Transfiguration anniversaries

I had been looking forward to walking to church services in the Parish this morning, but in the end I thought better of it and took the car, as I wanted to be sure that I could travel between St John's and St Catherine's without hindrance and in good time. There were congregations of about thirty people in both places to celebrate the Transfiguration of Christ and think about the dropping of the first atom bomb on Hiroshima, something I always insist on doing on this day. I found it less easy than expected to revert to using the Church in Wales Rite, as used in our Parish, after eight weeks of using the CofE Book of Common Worship. Maybe I was tired from yesterday's video binge, but also the cold virus is still having lingering after effects.

Today is our 51st wedding anniversary, and we talked about going out for a celebratory meal, but by lunch time, eating at home and having a siesta seemed preferable, especially as I had another a bereavement visit to make for a funeral at St Catherine's the week after next. As the family live in the Parish, I was able to walk there, and got some additional exercise by wrongly identifying the street location. Having forgotten my phone I was unable to check, though I was able to ask a passing child, who found the street for me on his Smartphone, with a little help from his mum.

I spent a second evening of binge watching episodes of 'Sé quién eres', so now I'm up to date, ready for the final double bill next Saturday night, endlessly speculating on possible concluding scenarios. The drama poses the interesting matter to consider, memory issues notwithstanding - do I really know who I am? And to what extent do others really know who I am, when I am perceived from so many different angles and perspectives? Quite apart from not being able to remember anything about who he has been, the main character finds he doesn't like the person he finds he had become. So, in the depths of himself he is passing judgement on what he learns. It's as if his normal memory of self and his past actions has enclosed him in a shell, and this is shattered by the accident, leaving him, to quote Paul 'as one untimely born' through his clinical amnesia. It's a fascinating exploration of the elusive mystery of personhood.

Wedding anniversary remembrance

I had two Eucharists to cover for holidaying parish clergy yesterday morning. I celebrated the Transfiguration a day early, for small congregations at St Luke's and Catherines. It's a feast that has meant so much to me for several different reasons, the most important being that Clare and I married on the 6th August. This morning we went together to St John's for the Eucharist, and sat together in the congregation as Fr Jesse Smith was scheduled to celebrate. A rare treat.

Then Clare and Rachel went off for a swim. I pottered around, then went into the office for a while. We didn't do anything else to mark the day, except savour the delight of last Saturday's family celebration, to add to the multitude of memories of forty-nine years together. It's time to start planning a Golden Wedding fiesta for this time next year. I've decided I'm going to make a photo sequence of all the years to display on the day. Thankfully, I made a start on digitising old family albums a decade ago. There's still more to do, to obtain a fuller picture. Many of the best moments, of course, could never be captured, no matter how vivid they remain in memory. 

Today is the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, suitably recalled in the news and at ground zero. With Cold War confrontation hanging over our youthful years, and blighting them with subliminal anxiety, it seemed right that we should marry on this day, because it is also one the feast days of Christ, and the transforming power of his grace. A small gesture, stating that we we were chosing life in the shadow of extermination. 

The numbers of nuclear warheads is now a tenth of what it once was, but more nations possess nuclear armaments, so the risk of catastrophe is as high as ever, compounded by possible use of fissile material for a 'dirty bomb' by terrorists. So many people are still choosing ways that lead to death rather than life. Have we got any further than living with the Bomb, rather than creating conditions in which it serves no further purpose and can be disposed of, as we now frequently do with outdated technologies.