Monday update..

My "day off"....

• We Skyped with my son in Poland and caught up with him, which took a bit more time than I had anticipated. It was good though to see him.
• I set to work preparing for the funeral which I had to run at 2:30 p.m.
• The phone rang and it was a man from one of my chaplaincies who described the death of his sister's ex. As he talked I realised I knew the man. He wanted to know if I was available later in the week for a funeral if need be. The dead man had been addicted to alcohol... it is very sad. I received a further phone call about this and was to get a call back later tonight.
• I continued working and while having a bite to eat before heading out to conduct the funeral, there was yet another phone call. A chaplain. A very awkward issue had come up in her chaplaincy where she needed an extra chaplain for a meeting on Wednesday. Would I be willing to come along. I talked it over, finished my lunch and headed out to take the funeral. I was to get a further phone call about this later also.
• I conducted the funeral and actually enjoyed it. The lady who had died sounded like a real gem of a woman with a very talented family. As they with love celebrated her life I felt privileged to be a part of it. I kept pronouncing her name incorrectly... I hope they will forgive me.
• I went to the fire station to get a phone number, and talked with two men about family health issues they were having.
• I came home and we had a cup of tea then went shopping.
• I received my phone calls. I do not have big responsibilities with the man who died. I will continue to support the man who rang me. I will however be spending time with the CEO of a firm supporting him through a difficult issue on Wednesday.

That was my Monday "day off". Life is never boring and I began to wonder when the phone calls would stop. I do have a busier week ahead than I had planned. I thought I should report to any faithful readers that in spite of my grumpiness, I enjoyed conducting the funeral. There are rich rewards in my job that I need to remember when it seems difficult.