So how about this job advert:
“Men wanted for hazardous journey. Low wages, bitter cold, long hours of complete darkness. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in event of success.” Ernest Shackelton 1912/13 (This wanted ad apparently appeared in the London Times but has not been verified)
Dig deep – do you think you would have applied?
Monday, 2 March 2009
Monday, 2 February 2009
Junk Mail
About 18 months ago I booked an Easy Jet flight - They operate out of Luton Airport in the UK. And since then they have hung onto my email address like it is the most important thing in the world. I have tried many times to de-register from their mailing list; I have even logged a new email address by changing my address a little bit; I have added their address to the blocked junk mail address and still their email comes through. I have even written to them about the bad practise and threatened to report them to whoever regulates this stuff. I am sure I am not the only one wanting to get off their lists so I am not sure how they get away with it.
When their latest email arrived in my inbox, I thought I would again try to de-register and then remembered why I had a problem doing this before.... they are terribly sneaky. This is what happens if you try to get your name off the mailing list:
Step 1........ The email that lands up in your in-box : You click on the "to stop receiving emails" link and you are taken to their website
Step 2......... You enter your email address and because you can't remember/never had a password you click on the button for them to send you the password.
Step 3 .......... You are taken to another screen and are asked to enter your email address again - which you do because you are desperate to get off the list.
Step 4 ......... A screen pops up so fast, like magic, and it tell you there is no record whatsoever of your email address on their data base. There is no where else to go.........
And because you think you have done something wrong you go back to the beginning and do all of this all over again and guess what - same result.
It is impossible to get off their list.
When their latest email arrived in my inbox, I thought I would again try to de-register and then remembered why I had a problem doing this before.... they are terribly sneaky. This is what happens if you try to get your name off the mailing list:
Step 1........ The email that lands up in your in-box : You click on the "to stop receiving emails" link and you are taken to their website
Step 2......... You enter your email address and because you can't remember/never had a password you click on the button for them to send you the password.
Step 3 .......... You are taken to another screen and are asked to enter your email address again - which you do because you are desperate to get off the list.
Step 4 ......... A screen pops up so fast, like magic, and it tell you there is no record whatsoever of your email address on their data base. There is no where else to go.........
And because you think you have done something wrong you go back to the beginning and do all of this all over again and guess what - same result.
It is impossible to get off their list.
Positive Thinking - al la Alan Knott-Craig
Over the past couple of weeks I have received an email, purportedly initiated by Alan Knott-Craig, 3 or 4 times from different people. Alan is the CEO if iBurst and author of the Book “Don’t Panic” which he published apropos the first “happy camper, feel good” email he sent to staff early in 2008
And my point in doing a blog about this particular email is: Oh Come on folks. Is this guy for real…….. surely he doesn’t believe all the tripe he writes. Why doesn’t his best friend read the stuff first?
I first received the email from my Tai Chi friend Duncan and he was horrified (appalled!) that I was so cynical and because I said A K-C was delusional and should be locked up in the nearest mental institution. Duncan reminded me that one should have a positive attitude, which I do generally have, but I cannot take Knott-Craigs ramblings seriously.
The following are some extracts from his email – selective I know, but they are not the worst…..my comments in italics:
o Festive season hangovers. Solution: Convert to Islam (Yikes!)
o Oil is now below $50 a barrel, inflation is not such big deal because oil is cheap nowadays, (Yikes!)
o What about the recession? Well, as it turns out, that was something that deserved a bit of panic (Yikes)
o note to attackers: neck-lacing innocent foreigners is not a great advert for our country (What would you have them do instead????)
o How long will it last? (the recession) Who knows, but brace yourselves for a tough 2009. The good news is that after every tough time comes good times, so at least we all have something to look forward to! (and this makes us feel better???)
o Our interest rates are still high, but at least there is the possibility of a decrease in rates to ease the burden on your back pocket. The UK and USA do not have that luxury, their interests rates are already too low to cut further! (and this makes us feel better???)
o Mad Bob can’t last forever. When he heads off into the sunset there will be an absolute bonanza of investment and aid flooding into Zimbabwe (oh yeah????), and a large chunk of that windfall will be via sunny SA… oh happy days (What am I missing here????)
o The unintended consequence of the government procrastination on infrastructure investment over the past 10 years is that now that it’s finally underway it is just in time to prop up our economy! Gotta love those bureaucrats. (What am I missing here????)
o The Soccer World Cup is coming. If we get it right, ie: 10,000 tourists are not hi-jacked, we’ll be the hottest spot on the planet, (What am I missing here????)
