The Thoughtful One

It is strange how life spans out, forming patterns and lines that we never expect, spreading out to become a picture we have never seen before. And things fit together because when you're painting a picture, there is no room for something new where there is already something else.

I was reminiscing with Otis Burble earlier on, and I was telling him where his name came from. Even though he is of the firm belief that he was born in Cambridge and grew up in an upper class family, having inherited his name from his father, as is owl tradition, with the name of the river closest to his birth town, there remains another story which is much truer than his own. His own does exist, by the way, because he is of course a real owl and has a real history and a real memory, without which he would be a useless owl!

And now I remember, in a blur, the day Otis Burble was born. His portrait was complete, and I remember a feeling of great urgency to name him. So Clatalie and I, in that crucial moment in history, named him 'Otis' (Clatalie) and 'Burble' (me) to call into existence the Otis Burble we know today. I must not let him read this, or he might have a fit. Like in Doctor Who, revealing time to someone who is totally messed up time-wise, and oblivious to the predicament they may find themselves in, it is best to leave him thinking that he is a perfectly normal owl with a perfectly normal owl history. To me he is not perfectly normal, he is amazingly crazy and utterly bonkers, and the best thing is, he doesn't know how much he makes me laugh! Where would we be without Otis Burble?

This memory, and saying goodbye to so many people today has led me to look back on the path I have taken. The roads I have chosen have led to places that I could still leave by taking other turnings, and I thank God for that option! There is always a choice to turn back to the good ways, the sensible ways.

And as I look back, I am so grateful for the opportunities and the blessings I have experienced; the wisdom I have gained from my mistakes is much greater than the pain those mistakes have caused, and that must surely be a most valuable to hold within my heart.

And so I have reached a point - Otis obviously reached this point long before his birth, he is, after all, a wise old owl! - a point where I can finally look up and out onto this  beautiful world we live in. And it is colourful, because there are so many people out there, people with personalities and feelings, people making mistakes, making choices, making their lives worthwhile because they are learning and turning each moment into an opportunity. I know the excitement and joy to be greater than the pain and fear that we often mistakenly let reign within our souls.


On a lighter note, I have made a pact with Boris Romulus. He is to go to America and convince every American that he always wears a top hat and a monocle, that he, and every other British person, is related to the Queen, and that he will reconquer and reclaim what is British.
I'm sure something else happened that I'm meant to tell you about, but I've forgotten. Other than that we made gingerbread men at the group of someone we really wanted to meet from the Bible. I made Noah, because I would LOVE to have a really long chat with him and his experiences with God and the ark and the people around him. How did God speak to him? How did he know it was God? Where did he store the ark while he was building it? What did his friends say? What did his family say? What colour did he paint the ark? It's probably the most barmiest story in the Bible, and that's why I love it!