The Wedding and Sunday

As you will have gathered this was a big event, I don't get out much.

That white plastic runner down the middle is also used here as a water slide, when water is poured over it, so all the children got very excited, exclaiming "it's a water slide".  Needless to say their hopes were dashed.

I noticed the bride wasn't given away by her father (except that the minister in the service asked who gives this woman to this man) she walked down the aisle with the mothers.

Mark and Mary, and the bride's family, are Messianic Christians.  I am not sure what that is except that they are Christians and follow Mosaic Law.   I thought that Mark, as head honcho of their faith community would officiate at the wedding, but he wanted for a change to be part of the family, so they asked a good friend, a minister from a Baptist church to officiate.

And here he is officiating.

The bride and groom walking down the aisle, or the water slide.  She was very pretty, and it was a lovely dress.

 



I didn't take any pictures indoors at the reception.   I left when I saw other people were  saying goodbye and leaving.  Everyone had finished eating  and were sitting around and chatting for quite a while;  there didn't seem to be any move to speeches, toasts or cake cutting.   I saw the cake and some champagne glasses, but the cake was a single layer baked in a 9" cake tin, so obviously wasn't intended for everyone.   Perhaps the family carry on with a private celebration when the friends have gone.   I wasn't sure of the protocol but would rather leave too soon than outstay my welcome.



 

Driving back from the wedding I passed a Baptist chapel and remembered that Larry, our previous hospital chaplain, was acting as interim there, so this morning, Sunday, I went there to catch up with him.  I had a long chat after the service with his wife, Vicki.   I had heard that they were going to either Alaska or Hawaii.   I mistakenly thought though that he was thinking of them primarily as locations per se, but in fact in both places there was a church that needed  him, and Vicky said he would only ever go to a church that needed him, that could use his gifts and abilities, he is well known for bringing dying churches to life and making them thrive.

 

In Alaska he was going to interim until someone permanent started in June, but then the permanent person was able to start earlier, so they felt that was a door that closed and they turned their attention to Hawaii.    She said it was a tiny island they were thinking of, with a population of about  4000, and in that case too the permanent position was unexpectedly filled, so as the needs of both these churches had been met,  they looked around  them in Shawnee and this chapel is struggling and dying on its feet.    So he has taken the permanent position there and feel that is where they are meant to be, where God means them to be.

 

This afternoon I went to see Faure's Requiem at St Gregory's, the Catholic University. 

 



Saturday 3rd May

I have got a bad cold which is very unusual, I don't remember the last one I had.   It's unusual for people of my age to get colds because we have built up immunity to them.

I sort of finished the wedding card, to go in with the present last night, but woke up this morning and decided it had to be improved upon.  So I got busy and this is the new improved version.   I know, I know,  it is not good, and I was far from happy with it, but like they say here "it is what it is" and it had to do.   It is an Irish Wedding Blessing so they might get the fact I was praying for them while doing it.

The wedding ceremony and reception was held in a cabin overlooking the Twin Lakes, which is technically in Shawnee, but out of town.   People rent the cabin for events like this, but do all the decorating of it and the catering for the event.   The families strung up fairy lights across the ceiling so it looked quite pretty going in, the colour scheme of mauve and white everywhere was very pretty.

Everything however was disposable - the plates, tablecloths and plastic cutlery - and the meal was Mexican tacos, and I'd say it was a bit like a church pot luck supper, except (and it don't mean to sound as if I'm carping here, I am just telling it like it was) at our church meals we use china, linen and silverware, and the hard working youth of the church have to load the dishwasher.    And the meal, as I said, was Mexican tacos, except that team Mexican at Emmanuel put out a far superior  meal, in fact better than a lot of Mexican restaurants in town, so anyone else would be hard pressed to surpass them, and no wonder I am a bit critical.

It was a lovely warm, sunny day and this picture will give you an idea of the venue.   I will publish this now and get off to church, and tonight will post some pictures of the wedding.

Wednesday

I have had a bad cough for some time, and couldn't stop coughing this morning so called Bill at the hospital, I didn't feel too bad but I couldn't go round the floor mixing with patients and coughing away.

