Wednesday 28 April 2010

Overrun

Overrun with livestock.  Well, not really.  It just seems like it.

First, a few days after Mpira died, a duck appeared - with 15 ducklings. Which rapidly began to decrease: first one drowned in the pond, which I wasn't too sad about; after all, if a duck can't swim, it doesn't deserve to survive. You have to think of the survival of the race of Ducks - no good encouraging the continuation of genes which encourage drowning, if you're a duck. 

Then there were 14. Mama Duck took them on a walk one morning and lost one on the way, returning with 13.



Then there were none. No duck, no ducklings. A drake arrived in the garden and started harrassing her: despite our best efforts to chase him off, we couldn't be there 24/7. So she took off. Not literally - the ducklings couldn't fly, having only vestigial wings which they couldn't even flap.

Now we have the odd drake - very odd.  And the odd pair - also odd. No eggs, no ducklings, no apparent purpose in life. They don't even take a purposeful interest in the pond - it's more the 'oh, I say, a pond, we might as well make a perfunctory splash just for ducks' sake' approach.

Rabbits, now.  Mpira just LOVED chasing rabbits. Nothing pleased him more than to take off at top speed after these interlopers. 

News must have sped round the warren, because they were there the very next morning. Two large, fat, lolloping rabbits, lumbering round the lawn in the early morning. They've moved on now: to the next door field, where they gaze at us over the wall, unfazed now there is no terrier to see them off. Instead, there is a tiny baby bunny which sits, completely unafraid, munching away, taking no notice of us as we walk to the cars and back again.

Oher rodents too.  The rats which Mpira loved to harrass, screaming up to them and then pulling up short with a bounce which set him rocking on all four paws, like a car which has jammed the brakes on, rocking on its springs.  They are out on the lawn under the bird feeder in bright daylight - no worries, no cares...

And the MICE.  I didn't mind the odd glimpse of a furry body dashing for the outdoors - they didn't seem to be eating anything.  We did, however, block up the tiny hole which we thought might be an entrance. They retaliated by gnawing away, seemingly outside our bedroom door, ALL NIGHT.  Clever, too - they stopped as soon as we sat up in bed, so it was hard to determine exactly where they were.

Livestock. Wild life.  Overrun.

Sunday 18 April 2010

Not enough words

Mpira.
Born 2.9.1999. Born into our family 2.5.2000. Left us for ever 12.4.2010.

There are not enough words to describe that dog. 

No longer

No longer
do I shut all the doors when I go out, leaving you
lying sentinel at the door, ready to greet the postman.

No longer
do I return to see you, gazing raptly through the window as you
perch atop the sofa back, keeping watch for our return.

No longer
am I greeted with shrieks of pleasure, a frantic
waggling of tail and body, ecstatic at my homecoming.

Instead I live with
a silent and empty house
a sore and grieving heart
a desolation of spirit.

Thursday 15 April 2010

Mpira

Mpira died on Monday.
Heartbroken is too trite a word for how we feel.
For now, I'm just collecting poems here...and encouragement for mourning here:

Catharine put this first poem on facebook:

I Cannot Lie by Your Fire ~ (by Robinson Jeffers - American poet)

I've changed my ways a little; I cannot now
Run with you in the evenings along the shore,
Except in a kind of dream; and you, if you dream a moment
You see me there.

So leave awhile the paw marks on the front door
Where I used to scratch to go out or in,
And you'd soon open; leave on the kitchen floor
The marks of my drinking pan.

I cannot lie by your fire as I used to do
On the warm stone
Nor at the foot of your bed; no, all the nights through
I lie alone.

But your kind thought has laid me less than six feet
Outside your window where firelight so often plays,
And where you sit and read - and I fear often grieving for me
Every night your lamplight lies on my place.

You, man and woman, live so long, it is hard
To think of you ever dying.
A little dog would get tired, living so long.
I hope that when you are lying

Under the ground like me your lives will appear
As good and joyful as mine.
No, dears, that's too much hope: you are not so well cared for
As I have been.

