Wednesday of Holy Week

Until today I hadn't really given any consecutive thought to the three, count'em, three, major sermons that have to be preached between now and next Sunday night (the Honorary Assistant is preaching at the Vigil on Saturday night, thanks be to God).

It is clear, though, that this is the year that all three sermons will rely heavily upon extensive quotations from choice Christian thinkers of the past. Sometimes Ma bakes her own dessert, but sometimes the family has to be content with "store-bought pie." And this is one of those times.

After all, what is the point of people writing all those marvelous reflections if nobody ever hears them, right? TRADITION!!! is our cry. The best I can do for our folks this year is to hand on to them what was handed to me, cf. 1 Cor. 11.

Eucharist last night at 6:30; members of the Sanctuary Guild who were present re-set the altar for me and OH! I was glad of it, and glad of them, this morning...today's Eucharist was 7:30 a.m. One other communicant. It sufficed.

Sitting here this morning, mesmerized by the unearthly glow of the top of my Bare Desk...I remembered that I had a meeting of the local Council of Churches at midday today. (DOWN, blood pressure! DOWN, I say!)

So I made a sensible approach to that challenge (made easier because I could find the minutes, and the agenda, and my other bits'n'pieces in good time before the meeting). I finished my coffee, I organized all my bills, and I set out on a nice rational round of errands: the bank, first; then Major Business Supply Store where I indulged myself in a new pen and new ink and neon-coloured new folders to put minutes and agendas in for off-site meetings, also new ballpoint pens for writing that doesn't require a fountain pen. (I like the Uniball SIGNO, BTW.) Also a refill for my ballpoint that is part of the pompous-glorious two-pen desk-set with the marble base. Well, my Daddy gave it to me. With my name on it. What can I say. There's a fountain pen in that ensemble, too, but the procedure for filling it baffles me and appears to defy the laws of physics...it doesn't get used much!

When I had purchased all these lovely things, passing up the beautiful journals and bound notebooks, but not without yearnings, I went to a sandwich shop and had a mildly healthful light lunch and worked the crossword in the freebie newspaper, and made a mess of the Sudoku puzzle therein, and arrived smiling at the Council meeting only ten minutes late, but before anything had actually happened.

And I sat in a shaft of sunlight and basked like a lizard, and while the fluff'n'dither went on around me, I wrote running outlines for all three sermons.

We had a good guest speaker also, a representative from "One Church One Child" -- just getting a toehold in Canada. A church-based organization to encourage families to consider fostering and/or adoption as ways of fulfilling their call to discipleship.

And we were OUT into the sunshine again before 2 p.m.!