And his conclusion is: Life is not about waiting for storms to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.
Well go dance then – his email follows:
From: Alan Knott-Craig
Sent: 04 December 2008 06:42
To: All UsersSubject: Closing out 2008
Hi guys,
Why am I writing this email? Because I’m getting the impression there are some depressed people walking around. Now there are a couple of potential reasons for this phenomenom: 1. Festive season hangovers. Solution: Convert to Islam. 2. Moving offices. Solution: Resign and work from trailer park. 3. Manic depressive personality. Solution: Prozac or alcohol (see point 1 for solution to hangover). 4. You read newspapers. Solution: Rather work.
It’s been just over 10 months since I sent that damn Don’t Panic email. Quite a bit has happened since then, some of it good (ie: Ricoffee sales have sky-rocketed), some of it bad (ie: Ricoffee sales have sky-rocketed).
So let’s recap: At the beginning of the year people were panicking about the oil price, inflation, electricity and economic recession. Of those big 4 concerns, 3 have taken care of themselves. Oil is now below $50 a barrel, inflation is not such big deal because oil is cheap nowadays, and we haven’t had any crazy power outages since February (the Eskom saga is a complete mystery to me). What about the recession? Well, as it turns out, that was something that deserved a bit of panic. Especially if your name is Dick and you run a New York investment bank. Fortunately we don’t have any Dick’s at iBurst.
After the merry-go-round of bad news at the beginning of the year, capped by the xenophobic attacks (note to attackers: neck-lacing innocent foreigners is not a great advert for our country), it’s been quite surreal to watch the u-turn executed by those heading for the exit door. It’s a bit like watching naïve tourists run into the sea off Camp’s Bay, scream in pain, and then race back onto the beach. The water looks so nice, but don’t go in there unless you’re an Eskimo. Suddenly foreign shores aren’t as attractive when there are no jobs, no credit, and no sunshine.
Just to put a couple of things in perspective, here is some info on the year-to-date performance of world stock markets (as of 10 Nov):
Iceland -89%
China -64%
Russia -64%
India -48%
Hong Kong -46%
Brazil -40%
Japan -40%
USA -36%
Australia -35%
UK -32%
New Zealand -29%
South Africa -26%
SA is not so bad, is it? I’d rather be here than in Iceland.
Sunny SA is certainly not immune to the global economic crisis. Our companies are suffering too, which means fewer bonuses and more retrenchments (always a winning recipe for unhappiness). How long will it last? Who knows, but brace yourselves for a tough 2009. The good news is that after every tough time comes good times, so at least we all have something to look forward to!
What is the silver lining for SA? Our interest rates are still high, but at least there is the possibility of a decrease in rates to ease the burden on your back pocket. The UK and USA do not have that luxury, their interests rates are already too low to cut further!
What else? Mad Bob can’t last forever. When he heads off into the sunset there will be an absolute bonanza of investment and aid flooding into Zimbabwe, and a large chunk of that windfall will be via sunny SA… oh happy days. Who said there were no plusses to having a failed state as a neighbor?
What else? Anyone noticed the cranes everywhere you look? Seen the Gautrain progress? I went down to CT 2 weeks ago, and virtually the entire highway is under construction. The unintended consequence of the government procrastination on infrastructure investment over the past 10 years is that now that it’s finally underway it is just in time to prop up our economy! Gotta love those bureaucrats.
What else? The Soccer World Cup is coming. If we get it right, ie: 10,000 tourists are not hi-jacked, we’ll be the hottest spot on the planet, and we’ll have a shout for hosting the Olympics.
But don’t crack open the champagne just yet, we still have our fair share of challenges. Your average Yank may be swapping his house for a trailer, but at least he’s not worried about being shot in the head on the way to his next job interview. If any of you have a relative or friend in the government, please pass on this message, “Crime is out of control and most of our schools and hospitals are in disarray.” Don’t for a second fool yourself that we can ignore these structural problems and live the rest of our lives in blissful ignorance. We must constantly remind the politicians to do their jobs, but we cannot absolve ourselves of our responsibility to make individual contributions. It is our business to make this land a success. Report crime, pick up litter, give to the needy, create jobs, look after the children, practice safe sex, drink filter coffee. We’ve all got a responsibility to make the magic happen, otherwise you’ll just end up lying in bed in 50 years time, looking back and saying “What if?”
