JULY 2019 Ministerial Musings Dolce Far Niente Dolce Far Niente or "Sweet Idleness" Is One of Our Recurring Dreams

JULY 2019
Ministerial Musings
Dolce Far Niente
Dolce far niente or “sweet idleness” is one of our recurring dreams,

especially when the holiday season is close. There is something very
attractive in the idea of taking it easy, of having a lay down in the
middle of the day or saying to own self: “tomorrow, domani, manana”,
without having that feeling of guilt, which comes from the ingrained
Protestant ethic picked up during childhood. I do remember until this
day a little poem, taught by my mother, who would recite it to me,
every time I tried to avoid a household chore. Here is a tentative
translation:
”Tomorrow, tomorrow,
I will surely do it tomorrow,
But today
I`ll just eat and drink and play.
This is the song of the idle.”
Did you have something similar held over your head? What about the
slightly biblical flavoured “the devil finds work for idle hands”? Do you
feel guilty when you postpone or procrastinate? Sometime I think that
our upbringing has a lot to answer for. 
Holiday time is bliss, because you can do, or not do, anything and it is
perfectly acceptable, even by our puritan standards. After all, this is
what holiday time is for and for once you can send the feelings of
uneasiness, the pangs of conscience packing. Of course, you cannot do
this during working hours, as for that you would need a Mediterranean
setting and a temperament to go with it. The English climate is not
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conducive to drowsiness and the English temperament even less to
that off-handed dealing with life`s big questions. But you can admire
this attitude from afar and give it a try during your holidays.
Unfortunately, nowadays, even the “sweet idleness” needs some

planning, sometime way in advance. You wade through yards of
publicity material, you read thousands of reviews, you look up maps
and book trips and buy extra luggage to pack for all contingencies. And
once there, do you savour the moment, the place, the encounters or
you keep worrying about this and that?
If you decide to stay at home, then you deal with other kinds of plans:
reading all the books you have been putting aside during the year,
which by this time amount to a small, shaky mountain with a close
resemblance to the leaning tower of Pisa; doing that deep-clean of the
house you have been promising yourself to do for a couple of months
now; sorting stuff out of the cupboards, which have taken on a life of
their own and come spilling out every time you open the door; painting
the garden fence a la Tom Sawyer, making it an enviable undertaking
for the neighbours; writing all the materials you promised but never
delivered and so on and so forth.
Really – you tell yourself – you can do all this not as a chore but as fun
and at your own pace, and there is always a domani, a manana, a
tomorrow to finish it.
Could this be considered “sweet idleness”? Is this sweet idleness or just

as close as you can get to it?
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Dolce far niente in its proper context primarily means the sweetness of
doing nothing, the ability to enjoy the moment, but very few are able
to live up to it.
Holidays are a good time to give it a try, though. Perhaps you need to
forget all the plans, just let yourself be taken by the flow and handily
vague do the things which your whimsy fancies at the moment.
So whatever you decide, have a good time! All you need is a little
equanimity, a liberal approach to the given time and some prayers to
the Almighty in this little matter of the “English weather”!
See you at the OMH.
Mária
P.S. “Going, going, gone”! (On holiday between July 15 – August 15)
PASTORAL NEWS
Congratulations to Catherine and Stephen Wycherley on the birth of

their sixth grandchild on June 11th . May God`s blessing be on Theo
James, his parents, grandparents and extended family.
SUNDAY SERVICES FLOWERS
July 7th 6-30 pm Rev Mária Pap Mrs J Wormall

July 14th 10-45am Rev Mária Pap Mrs J Tedds
July 21st 10- 45 am Mr Roy Wain Mrs J Burroughs
July 28th 10-45 am Congregational Service Mrs M Sharpe
Mr Paul Frost “Beliefs”
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STEWARDS
July 7th 6-30 pm Mr P Frost

July 14th 10-45 am Mrs J Tedds
July 21st 10-45 am Mr N Fisher
July 28th 10-45 am Mr R Wain
SATURDAY COFFEE MORNING ROTA CHAPEL OPENING ROTA
July 6th Miss C Wright Mrs C Wycherley Mrs L Walton

July 13th Ms A Perry Rev M Pap Mr N Fisher
July 20th Mrs A Binch Mrs J Tedds Mr T Williams
July 27th Miss C Wright Mrs C Wycherley Mrs L Walton
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DIARY DATES FOR JULY
Mon July 1st Old Meeting House AGM 7-00 pm

