Mr Michael McConnell was my first choir master. A highly intelligent man, well educated and a natural teacher, he enjoyed having my brothers and me in the choir as we shared some of his knowledge of Latin and religion and would eagerly join his minor digressions. He lived alone in a beautiful house and taughtContinue reading “Mr McConnell”
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Jane
A whiff of cigarette smoke floated into my bedroom window. Not just any cigarette smoke, the smell of this smoke takes me back to a shipshape house across the road from a church. Jane is there sitting in her chair, rolling cigarettes. She blends two tobaccos and pinches a bit to add to the paperContinue reading “Jane”
The Power of a Good Friend
My life has been changed for the better. I had been slowly descending into a bender… my kind of bender, involving extreme time wasting on screen. I was becoming less and less productive and didn’t know how to turn it around. Then one night I had a conversation with a friend. She was cheerful, positive,Continue reading “The Power of a Good Friend”
Downtime
After a few days of rain I finally managed to get out for a walk. It was late as the rain only stopped after sundown. I walked down to a park and settling myself on a rather wonderful variation on a swing looked up at the few stars visible through the clouds. Cimorelli sang inContinue reading “Downtime”
What is Love?
Love is not a simple thing to define particularly in English which uses the one word to describe many types of love. Love of cake, love of mother, love of friends, love of lover. Love may be good or bad as we have healthy and unhealthy relationships. The question “what is love?” is most oftenContinue reading “What is Love?”
The Day We Saved the Church
Jane and I had played two games of Scrabble. We had won one game each and so had to play a decider. We sipped our Limoncello and played on. Jane won the third as expected and on finding that it was almost eleven o’clock we decided to head for bed. About ten minutes later aContinue reading “The Day We Saved the Church”
Take a Little Wine
Getting drunk has never seemed a good idea to me. By drunk I mean drinking to the point you lose control, leaving yourself unable to take care of yourself and by the morning unable to remember what went down. This may be because I have elements of the fiercely independent, but then it seems toContinue reading “Take a Little Wine”
Picture Saints
We are all called to personal holiness. This idea was the subject of many arguments during my mid-teens. During my twenties I realised that sometimes we look in the wrong places for an image or pattern to follow. We imagine that to be holy we must look like the saints in the holy pictures weContinue reading “Picture Saints”
A Solution to the World’s Problems
Poverty, abuse, misuse of the planet. Big business, cheap labour, expensive housing. Plastic, instant, disposable. The want for more money, more things. What else is there… if there is no God, no life after this one, why should we not pursue the goods of this life without a care or perhaps with all our care.Continue reading “A Solution to the World’s Problems”
Shriving for Perfection
We all wish we were perfect. We may try changing ourselves or everything around us in an attempt to reach or enjoy our varying ideals of perfection. It is important that we each realise our imperfections and learn to love ourselves truly with that love that wishes for the good of the person loved. TheContinue reading “Shriving for Perfection”
Katherine Wansink Writes 