And never have known the passionate undivided
Fidelities that I knew,
Your minds are perhaps too active, too many-sided..
But to me you were true.

You were never masters, but friends. I was your friend.
I loved you well, and was loved. Deep love endures
To the end and far past the end. If this is my end,
I am not lonely, I am not afraid. I am still yours.

I think God will have prepared everything for our perfect happiness. If it takes my dog being there [in Heaven], I believe he'll be there. Rev. Billy Graham
For the soul of every living thing is in the hand of God. Job 12:10

I lie belly-up
In the sunshine, happier than
You ever will be.

Today I sniffed
Many dog butts — I celebrate
By kissing your face.

I sound the alarm!
Paperboy — come to kill us all —
Look! Look! Look! Look! Look!

I sound the alarm!
Garbage man — come to kill us all —
Look! Look! Look! Look! Look!

I lift my leg and
Whiz on each bush. Hello, Spot —
Sniff this and weep.

I Hate my choke chain —
Look, world, they strangle me! Ack
Ack Ack Ack Ack Ack!

Sleeping here, my chin
On your foot — no greater bliss — well,
Maybe catching cats.

Look in my eyes and
Deny it. No human could
Love you as much I do.

Anonymous

If it should be....

If it should be that I grow frail and weak,
and pain should keep me from my sleep,
then you must do what must be done,
for we know this last battle can't be won.

You will be sad, I understand,
but don't let grief then stay your hand,
for this day, more than the rest,
your love and friendship must stand the test.

We've had so many happy years,
what is to come can hold no fears.
Would you want me to suffer? So,
when the time comes, please let me go.

Take me where my needs they'll tend,
only stay with me until the end,
and hold me firm and speak to me,
until my eyes no longer see.

It is a kindness that you do to me,
although my tail it's last has waved,
from pain and suffering I have been saved.

Do not grieve, it should be you,
who must decide this thing to do.
We've been so close, we two these years,
Don't let your heart hold any tears.

Author unknown

Old men miss many dogs. Steve Allen

If there is a heaven, it's certain our animals are to be there. Their lives become so interwoven with our own, it would take more than an archangel to detangle them. Pam Brown

Not the least hard thing to bear when they go from us, these quiet friends, is that they carry away with them so many years of our own lives. John Galsworthy

I guess you don't really own a dog, you rent them, and you have to be thankful that you had a long lease. Joe Garagiola

If you have a dog, you will most likely outlive it; to get a dog is to open yourself to profound joy and, prospectively, to equally profound sadness. Marjorie Garber

To call him a dog hardly seems to do him justice, though inasmuch as he had four legs, a tail, and barked, I admit he was, to all outward appearances. But to those who knew him well, he was a perfect gentleman. Hermione Gingold

There is sorrow enough in the natural way
From men and women to fill our day;
But when we are certain of sorrow in store
Why do we always arrange for more?
Brothers and sisters I bid you beware
Of giving your heart to a dog to tear. Rudyard Kipling

The one best place to bury a good dog is in the heart of his master. Ben Hur Lampman

There's a stone I had made for Luke at the top of the hill road, where the pasture opens wide and the setting sun highlights the words carved into its face. "That'll do, Luke, that'll do." The words are said to working dogs all over the world when the chores are done and the flock is settled: "That'll do dog, come home now, your work is done." Luke's work is done too. He took my heart and ran with it, and he's running still, fast and strong, a piece of my heart bound up with his, forever. Patricia McConnell For the Love of a Dog

I feel about my dogs now, and all the dogs I had prior to this, the way I feel about children — they are that important to me. When I have lost a dog I have gone into a mourning period that lasted for months. Mary Tyler Moore

I came across a photograph of him not long ago... his black face, the long snout sniffing at something in the air, his tail straight and pointing, his eyes flashing in some momentary excitement. Looking at a faded photograph taken more than forty years before, even as a grown man, I would admit I still missed him. Willie Morris