Last night I was working on cross stitching the wording on the wedding card, but when  I woke this morning and looked at it in daylight I saw I had mistakenly used two different shades of green - when I was using them I couldn't tell the difference in artificial light.   I had the usual conversation with myself, that we do in these situations -

"perhaps no one will notice".

"yes of course they will, it is blatantly obvious in daylight".

"perhaps I can make it look like it is supposed to be like that"

"yeah, right".

So I started again.   Which is what I have been doing most of the day, apart from knocking up chocolate chip cookies for the Wednesday meal, and the Kiwanis' bulletin for tomorrow.

In the news..............

Oklahoma is a death penalty state and a guy who had been on death row for 10 years  was executed today.   I wondered why it was suddenly decided, after ten years, that today would be a good day for him to die.   Anyway, I digress.   The point of this story is that they are executed here with a lethal injection (whatever happened to the electric chair I wondered) but for some reason the injection was botched, I think the drug itself was experimental and they didn't get it right, and it took 43 minutes for him to die, he convulsed and was suffering.      And you would not believe the outrage that caused.   This guy was sentenced to death  because he kidnapped a young girl who had just graduated high school, a lovely girl apparently with her whole life in front of her, and her parents' only child.   He first of all repeatedly raped her, then he shot her, but didn't kill her.  He told his two accomplices to dig her grave and made her watch them.   Then they buried her alive.   Goodness only knows how much suffering she went through, and how many hours it took for her to die in her shallow grave, and all the bleeding heart liberals here are up in arms, protesting, because it took 43 minutes for HIM to die!!!!!!!!!

Another news item is that Britain used to be the leading economy in the world but the US overtook us in 1872, and since that time it has been Top Dog on the world stage.   But - and herein lies the chagrin - China is catching up and it is predicted that some time this year China will be the leading world economy.

Tuesday 29th April

We have had some very severe weather across the Mid West the last couple of days.  Tornadoes in Oklahoma and Arkansas.

It is not a good picture but that is an 18 wheeler truck blown over on its side.

It is not usual to have fatalities in tornadoes because there is enough warning to get into a shelter, but I think these tornadoes came through in the night.

It is moving westwards, the severe weather, and at the moment there is very serious flooding in the area of the Florida panhandle and Alabama.   People are stranded in their cars out there on the state line,  twittering away like mad.

Meanwhile in Shawnee where we have had temperatures in the 80s, they dropped to 60 today and it feels really cold.

I, however have been beavering away at the needlework for the wedding present.  I finished the little decorative pillow.

I think I told you both families of the couple are into Irish dancing.   All of Mark and Mary's offspring are very good at it - all 9 of them - and I think it is the bride's mother who runs the Irish dancing school.

I bought a piece of emerald green satin for the backing, then had second thoughts - as is my wont - so went out and got a piece of neutral coloured fabric.   I don't have a sewing machine but one of the chaplains, who owns a local dry cleaners and alterations business in town, put me in touch with one of their seamstresses, and she made it up for me.   She thought the green fabric was best for the back, so that is what I went for.   And that is it on the right.   With the piece of neutral fabric she knocked up another cushion, so perhaps I need to stitch something else.......................

At the minute I am working on cross stitching an Irish Wedding Blessing which I am hoping - if my ambitious ideas work out - to use for the card to go with the gift.

Bruce and Rosalyn left today for England, visiting Rosalyn's son and his family, and whose baby is being baptised on Sunday.    I hope they had a comfortable flight and safe arrival.

Sunday 28th April

The weather has been warm the last couple of days, in the 80s, but there is some severe weather moving in.  Early this morning there was heavy rain and a thunderstorm, but it later cleared up.  I didn't go to Emmanuel, I'd promised Bruno - another hospital chaplain - that I would go to his church, and he seemed very pleased that I'd taken the trouble, he introduced me to the congregation and at the end of the service asked me to lead the prayer from the front - a bit of a challenge for a shrinking violet like me.

