ROTTEN TO THE CORE

Before a friend came round for coffee this morning, I decided to have another wander around the garden to see if I could find a decent Blip for today. 

I had taken a photograph of a beautiful pink poppy yesterday, but didn’t put it into my collage thinking I could go out and take another shot today, which I did. However, it has changed in just a day, so I made another collage - in as an extra - so that you can see the difference. The one on the left is today and the one on the right was taken yesterday.

However, in the same raised bed in the garden is our Braeburn apple tree, and we’ve been watching the apples with interest since Mr HCB transplanted them earlier this year. There were three particular apples I was watching, but I was upset this morning to see that one of them was rotten on one side. 

I removed it from the tree because it was touching one of the others and I didn’t want the good one to be infected, but decided I would bring it indoors - after I had taken a photograph of course - cut off the rotten part and perhaps taste the half that wasn’t affected.

However on cutting through the apple, I could see that it was “rotten to the core”.   This, I have to say, made me think of all those who have been involved in the dreadful riots we have seen in the UK in recent days. Some of those involved are indeed “rotten to the core“ but some it must be said, have just joined in, because they have been incited to commit these pernicious acts by evil people. 

“If a person or organization is rotten to the core, they behave in a way that is not honest or moral: the word “core” here denotes the central part or heart of anything or anyone. The idiom was first recorded in 1804.

I was sure that this expression must’ve been used from time immemorial and sure enough, I found these verses in the Bible.

Matthew 12:34-40 The Passion Translation (TPT)

“But you who are known as the Pharisees 
     are rotten to the core like venomous snakes. 
How can your words be good 
     if you are rotten within? 
For what has been stored up in your hearts 
     will be heard in the overflow of your words!

And, of course, people’s actions show what is in their hearts too!

Whilst having coffee with my friend, she had a text from her son, who works in Swindon Town Centre, to say that crowds were gathering all around so the staff were being sent home for their own safety.  

There will be hundreds of people in our town centre today who will be very frightened - so before she left we prayed - for those involved and inciting any violence, for the police and for those trying to get away from whatever will be happening, not only in our town but across the UK.  Stay safe.  M xx