Advent 4

Question of the day: "Why on earth am I on church prayer list?"

Am just toodling through the bulletin today before service began and trying to look like a good and inconspicuous Church of Wales attendee, and you know that feeling you get immediately when you hear a siren and think you have been caught speeding? (NOT that I have been speeding up and down the aisles or anything of that nature). On the back, under the heading: "INTERCESSION AT MASS For the sick, for those in need, for those who have asked for our prayers in general and in particular...", the third name was mine. Do what?!?

This is puzzling because a) the only place that I have written my name down, well, hmm, two places... on a sign-up sheet a month ago for a Spring Pilgrimage and also for a raffle of some sort two weeks ago and b) am not a real member and c) have this apparently deluded idea that am anonymous. After much paranoid pensivity, have decided that either this is because missed last Sunday, due to cultural outing and, later, brief emotional lunacy (due no doubt to nearly full moon); OR this is some supernatural communication.

At least name was not further down the right-hand column, the next heading being "Among the Faithful Departed..."

Still slightly paranoid, went to lunch with Jane, Graham, James and Granville (the infamous Grandfather -- who is JUST too precious). This was my first meeting with Granville and depsite much warning of pending pontification by said grandfather figure, was absolutely charmed by him :) And was also warned that since he is shy, he might leave early since a strange was at Sunday Lunch -- but he stayed and has even proposed a plan to take me on a tour of the Welsh Assembly building. Graham and Jane gave me an amaryllis (yay! something to grow!) and Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson for Christmas :) I gave them an amaryllis, too. (Instead of "jinx" when you do the same thing, here you say "Snap!")

Things I learned at lunch:
Badgers spread TB among cattle.
"They" are culling badgers.
Badgers are not "cute" (am holding onto my naivete, though).
Grey squirrels are bad.
Welsh Assembly Building was supposed to cost 19M GBP;
final cost was 64M GBP.

Last night, went to the Welsh Hospitals' Christmas Carol Concert at St. David's Hall with Graham, Jane and James. And a quite nice feeling when you are somewhere not exactly home is to recognize people in the audience around you; kind of balances out your head from always feeling kind of continually faceless (not that it is that extremely traumatic, but it is just an interesting psychological phenomenon).

Choir was about 200 voices and accompanied primarily by the Welsh Guards Brass Ensemble. Also performing was Catrin Finch, Royal Harpist to HRH the Prince of Wales; the Prince revived the ancient Royal tradition of official harpist in 2000. The concert was in support of CLIC Sargent, the UK's leading children's cancer charity.

(Picture is --with candlelight setting, so no flash!-- of the Fanfare Trumpeters of the Welsh Guards at the beginning. They have on the lovely big hats!)

For reading and educational development, the Welsh National Anthem (i was not able to sing this):

MAE HEN WLAD FY NHAD-AU

Mae Hen Wlad fy Nhadau yn annwyl I mi,

Gwlad beirdd a chantorion enwogion o fri:

Ei gwrol ryfelwyr gwlad garwyr tra mad,

Dros ryddid collasant eu gwaed.

Gwlad! Gwlad!

Pleidiol wyf i'm gwlad,

Tra mor yn fur i'r bur hoff bau,

O bydded i'r heniaith barhau.

Gwlad! Gwlad!

Pleidiol wyf i'm gwlad,

Tra mor yn fur i'r bur hoff bau,

O bydded i'r heniaith barhau.

I really like Christmas season here :) Carol services are everywhere and are just a little different. There are so many charitable fetes and events, and it doesn't seem that life is so inhibited by the need to be PC and worry about being sued. I know there are lots of events of goodwill and charity at home, but it seems to be more ordinary and more a part of the wider consciousness here.

Another carol that is sung to a different tune here is O, Little Town of Bethlehem -- also much more cheerful-sounding. Went to another carol service with Jane this evening, right around the corner from their house in Llanishen. This included a Nativity pageant and the little angels were cute, but the sheep were the CUTEST.

More things that I learned today:
The US forced Britain to dismantle the Empire.
This occurred much faster than Churchill saw as wise, which has led to a lot of the instability in former colonies.
Britain was far worse economically after WWII than during.
Britain will pay the last installment of its debt to the US (from WWII) on 31 December 2006.
Japanese soldiers brutalized the Chinese people during WWII.
The British invented the concentration camp during the Boer War.