Tue July 2nd Derek Taylor Yoga Group 6-30 pm
Wed July 3rd Women’s League 2-30 pm
Fri July 5th Words, Music, Silence 11-45 am
Sat July 6th Heritage Planning Meeting 11-15 am
Mon July 8th Arts and Crafts 7-00 pm
Tue July 9th Derek Taylor Yoga Group 6-30 pm
Wed July 10th Meditation 7-15 pm
Mon July 22nd Arts and Crafts 7-00 pm
Tue July 23rd Derek Taylor Yoga Group 6-30 pm
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CONGREGATIONAL SERVICES
This month’s Congregational Service will be at 10.45 am on Sunday,

29th July, led by Paul Frost. It will be on the theme of ‘Beliefs’ and you
are invited to offer contributions of songs, poems, readings or personal
views by Sunday, 21st July, please.
We have received a suggestion for a future Congregational Service on

references to Unitarianism in literature. This could include books we
have read that refer to famous Unitarians, Unitarian beliefs, buildings,
personalities etc. This is a fascinating theme, but is dependent upon
finding such referrals to arrange a service on them. So keep reading
and do let us know of any discoveries you make. Derek
NATIONAL HERITAGE WEEKEND
The next Meeting to plan our Heritage Exhibition in September will be

held at 11.15 a.m. on Saturday, 6th July. See you there. Derek
MUSIC AT OMH
The 2018-19 Season of Music at OMH ended, on Saturday, 15th June,

with a concert by the duo known as “Liquid Lunch”. The concert was
an hour packed with songs, from both sides of the Atlantic, dating from
the late 50s through to the 70s. We were offered the option to join in,
an offer which several of the audience seized with both hands.
(Perhaps our own Glee Club should be booked for next year!) The
audience were full of praise for our guests and several were heard to
say that a return visit would be very well received.
At the end of the closing season we say a big “Thank you!” to Tom for
organising the recitals. We now look forward to the 2019-20 Season,
opening in September.
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CHAPEL PICNIC
Sadly only seven of us met in Newstead Abbey gardens for the picnic,
but those who made it enjoyed a relaxing 3 hours of fellowship. Our
picnic spot gave us a wonderful view of the sizez shapes and colours of
many , many trees, a wonderful “trailer” for the Congregational Service
with the theme of “Trees” the following morning. A very enjoyable
Tree Weekend.
ANIMAL VOLUNTEERS?
Through out the years animals have walked and worked alongside
humankind,
Many times to animals’ detriment.
Did animals ask to work down a mine?

Did animals ask to be in a war zone?
Did animals ask to be hunted?
Did animals ask to be in a lab?
Did animals ask to be in an abattoir?
Did animals ask to be on your plate?
None of these situations did any of our wildlife volunteer for,
So let humankind volunteer to look after and protect our natural life.
Through our present Earth journey, and into the next, animals and
humans
Will both benefit spiritually.
We can all volunteer for that.
Alistair Hamilton
DEADLINE for July edition is Sunday, 21st July 2019.

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JULY 2019

Dolce Far Niente

Dolce far niente or “sweet idleness” is one of our recurring dreams,

Unfortunately, nowadays, even the “sweet idleness” needs some

Could this be considered “sweet idleness”? Is this sweet idleness or just

Congratulations to Catherine and Stephen Wycherley on the birth of

SUNDAY SERVICES FLOWERS

July 7th 6-30 pm Rev Mária Pap Mrs J Wormall

July 7th 6-30 pm Mr P Frost

SATURDAY COFFEE MORNING ROTA CHAPEL OPENING ROTA

July 6th Miss C Wright Mrs C Wycherley Mrs L Walton

DIARY DATES FOR JULY

Mon July 1st Old Meeting House AGM 7-00 pm

This month’s Congregational Service will be at 10.45 am on Sunday,

We have received a suggestion for a future Congregational Service on

NATIONAL HERITAGE WEEKEND

The next Meeting to plan our Heritage Exhibition in September will be

The 2018-19 Season of Music at OMH ended, on Saturday, 15th June,

Did animals ask to work down a mine?

DEADLINE for July edition is Sunday, 21st July 2019.

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