Missing

Missing heat.... 
We got our heat pump cleaned last Monday and by Thursday it had stopped working. It seemed the man who cleaned it had got moisture where he ought not to have got moisture. The firm is covering the cost, but we have to do without our heat pump until Tuesday. We realise how important it is. Our house is in the shade of trees in the paddock beside us and trees on the hillside behind us. When we moved here 24 years ago they were very small trees, now grown they keep heaps of sun off our house in the winter months. I long for them to be harvested. Our heat pump keeps our house warm. We did not have one for many years and it cost heaps to heat the house, and even then it was only warm in the rooms we used. But now we miss it immensely when it is out of action. Roll on Tuesday. I must say that the man who cleaned it and caused the trouble rang yesterday and apologised. I appreciated that, it does not heat the house, but makes the waiting easier. A sincere apology when you have stuffed up goes a long way.
Missing health.. 
I have had a heavy cold (some women unkindly say "manflu") for the past week. From Tuesday morning to Thursday I should have stayed at home. It was extremely hard to cope with. On Friday I felt better but I think the drop-in centre with hours of table tennis was not a good idea. On Saturday I was feeling worse again. I led the service this morning but have felt like death warmed up since. At one stage in the service a woman was speaking and I felt like my nose was beginning to drip. I was sitting in front of a full church trying desperately to sniff quietly and with dignity. I went for a leisurely walk this afternoon with a friend, which was great, but I do miss my health. I am hoping to be leaping with new energy tomorrow morning.
Missing extra workers...
My daughter and son in law usually edit the Church Newsletter, type up the hymn power point slides for our church service and insert the ones I do along with Utube clips I often have. They took a trip to the North Island, arriving back a few minutes before the start of Church. I had to do it all. It was a special service with St John Ambulance joining us for a Church parade so it had to be well done. I did it and did it well, but they have the confidence to do it faster and in an unflappable way. I must admit to a few minutes of panic this morning. I was glad there were no flight delays today.
Missing a normal congregation...
This morning we had more than double the usual number at Church. We had this Church parade for St John Ambulance. There were quite a few elements within the service so I knew it was going to be tight fitting it all in. One speaker went a lot longer than I anticipated so I had to try to reduce other parts of the service to suit. It was all very stressful. I had to wear my St John chaplains' scarf and they told me I had to wear my Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit medal. Well the medal so weighed down one side of the scarf that it made it quite lopsided. It might be fine for a refined clergyman who does not wander around the stage like I do. My guess is that most of those attending do not usually go to Church and were attending out of a sense of duty. They look at you as if to say, "OK you've got me here! Impress me and get this thing over with!" I felt stressed about what I did, I did not do as well as I had hoped, but I think they found to their surprise somebody who spoke their language. I did get really good feedback from quite a few people. I think some of my church folk stayed at home because they knew of the visitors and it was also Mothers Day.
I could soon be a grandfather...
My son and daughter in law in Auckland are expecting a child this week. I think there are plans to induce labour so sometime about the middle of the week I could become a grandfather. I feel like I would love to be up there. My son is keen for us to visit soon after the event but I have to find a gap when we are not busy. I was talking to him on the phone tonight and it was like two friends talking. He was planning projects we could do together when we get there and a walk we could do. All my kids rang home for Mothers Day and had long conversations with their mum. I know they must live their lives, but sometimes I long for the house to be full again. I miss them when I have not seen them. Watch this space, I could have an even bigger family soon. I really am a rich, rich man in so many ways. I should stop growling about "missing" things. It just shows how fortunate I normally am.