PRELUDE TO AUGUST

Hymn for Sunday Morning Prayer

from a Stanbrook Abbey Hymnal.

Transcendent God in whom we live

The Resurrection and the Light;

We sing for you a morning hymn

To end the silence of the night.

When early cock begins to crow

And everything from sleep awakes,

New life and hope spring up again

While out of darkness colour breaks.

*

We can only hope that the unusually

hot weather will soon be washed away

by torrential rain !

*

Even our cat Brunie prefers the coolness

of a dark room !

*

From THE TABLET of 28th July 2018

by Jonathan Tulloch.

“ The clouds slowly gathered; by teatime,

the sky was growing dark.

The first rumble of thunder grumbled in the distance,

and was soon followed by the tinkle of rain drops.

Before long the thunder crashed

closer to home, and a cloudburst was drumming the roof,

bubbling in the pond,

seething on the lawn and gurgling down the gutter.

Hard to believe that I could ever miss the sound of rain,

but it’s been weeks since I’ve heard the sound of

a decent downpour.”

*

August

Prayer

Be not afraid to pray - to pray is right.

Pray, if thou canst, with hope; but ever pray,

Though hope be weak, or sick with long delay;

Pray in the darkness, if there be no light.

Far is the time, remote from human sight,

When war and discord on the earth shall cease;

Yet every prayer for universal peace

Avails the blessed time to expedite.

What’er is good to wish, ask that of Heaven,

Though it be what thou canst not hope to see;

Pray to be perfect, though material leaven

Forbid the spirit so on earth to be:

But if for any wish thou darest not pray,

Then pray to God to cast that wish away.

HARTLEY COLERIDGE

(1796-1849)

*

Preparing for Autumn

*

The first night of August was bathed in rain

soaking the dried-up soil,

and encouraging the plants to grow.

*

Some days before that I saw a small gathering of ants

on one of the garden paths, close to the magnolia tree.

A few had transparent wings and flew away to find another site

in which to raise another colony.

I hope they will succeed in their quest.

Our weather is unstable at this time:

we seem to be living in the month of April

and not in the month of August.

The same instability seems to be affecting

the rest of our world with climate change.....

as well as in political matters.

It is tragic that people can still experience

“Man’s inhumanity to man.”

We can only pray for God’s guidance,

and hope in Him.

*

A quotation from the

DIDACHE

“As this broken bread

was once scattered over the hills,

and was brought together

to become one loaf,

so may thy Church be brought

together from the ends of the earth

into thy Kingdom.”

*

*

I received a lovely post card from

my sister-in-law Ingrid

some days ago.

On it were twelve small photographs

of German rural houses and their gardens.

On the other side

were these words of encouragement:

“reisen - erleben - erinnern”

which when translated urge us

“to travel, to experience and to remember”.

*

*

The weather continues to be humid

and overcast.

Too much movement results in sweat !

I had just finished writing the above comment

when the sun came out......

August seems to be a moist month

and many of us prefer to sit in rooms

with curtains.

Movement has unwelcome consequences,

and reminds me of my years in a Mediterranean land

when we had to change our clothes frequently.

*

15th August 2018

We celebrated the Feast of the Assumption today.

The weather was overcast and we were reminded

of the popular saying

“Our Lady loves the rain”.

The humidity is intense.

*

Our gardener Dave was today again assisted by

a local friend and decorator also called Dave.

It was good to see them working together,

each cheerfully employed at his own separate task.

The garden needs this seasonal attention.

*

IMMANENCE

I come in the little things,

Saith the Lord:

Not borne on the morning wings

Of majesty, but I have set My Feet

Amidst the delicate and bladed wheat

That springs triumphant in the furrowed sod.

There do I dwell, in weakness and in power;

Not broken or divided, saith our God !

In your strait garden plot I come to flower:

About your porch My Vine

Meek, fruitful, doth entwine;

Waits, at the threshold, Love’s appointed hour......

Evelyn Underhill (1871-1941)

*

*

This picture was inspired by the wonderful

bumble bees in our garden,

some of which make their nests

in the small gaps between paving stones.

When the wind is cold and strong

they shelter in flowers above ground.

We are blessed by their beauty,

and learn from their careful seeking for food

the tasks which parental bees fulfill.

May all human parents be as solicitous

as the parents of insects and mammals !

*

AMEN