“To every thing there is a season…” Part 2
Without and within,
passing years leave their mark
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and narrow our views.
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Pictures of a chapel undergoing repairs taken in Kummumpuram, Cochin.
I find the tenor’s voice amazing – like something lifted from the Russian Orthodox liturgy.
Piaf’s power and poignancy is, as always, totally beyond description..
A subtitled visual clip of this performance can be found here.
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Lost Causes
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I pass this chapel several times a week
And have done so for almost three years.
But only recently has it struck me that invariably people sit silently beside its entrance,
Something not seen outside of other chapels.
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Those who usually pass their hours here are women of a certain age.
Women wearing white saris:
The statement of widowhood.
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Occasionally elderly men will join them,
At a distance.
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The chapel is dedicated to St Jude, patron saint of lost causes.
Boldly written across its façade are the words:
“In confidence we invoke thee
Helper in difficult cases”
St Jude’s provides sanctuary perhaps,
To those who fear the utter loneliness of despair.
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Neither Use Nor Ornament 