Easter in the congregation

Another cold and sunny morning. Clare and I had breakfast on our own. Kath and Anto slept late and only surfaced after we left for the Eucharist at St Catherine's. There were about fifty of us in church, Fr Rhys presided and preached, Bishop Rowan was in the pew with his family. Knowing his deep love of Eastern Orthodoxy we exchanged the Easter greeting in Greek, with smiles all round. I can't say that I enjoyed the service that much, though we sang familiar hymns, and Fr Rhys preached quite well. The atmosphere is convivial and domestic in a good way I guess, but it lacks the awe and sense of mystery I need. We didn't stay to socialise afterwards but returned home to spend time with Kath and Anto. Clare was keen to ensure that lunch was one the table by one. And it was so.

We went for a walk around Pontcanna Fields after lunch. I didn't expect to feel tired after a good night's sleep despite the change to summer time, but I did feel tired. It was different from the usual mental and emotional exhaustion associated with the intensity of Holy Week duties. It was more a physical tiredness from walking so much further yesterday.  

At tea time, Kath and Anto headed back to Kenilworth, to spend the evening with Rhiannon, who's been working at Warwick Castle again over the weekend. The sun is setting later tonight, but cloud has returned with the prospect of more rain. On discussing the state of the weather in Spain I checked on Malaga, weather, where it's twenty degrees, but also raining. Andalusia, however, needs as much rain as it can get after a lengthy drought. 

After supper, I went out to walk for another half hour as it was getting dark, then returned to watch 'This Town' a new drama serial on BBC1 set in the West Midlands in the early eighties. Kath and Anto were talking about it earlier as it was shot on location in both Coventry and East Birmingham. It takes us back to the time of the Handsworth riots, and IRA terrorism in Britain, partly crimmie, partly family drama with mixed race teenagers growing up and struggling to break with the legacy of their parents' generation, wanting to forge their own ways in life through musical creativity - the era of innovative Ska and Two Tone music. It's a  period piece well described visually with a promising first episode. A pity I'll be out of the country while most of the episodes are shown in the next month.

Churchwarden John emailed my 'carta de invitacion' covering my stay in Spain, identifying my duties and place of residence just in case I'm quizzed on arrival at the border. It's unlikely I'll need it, but having this just in case will ensure smooth passage. After the intensity of last night, Easter Sunday has felt flat. I'll be back on duty this week and for the next ten weeks. I wonder how I'll be when I return, and how I will feel without making myself useful. Addiction to making myself useful as a priest is something I need to tackle. I don't really know what else to shape my active life around, but it's time to open up to new things, even if I have no idea what that means yet.