Well, I have finally moved and the dogs and I are settling in. It has been raining non-stop since I moved so been a bit wet walking the dogs in the rain. What a great feeling it is to finally have my own place and space and not having to be mindful of living in someone else’s house. I discovered where the closest refuse station is to me and was able to go and dump all the packing boxes and paper there to free up some room in my garage. My sister Helen was a real gem and she made sure that my house was liveable and functional before she left which I am so grateful for. But how much stuff should one have? I certainly have way too much stuff and really need to get rid of some things. My mother she is the culprit, forever buying me things for the house or new clothes to wear. She was the doting mother and me being me wants to hold on to everything that she gave me. I haven’t got the heart to part with these things of hers and from her which I find very special. I think I need an independent neutral person to come into my home, sort through all the double-ups and extra clothes that I have and just donate them to charity without me knowing because I will have a reason why I should keep holding on to these things. I wonder how hard it was for you to let go of cherished family heirlooms etc. I know there’s a sermon somewhere in this.
We buried Betty Houtman on Tuesday and the rain was pelting down. The funeral director was kind enough to provide me with gumboots and an umbrella. Betty was buried in a natural grave and there was only one other grave in this new section of the cemetery. I went to walk past this grave so I could stand at the head of Betty’s grave to do the committal and my foot ended up calf-deep in the new grave’s soft clay mud and got stuck. I couldn’t lift my foot out of the grave it was literally “one foot in the grave.” Luckily, the grave diggers were there and they managed to lift my foot out. I came home with a dirty suit, dirty stole and was saturated. Now I know what it is like to do a burial in Wellington. I will need to buy some good length gumboots and a good raincoat and head covering for more possible days like this one.
I’m off now to meet the new woman Rabbi at Temple Sinai, we are having a welcome at St. Peter’s in the garden room. Take care and hopefully see some of you on Sunday. God bless, Fei
You can read the full E-News here: https://mailchi.mp/a1f9c9313153/this-weeks-newsletter-from-st-andrews-on-the-terrace-9166103
