBQ, and answered another question from my internet friend.

This time he was telling me that the Bible could not be true as it describes the earth as flat.  

I was so happy to be able to show him that it does not. In Isaiah the earth is described using the Hebrew word "chugh", which means "globe" or "sphere".   And in Job, one of the earliest of Bible books, the earth is described as "hanging upon nothing".

So the Inspired Scriptures gave us a perfect description of the round earth, hanging on nothing, centuries and centuries before we worked it out.

And it is only very recently that we have been able to see the earth - a blue and white jewel - a globe - floating in space, hanging on nothing - in those amazing pictures  that have come back from various satellites and space craft

Isaiah 40:22:  "There is one who is dwelling above the circle of the earth, the dwellers in which are as grasshoppers."

"(God) is stretching out the north over the empty place, hanging the earth upon nothing." - Job 26:7

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