I DON'T BELIEVE IT!

We had a great time at the iCaf today when 6 people came so we were even as far as students and volunteers were concerned.  We discussed the culture in this country and particularly with regard to inviting people to your home or being invited to someone else’s home for a cup of coffee or tea - which may or may not be accompanied by biscuits or cake or even, in Ireland, where Marie’s mother comes from, almost a complete meal! 

In our small groups, we discussed our favourite foods and whether we would invite friends to our home just for a drink, such as tea or coffee, and a biscuit or for a meal.  We enjoyed lots of different biscuits that Marie had brought along just to illustrate the point about our culture, of course and it would have been rude not to eat them!  

We also talked about good and bad table manners, such as not speaking whilst eating and several of them looked very surprised when I said this.  As an aside, I can remember on numerous occasions when I was a child at mealtimes being told “Don’t talk with your mouth full!”  We had quite an animated discussion about various things that were or were not acceptable at mealtimes.

We always finish with a short story from the Bible - after all, this is being held in a Church - and all those attending seem to enjoy that part of the class.

After clearing up, I went out for a wander around the local area - which is mainly housing with a main street of shops of all kinds, charity shops, a bakery, hairdressers and beauty parlours as well as food shops and cafés, many run by people from other nationalities.  After I had done some shopping in Iceland, I walked back towards the Church and who should I see sitting outside the little Brazilian café but Suzanne.  I first met her in 2015 HERE and again in 2016 and I haven’t seen since 26th July 2019 - and of course, then Covid arrived, so my visits to town were curtailed.  

It was so lovely to see her again today and she remembered me - in fact, my first words to her today were “I don’t believe it!”  I told her that I had just done a Presentation to a local Cancer Research Ladies Lunch Group and she was the star of one of my stories!  She told me she didn’t believe that, so I showed her my Blip shots from 16th April 2015, and then again on 26th July 2019 and said they were the ones I had shown the group - see my extra collage.  

She said herself that she looked awful in the first shot in 2015, but I said that was the first time I had met her when she told me her son had died from a heroin overdose and how we cried together.  She said she remembered that well and I know she did, because she mentioned Muffin Break, where I often used to meet her, and she also mentioned the fact that I used to put Post-It Notes up all around the town.  

By this time, I was sitting down opposite Suzanne, outside the café where she was making herself a “roll up”.  You can see that she has her puzzle book open and she told me that she comes over twice a week on the bus from the other side of town and loves this little café where they are so kind to her.  I immediately told her that the Church we attended and which was just one minute along the road, had a Community Fridge and she would be very welcome to come in there if she was around on a Monday, Tuesday or Thursday.  She asked me more about it, so of course, I told her - and said that on a Monday, if she came in, we had a café, and possibly now on a Thursday, so I really do hope she will come.  

She is an extraordinary lady - and when I asked if I could take her photograph to use as my Blip, she was quite happy and posed for me.  She then told me that she had helped a young man in town a few weeks ago, who was high on drugs, and when a Policeman had come, she stood up for this young man, as she said she hoped someone might have done for her son.  She told the Policeman that the lad was hungry, so he bought the lad a sandwich and a drink from a nearby takeaway shop.  Sadly then, she said, three more Policemen arrived and arrested him, which made her cry.  

However, she told me she was in town the next day and was pleased to see the same lad - the Police had obviously not kept him at the Police Station.  She said he came up to her and apologised that he had been under the influence of drugs, but was very grateful to her for taking his side.  I told you she was an extraordinary woman - and I do pray she will come to the Community Fridge so that I can chat to her more.  

So although the title is “I Don’t Believe It!” I am sure it wasn’t a coincidence that I met Suzanne today, but rather a “God-incidence” and in fact, even Suzanne said “We were meant to meet today, I’m sure - and I hope I see you again soon!”

“Jesus never says to the poor:
     ‘Come find the church’,
          but he said to those of us 
               in the church:
‘Go into the world and find the poor,
     hungry, homeless and imprisoned.”
Tony Campolo