The dog of your boyhood teaches you a great deal about friendship, and love, and death: Old Skip was my brother. They had buried him under our elm tree, they said — yet this wasn't totally true. For he really lay buried in my heart. Willie Morris, My Dog Skip

Monday 12 April 2010

Cook and dine with comfortable friends

We had such a fun evening last Friday. Went to friends for a ‘cook and dine’ evening. One girl showed us how to prepare the starter (avocado, bacon and mushrooms, toasted with cheese on top), another the main dish – absolutely scrummy cardamom chicken, creamy with coconut but just enough chilli bite. Pudding was ‘apple crump’ – softened bramleys with a crumble mixture on top, made by adding melted butter to flour and sugar and then crumbled over and baked to form a crisp topping. I haven’t had this since I was in Sweden, where it is made by spreading the flour and sugar and then layering butter over, scraped off the block with a cheese slicer. I’ve never managed to do this successfully so was glad to see Tess’s method.

So we all pitched in, peeling, chopping, slicing, grating – with several glasses of wine to help. It was huge fun.

Afterwards, we had Martyn’s special coffee: locally roasted and ground coffee beans (Bean 14) produced on the island, with whipped frothy milk, so stiff it was like creamy soufflĂ© and then thimblefuls of Amaretto di Saronno, so delicious it was like drinking chocolate almonds.

Then, suddenly, it was 11.30. I didn’t want to go home – see my post over at Words from God for Today.

Marvellous. Wonderful.

Even Richard is keen on the idea of Further Advanced Restaurant Training Sessions.

Sunday 4 April 2010

Oscar and Bob...or should it be Bob and Oscar?

I have been struggling with pride, recently.  Too much of it.  It seems that everywhere I turn, I am reminded that 'God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.' Yet one thing I am proud of. I am proud to know Bob Rasmussen and to be able to count him and his wife Lyn as friends. I am constantly amazed at the wisdom he writes: accessible, economical, cutting straight and TRUE. Truth. Here's the link to his post about Good Friday.

And I am proud to have had the privilege of being a member of Nairobi Chapel, pastored by Oscar Muriu. Recently, he spoke at Urbana, Intervarsity's student conference in the USA in December 2009. I have rarely heard a preacher to equal him for truth and clarity.


I am proud.


PS - a very important PS, a reminder to myself, though I doubt I'll forget: I saw a trailer for The Visitor on Bob's website. It speaks of befriending the stranger, the prisoner...the people Jesus spent time with.  The people I should be spending time with.

Saturday 3 April 2010

Yet another goody...

Yet another goody from A Little This~A Little That... by Dana

A Christian's Garden
First, plant five rows of peas:

Preparedness
Promptness
Perseverance
Politeness
Prayer.

Next to them plant three rows of squash:

Squash Gossip
Squash Criticism
Squash Indifference.

Then five rows of lettuce:

Let us be Faithful
Let us be Unselfish
Let us be Loyal
Let us be Truthful
Let us Love One Another.

And no garden is complete without turnips:

Turn up for Church
Turn up with a Smile
Turn up with Determination.

Rules for living

I found these on Dana Bailey's blog.  Wonderful.

President Garfield’s Principles

Never be idle.
Make few promises.
Always speak the truth.
Live within your income.
Never speak evil of anyone.
Keep good company or none.
Live up to your engagements.
Never play games of chance.
Drink no intoxicating drinks.
Good character is above everything else.
Keep your own secrets if you have any.
Never borrow if you can possibly help it.
Do not marry until you are able to support a wife.
When you speak to a person look into his eyes.
Save when you are young to spend when you are old.
Never run into debt unless you see a way out again.
Good company and good conversation are the sinews of virtue.
Your character cannot be essentially injured except by your own acts.
If anybody speaks evil of you let your life be so that no one believes him.
When you retire at night think over what you have done during the day.
If your hands cannot be employed usefully, attend to the culture of your mind.