I woke up yesterday with all kinds of wonderful intentions for tidying the house and doing some marking of papers, washing. changing the bedding, writing to you, and so on. I attended a long and wonderful Omani wedding on Thursday night, so was in no mood for getting up early. I will definitely write more on that later as it was really something special.
I inspired myself into consciousness slowly and without pressure, having a delicious peanut butter and honey toast with coffee to kickstart the day. I had just started getting the washing together and stripping the bed, when a text came through from Matthew in London. I think a third of the planet was watching the Royal wedding yesterday, and so was he. Well, that was that. I thought I would take a little peak and was completely and totally sucked into the whole thing in just a few minutes. I do love a ceremony, especially one with wonderful music, horses, carriages, hunky men in uniforms. There was a slight feeling of dejavu there, and I was transported back to high school when all the girls in our school uniforms in neat rows watched Charles and Diana tie the knot.
I liked the beginning of the ceremony, with the pastor starting the ceremony by saying that every wedding is a royal wedding in its own way, as the couple are king and queen for that day. I had just experienced the Omani version of that the evening before, and it was also natural for my mind to go back to my own wedding. It was a beautiful day, and I really did feel like a queen.
During my first three years in Oman at the Centre for British Teachers, or as it is now known in my circles 'The place we shall not mention', we always used to sponsor a few orphans to study with us in the summer months. I became close to one boy who I have stayed in touch with through the years. I organised for him to continue at the institute outside the summer for the normal courses, and I recall one year when he told me that he had never celebrated his birthday. I baked him a chocolate cake and we had a little class party and although it was his 16th birthay, he had the joy of a 6-year old on his face.
He is now 20 and working, but life is still not easy. We are in quite regular contact and I refer to him as my Omani brother. He is a thinker, curious about life and how it works, and has not allowed all the hard knocks he has taken to make him cynical. He is also reading Khalil Gibran and we discuss many different issues. We often send each other positive and encouraging messages, and sometimes he has a way of saying in a simple way just what I need to hear.
I went out and had a delicious dinner and catch-up with my friend Tricia, who will hopefully be moving in next door soon. We talked about many things, my potential business opportunity, her moving, the upcoming summer holidays. I came home around 9 and thought I would settle into some marking, but started watching a film I have been wanting to see for a long time, "Milliondollar Baby". Very emotionally moving as well as a good powerful story.
I felt somehow really moved and fulfilled by my weekend, and the different meaningful experiences that had come my way. I was resisting going to sleep, lying in my majilis doing a review of the day, counting my blessing, thinking how much my mother Hester would have loved that royal wedding experience, and how I missed her.
In that moment my phone beeped, and it was a message from Suhail,
'Always remember, the secret of life is the power of love'.
I inspired myself into consciousness slowly and without pressure, having a delicious peanut butter and honey toast with coffee to kickstart the day. I had just started getting the washing together and stripping the bed, when a text came through from Matthew in London. I think a third of the planet was watching the Royal wedding yesterday, and so was he. Well, that was that. I thought I would take a little peak and was completely and totally sucked into the whole thing in just a few minutes. I do love a ceremony, especially one with wonderful music, horses, carriages, hunky men in uniforms. There was a slight feeling of dejavu there, and I was transported back to high school when all the girls in our school uniforms in neat rows watched Charles and Diana tie the knot.
I liked the beginning of the ceremony, with the pastor starting the ceremony by saying that every wedding is a royal wedding in its own way, as the couple are king and queen for that day. I had just experienced the Omani version of that the evening before, and it was also natural for my mind to go back to my own wedding. It was a beautiful day, and I really did feel like a queen.
During my first three years in Oman at the Centre for British Teachers, or as it is now known in my circles 'The place we shall not mention', we always used to sponsor a few orphans to study with us in the summer months. I became close to one boy who I have stayed in touch with through the years. I organised for him to continue at the institute outside the summer for the normal courses, and I recall one year when he told me that he had never celebrated his birthday. I baked him a chocolate cake and we had a little class party and although it was his 16th birthay, he had the joy of a 6-year old on his face.
He is now 20 and working, but life is still not easy. We are in quite regular contact and I refer to him as my Omani brother. He is a thinker, curious about life and how it works, and has not allowed all the hard knocks he has taken to make him cynical. He is also reading Khalil Gibran and we discuss many different issues. We often send each other positive and encouraging messages, and sometimes he has a way of saying in a simple way just what I need to hear.
I went out and had a delicious dinner and catch-up with my friend Tricia, who will hopefully be moving in next door soon. We talked about many things, my potential business opportunity, her moving, the upcoming summer holidays. I came home around 9 and thought I would settle into some marking, but started watching a film I have been wanting to see for a long time, "Milliondollar Baby". Very emotionally moving as well as a good powerful story.
I felt somehow really moved and fulfilled by my weekend, and the different meaningful experiences that had come my way. I was resisting going to sleep, lying in my majilis doing a review of the day, counting my blessing, thinking how much my mother Hester would have loved that royal wedding experience, and how I missed her.
In that moment my phone beeped, and it was a message from Suhail,
'Always remember, the secret of life is the power of love'.
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