Archie

I wish to make you an introduction.

I wish to introduce you to Archie, my next door neighbour's cat. I will miss many things about living with Cornelia (my housemate) but one thing I shall especially miss is Kevin's cat.

Archie was adopted from a Cat Rescue as a kitten but he is not insecure for all this and knows is strong cat mind on all matters. He is can be seen purposely striding across the lawns in front of our terrace of houses and is (the real) owner of all the back gardens. There is charming unawareness of time, so that now he may track some movement under a hedge with great concentration and then lie in the road sunning himself and can be seen catching dragon flies for his supper in Conny's garden in the twilight.

He takes great pleasure in winding up our other neighbour's dog by perching on her front window sill and blatantly staring into her lounge while her dog barks until he is breathless with indignation. If we leave our windows open on the ground floor, he may suddenly decide that he would really like to visit, and stick his head and front paws through to investigate only to chased away on account of Conny's cat allergy.

Kevin's parents live on the same street, with their disabled son for whom Kevin is the full time carer. So Archie with no apology lays claim to both houses. Of an evening when it is dark, if he is at Kevin's parent's house he will insist on being carried home in state particularly if it is cold and wet.

For all these idiosyncrasies he is a timid creature, and it is only very recently that he allowed me to stroke him after kneeling down to discuss my day with him in the beckoning twilight. He even gave me an appreciative lick for my trouble.

I will miss you Archie, my cat neighbour. May you enjoy many a summer evening snatching at the dragon flies.

Unless

My Lord, I did not choose You,
For that could never be;
My heart would still refuse You,
Had You not chosen me.
You took the sin that stained me,
You cleansed me, made me new;
Of old You have ordained me,
That I should live in You.

Unless Your grace had called me
And taught my op’ning mind,
The world would have enthralled me,
To heav’nly glories blind.
My heart knows none above You;
For Your rich grace I thirst;
I know that if I love You,
You must have loved me first.

Josiah Conder (1789-1855)

The tale of two lost rings and grace.

One ring has a pale blue stone with twisted cross-over type setting. It is pale gold (nine carat). The other ring is silver with etchings around the rim. One is from a Fair Trade shop and the other from a Jewellers.


I wore the aqua ring to work about a month ago, and took it off briefly and put it in my pocket. It must of fallen out. It was one of those days where I had tramped through the hospital (next to the medical school) to buy bits and pieces from the hospital shop. So without speaking to anyone in the department, I frantically re-traced my steps and in the end spoke to hospital security and reported it missing. By this point I had given up on finding it. Rather down-hearted I returned to the Medical School, and thought on the spur of the moment to check with one of the secretaries that no-one had found it. I should of done this at the beginning of my quest to find my ring because it turned out that someone had found it, handed it in and an email had been sent around reporting that a ring had been found. So I got my ring back. It was lost but then later found.

You would think I would of learnt my lesson, but a few weeks later, I wore the silver ring except this time to the GP practice where I work. I had a busy day and was one of the last to leave at 7:30 pm. Before leaving I was running around tidying up and packing up my doctor's bag. In the car driving home, I suddenly realised that my ring was no longer on the my finger. Not as expensive as the other one but with more sentimental value I felt the disappointment. I emailed the practice the next day who looked in the places where I thought it might of fallen off and put up notices. But no-one had found it. The following week, I was duty doctor and visiting a patient at home and pulling equipment out of my doctor's bag. Buried under everything right at the bottom of the bag, I spotted a silver ring. I had found it! What a feeling of sudden relief and happiness.

So I have lost two rings in the space of about 4 weeks and found both of them. I was pondering how "lost" I can become, because of sin, weariness and distractions and how persistent God is at finding me and setting me back on the right track. Or when I see my "lostness" and run home in tears how wide are the open arms and how willing to draw me back. And how are innumerable are the fresh new starts that are to be had.

"Amazing grace, how sweet the sound!
That saved a wretch like me
I was lost, but now am found
Was blind but now I see"
John Newton

"Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

" So he got up and went to his Father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him....
'My son', the father said, 'you are always with me and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead but now is alive, he was lost but now is found.'"
Luke 15: 3-10, 20, 31