One Christmas Bell And A Funeral

Back in c1957 one of my fellow pupils as Ushaw Moor County School was selected to sing a Christmas carol solo in Durham Cathedral. Although his surname was Bell  he was not related to me. Has anyone got any memory of this? Does anyone know what happened to him thereafter?

Moving on, an elderly and lovely member of our family died recently. Although he had  an interesting and eventful life his loss  is still painful for all who knew him well. We can easily laugh and feel good when remembering him, but then the knowledge that we are not going to see him again kicks in.

When I was about 14 I recall a warm and cloudless day of adventure. There were two of us out for the day and eventually we came across a graveyard. Most of the graves looked old and not in their best state, but one of them stood out. It had a shiny look about it and was full of green 'chippings'. I imagine that the person had died recently and I recall to this day that he was 66 when he met his demise. I suppose that was my first feeling of serious vunerability. It certainly made a big impression upon me because 66 became my unlucky number. Superstition kicked in and perhaps I was going to die at 66! That is the thing about superstition; it is mindless rubbish. Even if I go at 66 it will be pure coincidence. I do not buy fatalism. Although I am sure that none of us entirely have the free will that some religions go on about - we still have a good measure of it. Life is short. Life can be fun on a sixpence. Life can be great and often much longer for those that see a half full glass, rather than a half empty one.

My goodness that funeral has has an effect! Still there is Christmas to look forward to. There will be mince pies, holly and goodwill. Also I must not forget the Christmas Bell.

WB