A Memorable Saturday

Sometimes, life is like this - nothing much happens for ages and then you get several events on the same day. Last Saturday was a day like this!

It started with a late morning Punch Party at Rosemary's, our former Choir Leader at St Peter's Church. Rosemary retired last summer because she began "feeling her age", and for the choir that was a very sad occasion because our new "Musical Director" only does modern music and guitar strumming - she does not play the organ or even the piano, does not read music, and cannot deal with the multiple parts of a traditional choir. So ever since August, we have been without a choir leader. That aside, we had bought a small collection of presents for Rosemary, to be given at the official retiring party at church - only for one reason and another, that party never happened, and finally, we asked Rosemary to meet up with her as just the choir and she kindly invited us round her house for a yummy punch, tea or coffee and nibbles. It was a wonderful morning of chatting and catching up with each other's news, and Rosemary was absolutely chuffed with all the presents. She donned the African costume (the contribution from our Ghanaean member) straight away and kept it on for the rest of the party!

The choir (most of us anyway) at Rosemary's
who is in the middle in her African gown

The afternoon I spent in Englefield Green with Nicole, my German friend, who comes three times a year to work bank shifts at the local hospital to keep her British midwifery licence going. She used to work for some years at St Peter's Hospital which is just down the road from us, and came to our church which is how we met, and as we became very good friends, she now usually stays with us when she's doing her bank shifts. This time it was all nights and so we only got a few hours each day between her waking up and having to go back to work, and on Saturday we decided to join the Coffee Break at the church in Englefield Green because I wanted to buy their 150 years anniversary calendar (after all, I lived in Englefield Green for several years, and there are really nice photos of the village in that calendar). Anyway, at the church we ran into their current vicar (who is the curate of a neighbouring town's church and standing in for the vicar who is on a year with the forces in Iraq) and got chatting to him - turns out we have a common friend: Eve. Eve, however, has nothing at all to do with church or faith - she and James know each other from the London Goth Meet! So that was quite a coincidence...

Finally, in the evening it was time for this year's Burns' Night Supper at the Addlestone & District Scottish Society - which always is a seriously posh affair anyway, but as it is the Society's 75 years anniversary season, it was extra posh this year! There were all the usual ceremonies like the Piping in of the Haggis, the Toasts, the Address to the Haggis, the Immortal Address (a eulogy to Robert Burns) and the Toast to the Lads and the Lassies; plus of course a traditional Haggis Dinner, Scottish songs sung by the ADSS Choir and Scottish Country Dancing. It was lovely seeing everybody again - I had not been dancing for several weeks due to still not feeling very well...

The ceremonies - the Toasts after the Address of the Haggis

Our table - me in the corner between two of my favourite dancers;
the other lady is my friend Trisha with her husband

The ADSS Choir - I'm at the very left behind Trisha