The time of opportunity is upon us, now it’s up to us to seize the day. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: Life is not about waiting for storms to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.
Looking forward to dancing in 2009!
Cheers,Alan
And my point in doing a blog about this particular email is: Oh Come on folks. Is this guy for real…….. surely he doesn’t believe all the tripe he writes. Why doesn’t his best friend read the stuff first?
I first received the email from my Tai Chi friend Duncan and he was horrified (appalled!) that I was so cynical and because I said A K-C was delusional and should be locked up in the nearest mental institution. Duncan reminded me that one should have a positive attitude, which I do generally have, but I cannot take Knott-Craigs ramblings seriously.
The following are some extracts from his email – selective I know, but they are not the worst…..my comments in italics:
o Festive season hangovers. Solution: Convert to Islam (Yikes!)
o Oil is now below $50 a barrel, inflation is not such big deal because oil is cheap nowadays, (Yikes!)
o What about the recession? Well, as it turns out, that was something that deserved a bit of panic (Yikes)
o note to attackers: neck-lacing innocent foreigners is not a great advert for our country (What would you have them do instead????)
o How long will it last? (the recession) Who knows, but brace yourselves for a tough 2009. The good news is that after every tough time comes good times, so at least we all have something to look forward to! (and this makes us feel better???)
o Our interest rates are still high, but at least there is the possibility of a decrease in rates to ease the burden on your back pocket. The UK and USA do not have that luxury, their interests rates are already too low to cut further! (and this makes us feel better???)
o Mad Bob can’t last forever. When he heads off into the sunset there will be an absolute bonanza of investment and aid flooding into Zimbabwe (oh yeah????), and a large chunk of that windfall will be via sunny SA… oh happy days (What am I missing here????)
o The unintended consequence of the government procrastination on infrastructure investment over the past 10 years is that now that it’s finally underway it is just in time to prop up our economy! Gotta love those bureaucrats. (What am I missing here????)
o The Soccer World Cup is coming. If we get it right, ie: 10,000 tourists are not hi-jacked, we’ll be the hottest spot on the planet, (What am I missing here????)
And his conclusion is: Life is not about waiting for storms to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.
Well go dance then – his email follows:
From: Alan Knott-Craig
Sent: 04 December 2008 06:42
To: All UsersSubject: Closing out 2008
Hi guys,
Why am I writing this email? Because I’m getting the impression there are some depressed people walking around. Now there are a couple of potential reasons for this phenomenom: 1. Festive season hangovers. Solution: Convert to Islam. 2. Moving offices. Solution: Resign and work from trailer park. 3. Manic depressive personality. Solution: Prozac or alcohol (see point 1 for solution to hangover). 4. You read newspapers. Solution: Rather work.
It’s been just over 10 months since I sent that damn Don’t Panic email. Quite a bit has happened since then, some of it good (ie: Ricoffee sales have sky-rocketed), some of it bad (ie: Ricoffee sales have sky-rocketed).
So let’s recap: At the beginning of the year people were panicking about the oil price, inflation, electricity and economic recession. Of those big 4 concerns, 3 have taken care of themselves. Oil is now below $50 a barrel, inflation is not such big deal because oil is cheap nowadays, and we haven’t had any crazy power outages since February (the Eskom saga is a complete mystery to me). What about the recession? Well, as it turns out, that was something that deserved a bit of panic. Especially if your name is Dick and you run a New York investment bank. Fortunately we don’t have any Dick’s at iBurst.
After the merry-go-round of bad news at the beginning of the year, capped by the xenophobic attacks (note to attackers: neck-lacing innocent foreigners is not a great advert for our country), it’s been quite surreal to watch the u-turn executed by those heading for the exit door. It’s a bit like watching naïve tourists run into the sea off Camp’s Bay, scream in pain, and then race back onto the beach. The water looks so nice, but don’t go in there unless you’re an Eskimo. Suddenly foreign shores aren’t as attractive when there are no jobs, no credit, and no sunshine.
Just to put a couple of things in perspective, here is some info on the year-to-date performance of world stock markets (as of 10 Nov):
Iceland -89%
China -64%
Russia -64%
India -48%
Hong Kong -46%
Brazil -40%
Japan -40%
USA -36%
Australia -35%
UK -32%
New Zealand -29%
South Africa -26%
SA is not so bad, is it? I’d rather be here than in Iceland.
Sunny SA is certainly not immune to the global economic crisis. Our companies are suffering too, which means fewer bonuses and more retrenchments (always a winning recipe for unhappiness). How long will it last? Who knows, but brace yourselves for a tough 2009. The good news is that after every tough time comes good times, so at least we all have something to look forward to!
