Peace on Earth?

Funny how sometimes one catches the mood of the land - some kind of spiritual synchronicity one assumes.

One's own 'prayer for the day' [see previous] has oddly been echoed by the presider of both the Nine Lessons and Carols from King's [see slightly more previous] and of Midnight Mass at the local Cathedral.

The latter - a real Bish Tom unlike my own fanciful creation - rather wonderfully invoked the image of the parent who pretends to be asleep when the new-born infant howls in the night hoping that other parent - slightly over-optimistic I own for him to assume these days there will be the standardised two of them to hand - will get up to attend to the needs for feeding, burping, changing et al.

We should not, urged the real Bish Tom, let others do these caring deeds, but must ourselves leap out of our beds to bring aid, succour and comfort to the lost, the lonely, the hurt and the sick. "I was a stranger...etc" as the Good Book says. A good thought to carry with one.

Tonight, though, I particularly fear for a local outbreak of decidedly non-peace on earth and not-so goodwill to all. E reports that her stable yard is riven with contention it having been revealed that some of the inmates - human as opposed to horse - have been compiling a 'Book of the Biatch' and that this slanderous - if totally typically teenage - occurrence has been brought to the attention of the doting parents of the delinquent teens.

Already, it seems, parent A has opined she will have a swing at parent B on behalf of her beloved off-spring, whilst parent C has withdrawn the offer to share a pony with the daughter of parent D.

As I have to attend with E at nine of the morning sharpish today in order to turn out our precious bundle of horse flesh, I am somewhat concerned that all eyes will turn my way for judgement and reconciliation when all I'm wanting to focus on is the correct temperature and duration for the cooking of the luncheon family goose!

Peace on Earth? Not this year I fear. Christians awake it seems. What a shame as I was so looking forward to a lie in!