Moments that matter

Wake up you drunkards and weep (Joel 1:5)
When addressing those most affected by disaster, 'drunkards' seems a strange place to start . Why drunkards? And not just drunkards. Joel also includes all 'drinkers of wine'. 'Wail because of the wine for it has been snatched from your lips'. They are just on the point of enjoying a glass of their favourite tipple and it is whipped away. It is the suddenness that seems so hard, the lost expectation without any warning.
Our close friends' daughter is getting married today. She is a meticulous planner almost to the point of pathology. Every detail of every moment organised. And then at the last it is snatched away. Years of joyful anticipation lost in a moment. It is hard not to feel tearful for them. Yet they are getting married.
And I wondered if this isn't the point; possibly even why Joel starts with 'drunkard'. Someone addicted to alcohol cannot see beyond the drink and when it is taken away their world is lost. And yet it is not. Indeed it may for them have only just begun. Their first step to recovery is to stop drinking.
For many marriage has got lost in The Wedding. So much time and energy go into planning, flowers, dresses, receptions and guests that getting married takes second place. Today that cannot be the case. The only thing that can possibly be important is that they wed. Everything else has been whipped away.
Can we in some way let this moment to do the same to us? Can we allow it to show us what really matters? If it is family, learn to Skype or Zoom or Facetime or even use the speaker phone. If it is friends, email is surprisingly effective and you've got lots of time to write a proper letter rather than the incoherent scribbles usually produced. If it is faith, what better opportunity to meet with God than in the quiet of your home. And if your home is anything but quiet then you'd better learn to enjoy Monopoly. It teaches young children to count, to read, to analyse and to argue politely. What could be better?

Today I saw the first blossom in the garden, usually missed in the busyness

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