Good Thursday to my faithful followers. I hope you are all well and the sun is shining where you are.
I mentioned in yesterday’s blog that we would be attending another lecture last night. This one was a dinner/lecture at the college, one they hold each year in a small room seating only forty people. It cost ten pounds to attend. The tables, covered in white tablecloths and decorated with long-stemmed candles, were set banquet style with a head table for the speaker, the president of the college and a few other important folks. We knew very little about the event, but fortunately I wore a dress and 2 Papa a suit, which proved to be good choices as everyone was dressed as if attending a party. The speaker was Professor Nigel Biggar who studied in Oxford, as well as Vancouver, and then received his PhD from the University of Chicago. He is currently Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology at Christ Church College. His topic for the evening was “Was the War in Iraq Justified?” He did a brilliant job with his presentation. (Even I could easily follow it.) The question and answer period was very exciting as many in the room disagreed with his conclusion which was, yes, the war in Iraq was justified---polite disagreement, of course, as we are in England. It was extremely interesting to hear so many different opinions, but he had an answer for all of them. He said he gave the same talk the night before and he managed to change the minds of 40% in the room to his way of thinking. But, last night no one changed from their original mindset as they entered the room. My thinking is the majority of our audience was young students and young people are for the most part, against war. But, who knows? Certainly, not me. I’m just happy to hang out here.
On to something not so heavy—marmalade making. I signed up for the project for two reasons, well three. 1. Learn something new 2. See a real English person’s house (I know, it’s kind of not the most admirable reason) 3. Get to know, more closely, people from different parts of the world. All three of these were accomplished. First of all, Jenny, the host of the marmalade project, just lives down the block from our flat, so walking was easy. Unlike our street, which is all college owned homes; she lives on a street that is all residential. Her home is just beautiful and now I wish I had asked its origin. The picture above is her garden. My verbal blunder for the day happened just after I arrived. I looked out of her large picture window and commented on her beautiful back yard. To which she corrected me, very sweetly, “In England, a yard is only concrete. We have gardens.” Whoops! Sorry. Later in the morning as I described our home with a backyard large enough to have a pond and lots of trees and flowers, she said “What do you call your garden?” The other American spoke up and said, “A garden.” Pretty good answer. I did go on to explain that Americans might have a garden, perhaps flowers or vegetables, in our yards. Everyone is learning. The other women there today: Elizabeth, an author and illustrator of children’s books from Australia, Karen, a nurse from South Africa, Lily, a young woman from San Francisco. They are here with their husband, partner, and boyfriend, respectively who are studying at the university. The marmalade making really was secondary to getting to see Jenny’s wonderful home and hearing the lives of these remarkable women. Oh yeah, Jenny our host, is a retired tutor in medicine, specializing in lung disorders. So interesting! (How many times can I say that word?) But, we did make marmalade. As you can see from the photo above, Jenny did a great job teaching us the tricks of the trade in making the perfect orange marmalade. However, don’t get your hopes up for Christmas, it’s quite complicated and something I’m not sure I can repeat on my own. In any case, Jenny let us buy a jar for one pound fifty. I had no money so one of my new friends loaned me the money. At least I have one homemade jar for proof.
San Francisco and Louisiana are worlds apart when we are at home in America. But here, Lily, from San Francisco, might as well have lived next door to me as we talked in common about all things American as if we had been friends our whole lives. We both sat in awe as the ladies from other countries shared their daily lives with us. They did the same as we shared ours. They were fascinated as I told of my eleven grandchildren, my work, attending ballgames and school events, going overseas for mission efforts, playing tennis—all things you and I do as a part of daily life in America. If you ever doubt whether your life is interesting, share it verbally with someone from another country. You will be convicted that your life is very blessed and what you do makes a difference in the world.
“God's kingdom isn't a matter of what you put in your stomach, for goodness' sake. It's what God does with your life as he sets it right, puts it together, and completes it with joy. Your task is to single-mindedly serve Christ. Do that and you'll kill two birds with one stone: pleasing the God above you and proving your worth to the people around you.” Romans 14:17
Enjoy your day.
Hugs, 2 Mama
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