Unexpected pleasures
Jul. 4th, 2023 04:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shewhomustThis week could have been rather grim: my diary is dominated by two funerals, neither of which we will be attending. The death of my eldest cousin was not at all unexpected; we would have liked to attend the funeral, on Friday, but given the scheduling, the fact that it is in Bristol, and our other commitments, we had already concluded that it was impossible when we heard the news of the death of another cousin (strictly a cousin-by-marriage). This was unexpected, although that's also a sign that we haven't been as closely in touch; and the funeral is in Brighton, which wouldn't be easy but would certainly have been possible. We decided against it, though: which is why we are not there today. I have a tangle of emotions about all this, but let's not go there...
Instead, a happy engagement which we were able to keep. On Sunday we had a phone call from a friend who lives in Paris. She has of late been spending a lot of time in Yorkshire, looking after her 98-year old mother, but we have never quite been able to make contact. Yesterday, though, she had to visit the Passport Office in Durham. We made a date with her and our friend-in-common J. There's a café right next to the Passport Office, a glass box by the river, which served us generous quantities of salad, and excellent chips. J. had to leave first, as she is attending a series of Bible study sessions on the Book of Revelation, so of all unexpected topics for a summer lunch, we ended up discussing the Book of Revelation on the basis of the first three study sessions (J), vague memories of medieval texts and the Angers tapestries (me), and a stained glass window included in one of her guided tours (our Parisienne).
Did I mention that she is a Paris guide? Yes I see that I did, though not recently. Is that really the last time we saw each other? It doesn't feel like ten years, let alone more: we parted promising to get together again very much sooner.
Bonus link: Paris Arts Club.
Instead, a happy engagement which we were able to keep. On Sunday we had a phone call from a friend who lives in Paris. She has of late been spending a lot of time in Yorkshire, looking after her 98-year old mother, but we have never quite been able to make contact. Yesterday, though, she had to visit the Passport Office in Durham. We made a date with her and our friend-in-common J. There's a café right next to the Passport Office, a glass box by the river, which served us generous quantities of salad, and excellent chips. J. had to leave first, as she is attending a series of Bible study sessions on the Book of Revelation, so of all unexpected topics for a summer lunch, we ended up discussing the Book of Revelation on the basis of the first three study sessions (J), vague memories of medieval texts and the Angers tapestries (me), and a stained glass window included in one of her guided tours (our Parisienne).
Did I mention that she is a Paris guide? Yes I see that I did, though not recently. Is that really the last time we saw each other? It doesn't feel like ten years, let alone more: we parted promising to get together again very much sooner.
Bonus link: Paris Arts Club.