 

The church he is establishing is a US Full Gospel Mission, and looking at it on the internet I see it has a large following in Cameroon where he comes from.   Bruno has a lovely family, and his wife teaches at the Catholic University of St Gregory's in Shawnee.

 

Pattisue came out of her service rather early and rang me - it's the first time my phone has gone off during a church service.   She suggested lunch and we went to the China Buffet.

 

They still have to get their dig into Camilla, even when the item is nothing to do with her.   Kate undoubtedly is dazzling, and she has all the best qualities Diana had - warmth, compassion, the common touch;  but in addition she is intelligent, educated, and possessing a great deal of common sense, I don't think anyone would disagree that she would be a great consort for William.

 

I have come out of the closet.  Now I am pushing 80 I am past caring.  Kiwanis were nominating their officials for the coming year and Louise informed me I was nominated to be on the audit committee.  So I had to confess I was innumerate.  She thought I just meant bad at maths and patted my hand, saying Dale and I could do it together.  I had to explain she wasn't getting it, giving me a sheet of figures was like expecting an illiterate person to be able to read something, and I couldn't possibly put my signature to any accounts saying I had looked them over.   Their reaction could best be described as 'stunned'.   I think they wondered how someone so normal looking could be so learning disabled. 

 

What puzzles me is that there is a lot of help for the illiterate.  There are classes at the moment in Shawnee library helping people to read, but no one has thought to help the innumerate, I would sign up like a shot.  I have occasionally looked at children's maths work books and wondered if I can teach myself.

My Birthday - my 3/4 century.

Had a very nice birthday yesterday.   Bruce and Rosalyn kindly invited me to lunch in Oklahoma City.   Rosalyn first had a quick dental check up at the OU Dental School then they took me to a Greek restaurant nearby, and it was lovely.  Although the dishes had Greek names I will refer to them by their Middle Eastern names.

As you see I had hummus, falafel, warm pitta  and pitta crisps, little pot of laban, stuffed vine leaves (which were nice, but not - loved ones - as good as your grandmother's) also, but not in the picture, a little pot of Father Shik Shik.  And when Rosalyn mentioned to the proprietor that it was my birthday he gave me some complementary baklava.   Wasn't that kind.

 I couldn't eat it all and took the rest in a to-go box for supper.    Afterwards they took me to Barnes and Noble next door, which as you know is my very favourite shop.   I bought a little book by Bill Bryson, a favourite American travel writer who spent twenty years in Britain, married an English wife and had four children, then they came back to the States because she loved the notion of being able to shop 24 hours a day.  And it is handy if you want to go to Walmart at midnight and find a parking space nearer than where the fat people go.

And they also had a Starbucks, like the store in Norman.  The only thing lacking in the store were the comfy little armchairs they have in Norman.

This is the card Rosalyn sent me, who said she couldn't see Bubbles decked out like that.  I don't think I can either.    I think it must be some trick photography, I can't see them piercing the cat's ears for the ear rings.       

They are coming over to London on Tuesday for the christening of Rosalyn's grand daughter in St Mary's, Barnes where I attended the christening of the last grand child.

Thursday

The Kiwanis speaker was more interesting than I expected.  A teacher from a local school teaches archery, and he was talking about, and showing us, the crossbows the children use.  Apparently archery is very popular in schools here, and there are competitions.    A lot of people hunt in Oklahoma, but whereas we use guns for shooting grouse, or deer, they use them for killing each other, and use bows and arrows for hunting.

Later in the morning I went on to the hospital, I thought I would attend the Thursday chapel service, and it was very good.   Bruno, another chaplain from Cameroon (but via North Dakota) who has fairly recently taken over a church here reminded me that I'd said I'd visit his church, but haven't been yet, so I promised to go on Sunday.   He told me to put my dancing shoes on, said they dance in his church and gave me a little demonstration.   I didn't ask if there were many pushing 80.

This evening I went to the movies downtown with Pattisue and we saw 'Frozen'.   It was very good, I enjoyed it, I thought the plot seemed rather complex for a Walt Disney film, but the effects, the photography was incredible.  There seem to be a lot of animated films about at the moment, all the trailers we saw were for animated films.

So that has basically been my day................