What is the silver lining for SA? Our interest rates are still high, but at least there is the possibility of a decrease in rates to ease the burden on your back pocket. The UK and USA do not have that luxury, their interests rates are already too low to cut further!
What else? Mad Bob can’t last forever. When he heads off into the sunset there will be an absolute bonanza of investment and aid flooding into Zimbabwe, and a large chunk of that windfall will be via sunny SA… oh happy days. Who said there were no plusses to having a failed state as a neighbor?
What else? Anyone noticed the cranes everywhere you look? Seen the Gautrain progress? I went down to CT 2 weeks ago, and virtually the entire highway is under construction. The unintended consequence of the government procrastination on infrastructure investment over the past 10 years is that now that it’s finally underway it is just in time to prop up our economy! Gotta love those bureaucrats.
What else? The Soccer World Cup is coming. If we get it right, ie: 10,000 tourists are not hi-jacked, we’ll be the hottest spot on the planet, and we’ll have a shout for hosting the Olympics.
But don’t crack open the champagne just yet, we still have our fair share of challenges. Your average Yank may be swapping his house for a trailer, but at least he’s not worried about being shot in the head on the way to his next job interview. If any of you have a relative or friend in the government, please pass on this message, “Crime is out of control and most of our schools and hospitals are in disarray.” Don’t for a second fool yourself that we can ignore these structural problems and live the rest of our lives in blissful ignorance. We must constantly remind the politicians to do their jobs, but we cannot absolve ourselves of our responsibility to make individual contributions. It is our business to make this land a success. Report crime, pick up litter, give to the needy, create jobs, look after the children, practice safe sex, drink filter coffee. We’ve all got a responsibility to make the magic happen, otherwise you’ll just end up lying in bed in 50 years time, looking back and saying “What if?”
The time of opportunity is upon us, now it’s up to us to seize the day. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: Life is not about waiting for storms to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.
Looking forward to dancing in 2009!
Cheers,Alan
Sunday, 11 January 2009
A Challenging Job in Israel
And on the subject of Israel…. Isn’t it about time they got themselves some decent PR. There really is a job going begging in that country and boy do they need someone to fill it. The Palestinians have got the PR taped and unless Israel does something about their image they will always come off looking second best.
Sure the job would be a challenge but can you imagine if you cracked that message!
Sure the job would be a challenge but can you imagine if you cracked that message!
A Toot for TuTu
I heard on the radio news this morning that Archbishop Tutu is calling for a day of fasting to show support and solidarity with the poverty stricken and starving Zimbabweans. Yeah for the Arch – he is the one shining light that stays focused on the crisis taking place on our northern border.
I don’t mean to diminish the seriousness of the Israel/Gaza crisis but I sure as heck do wish that our politicians, diplomats and especially past and present presidents could have been as vocal and horrified with the human right violations in Zimbabwe as they have been about the Israeli/Gaza situation. So much for “silent diplomacy” for the Israelis - and they are not even our neighbours. It almost seems that the SA bunch has heaved a sign of relief and happily clambered onto the Israeli/Gaza band wagon - a welcome diversion to take the focus away from those poor benighted Zimbos.
So, keep up the noise Arch… some of us hear you.
I don’t mean to diminish the seriousness of the Israel/Gaza crisis but I sure as heck do wish that our politicians, diplomats and especially past and present presidents could have been as vocal and horrified with the human right violations in Zimbabwe as they have been about the Israeli/Gaza situation. So much for “silent diplomacy” for the Israelis - and they are not even our neighbours. It almost seems that the SA bunch has heaved a sign of relief and happily clambered onto the Israeli/Gaza band wagon - a welcome diversion to take the focus away from those poor benighted Zimbos.
So, keep up the noise Arch… some of us hear you.
Thursday, 8 January 2009
The World Question Centre 2009
Every year, John Brockman of Edge.Org sends out a question to 150 odd scientists, biologists, philosophers, psychologists, writers, statisticians and so on. Answers to the question are published on : http://www.edge.org/q2009/q09_index.html
This years question is:
WHAT WILL CHANGE EVERYTHING?
"What game-changing scientific ideas and developments do you expect to live to see?"
To name a few of the contributors: J. Craig Venter, Stephen Pinker, Patrick Bateson, Nassim Nicholas Taleb ….. and one of my personal favorites : Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi – if anyone can pronounce his name I will send you a KitKat!
