I spent most of the working day yesterday in the CBS office preparing for a key meeting on Friday. Then the evening was spent preparing the service for this afternoon's funeral of a Cardiff Trade Union branch president who'd died unexpectedly. The main Thornhill crematorium chapel was full with colleagues from the Ty Glas tax offices as well as family and friends.
I was surprised to be greeted by a familiar face among the mourners, Mohammed Jabbar, a member of the research focus group that worked on the Spiritual Capital research project five years ago. At that time he was working for Customs and Excise. Since then, the organisation has been merged with Inland Revenue, and all occupy the Ty Glas office tower in Llanishen. It's the first time we've met since then.
Unusually this year, I've done a dozen funerals, and this was one of the very few occasions I've met someone I knew who was attending a service. It's a reminder for someone like me who once worked as a priest in a very public role, of just how small is the circle of people from the general public one gets to know while ministering in a city over eight years.
As it was the feast of Corpus Christi, and the weather was favourable, more like a normal early Spring day than nearly Summer, I enjoyed cycling over to St Luke's for the quiet contemplative evening Solemn Mass. I hope the better weather is here to stay for a while. Owain came around for a late supper when I got back from church. It was good to enjoy his company while Clare is away.
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