Now, just look at this example of the topics they come up with:
ROBERT SAPOLSKY - PEOPLE WHO CAN INTUIT IN SIX-DIMENSIONS
GLORIA ORIGGI - THE AGE OF REPUTATION
JOHN TOOBY & LEDA COSMIDES - THE GREAT PIVOT: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCES, NATIVE INTELLIGENCES, AND THE BRIDGE BETWEEN
A thoughtful answer I thought I would share with you is from James J. O’Donnell and is titled :
Africa
"Africa" is the short answer to this question. But it needs explanation.
Historians can't predict black swan game-changers any better than economists can. An outbreak of plague, a nuclear holocaust, an asteroid on collision course, or just an unassassinated pinchbeck dictator at the helm of a giant military machine—any of those can have transformative effect and will always come as a surprise.
But at a macro level, it's easier to see futures, just hard to time them. The expansion of what my colleague, the great environmental historian John McNeill, calls "the human web" to build a planet-wide network of interdependent societies is simply inevitable, but it's taken a long time. Rome, Persia, and ancient China built a network of empires stretching from Atlantic to Pacific, but never made fruitful contact with each other and their empire-based model of "globalization" fell apart in late antique times. A religion-based model kicked in then, with Christianity and Islam taking their swings: those were surprising developments, but they only went so far.
It took until early modern times and the development of new technologies for a real "world-wide web" of societies to develop. Even then, development was Euro-centric for a very long time. Now in our time, we've seen one great game-changer. In the last two decades, the Euro-centric model of economic and social development has been swamped by the sudden rise of the great emerging market nations: China, India, Brazil, and many smaller ones. The great hope of my youth—that "foreign aid" would help the poor nations bootstrap themselves—has come true, sometimes to our thinly-veiled disappointment: disappointment because we suddenly find ourselves competed with for steel and oil and other resources, suddenly find our products competed with by other economies' output, and wonder if we really wanted that game to change after all. The slump we're in now is the inevitable second phase of that expansion of the world community, and the rise that will follow is the inevitable third—and we all hope it comes quickly.
But a great reservoir or misery and possibility awaits: Africa. Humankind's first continent and homeland has been relegated for too long to disease, poverty, and sometimes astonishingly bad government. There is real progress in many places, but astonishing failures persist. That can't last. The final question facing humankind's historical development is whether we can bring the whole human family, including Africa's billion, can all achieve together sustainable levels of health and comfort.
When will we know? That's a scary question. One future timeline has us peaking now and subsiding, as we wrestle with the challenges we have made for ourselves, into some long period of not-quite-success, while Africa and the failed states of other continents linger in waiting for—what? Decades? Centuries? There are no guarantees about the future. But as we think about the financial crises of the present, we have to remember that what is at risk is not merely the comfort and prosperity of the rich nations but the very lives and opportunity for the poorest.
James J. O'DonnellClassicist; Provost, Georgetown University; Author, The Ruin of the Roman Empire
Virtual glider trip
If you want to take a really surreal glider trip, click on this link:
http://www.electricoyster.com/electric3d/index.html
Use your mouse to steer you over the landscape - you can do 180 turns and explore the icy canyons!
http://www.electricoyster.com/electric3d/index.html
Use your mouse to steer you over the landscape - you can do 180 turns and explore the icy canyons!
Wednesday, 7 January 2009
Eggs again
On the 14th April last year I wrote a blog on how to do the perfect poached egg - this was just prior to my sojourn in the B&B in Haarties - and they thought that I might just have to knock up a breakfast or 2 (fortunately not).
So now here is another little egg trick I am sure will keep you and the kids amused for a while. Click on the link below and watch this 30 second video by Tim Ferris and learn how to “Peel Hard Boiled Eggs Without Peeling Them” – this is magic and not to be missed.
Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PN2gYHJNT3Y
So now here is another little egg trick I am sure will keep you and the kids amused for a while. Click on the link below and watch this 30 second video by Tim Ferris and learn how to “Peel Hard Boiled Eggs Without Peeling Them” – this is magic and not to be missed.
Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PN2gYHJNT3Y
Tuesday, 6 January 2009
Monday, 5 January 2009
The Big Greek Funeral
My friend Irene’s father died 2 days after Christmas. Mike was 87 and had been ill for a while. But he died peacefully with his beloved wife Olive (of 64 years) and daughters at his bedside.
Mike was Greek and his offspring, who are first generation South Africans, honoured his request for a Greek funeral. The service took place in a beautiful little Greek church in Orange Grove. The church probably seated 130 odd people and was packed with people standing at the doors. The inside of the church is exquisite – beautiful murals of saints and angels covering the walls, gold chandeliers, gold lattice work, deep sky blue ceilings and wonderful paintings of the last supper and other saints. The senior priest was all dressed up and looked imposing in his robes – he also had a white beard that went down to his waist. The second priest was dressed in a white a blue robe and look just as imposing and was wearing Crocs *grin*. The cantor was dressed in civvies and chanted beautifully.
The service was quite long and all done in Greek - although a bit was read out in English. The senior priest gave a eulogy for Mike (in Greek) and he was quite animated and spoke with great feeling – even we non-Greek speakers could feel his respect and affection for Mike. When we filed out of the church Olive said to me that she was sorry I did not understand the lovely words the priest said – but she would tell me at another time. During the service the junior priest lit the censers and the church was permeated with the whiffs of incense.
After the service we proceeded in convoy to the cemetery and, prior to the coffin being lowered, the priest poured olive oil, soil and fresh flower petals over the coffin and prayed. Once the coffin was lowered, we all sprinkled flower petals on the coffin. We were then off again to the church hall for something to eat and drink – tables laden with glorious Greek food.
And, I guess by this stage you are all asking “where the heck is she going with the blog posting?” Well, where I am going is that it was a very impressive funeral. I think Mike would have been pleased. Yes it was lengthy, but it had wonderful gravitas. It was just what was needed to say goodbye to a man had a good long life, the service and graveside prayers were dignified and his family were comforted by these ceremonies.
Conversely, my mother’s cremation service was (not quite what we were expecting) a quick 20 minute service and the minister spent the last few minutes or so trying to recruit new members for his church. We were also asked to bring a cd of her favourite music – which took up another couple of minutes - Dean Martin belting/slurring out a song didn’t quite do it, although she might have thought this was funny! I think I would have felt a bit better with a bit more pomp and I also think she would have preferred something along the line of Mike’s funeral.
We need to set aside more time on these occasions to immerse ourselves with the ceremony – switch off the cell phones, mark off the whole day in our diaries and be in the moment.
Mike was Greek and his offspring, who are first generation South Africans, honoured his request for a Greek funeral. The service took place in a beautiful little Greek church in Orange Grove. The church probably seated 130 odd people and was packed with people standing at the doors. The inside of the church is exquisite – beautiful murals of saints and angels covering the walls, gold chandeliers, gold lattice work, deep sky blue ceilings and wonderful paintings of the last supper and other saints. The senior priest was all dressed up and looked imposing in his robes – he also had a white beard that went down to his waist. The second priest was dressed in a white a blue robe and look just as imposing and was wearing Crocs *grin*. The cantor was dressed in civvies and chanted beautifully.
The service was quite long and all done in Greek - although a bit was read out in English. The senior priest gave a eulogy for Mike (in Greek) and he was quite animated and spoke with great feeling – even we non-Greek speakers could feel his respect and affection for Mike. When we filed out of the church Olive said to me that she was sorry I did not understand the lovely words the priest said – but she would tell me at another time. During the service the junior priest lit the censers and the church was permeated with the whiffs of incense.
After the service we proceeded in convoy to the cemetery and, prior to the coffin being lowered, the priest poured olive oil, soil and fresh flower petals over the coffin and prayed. Once the coffin was lowered, we all sprinkled flower petals on the coffin. We were then off again to the church hall for something to eat and drink – tables laden with glorious Greek food.
And, I guess by this stage you are all asking “where the heck is she going with the blog posting?” Well, where I am going is that it was a very impressive funeral. I think Mike would have been pleased. Yes it was lengthy, but it had wonderful gravitas. It was just what was needed to say goodbye to a man had a good long life, the service and graveside prayers were dignified and his family were comforted by these ceremonies.
Conversely, my mother’s cremation service was (not quite what we were expecting) a quick 20 minute service and the minister spent the last few minutes or so trying to recruit new members for his church. We were also asked to bring a cd of her favourite music – which took up another couple of minutes - Dean Martin belting/slurring out a song didn’t quite do it, although she might have thought this was funny! I think I would have felt a bit better with a bit more pomp and I also think she would have preferred something along the line of Mike’s funeral.
We need to set aside more time on these occasions to immerse ourselves with the ceremony – switch off the cell phones, mark off the whole day in our diaries and be in the moment.
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