Thought for the day
Thomas Hardy's, The Darkling Thrush, read by Richard Wallace
The Darkling Thrush
BY THOMAS HARDY
I leant upon a coppice gate
When Frost was spectre-grey,
And Winter's dregs made desolate
The weakening eye of day.
The tangled bine-stems scored the sky
Like strings of broken lyres,
And all mankind that haunted nigh
Had sought their household fires.
The land's sharp features seemed to be
The Century's corpse outleant,
His crypt the cloudy canopy,
The wind his death-lament.
The ancient pulse of germ and birth
Was shrunken hard and dry,
And every spirit upon earth
Seemed fervourless as I.
At once a voice arose among
The bleak twigs overhead
In a full-hearted evensong
Of joy illimited;
An aged thrush, frail, gaunt, and small,
In blast-beruffled plume,
Had chosen thus to fling his soul
Upon the growing gloom.
So little cause for carolings
Of such ecstatic sound
Was written on terrestrial things
Afar or nigh around,
That I could think there trembled through
His happy good-night air
Some blessed Hope, whereof he knew
And I was unaware.
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I'm Beth, Life Event Coordinator. Over the past few months, we have been busy with baptisms, weddings and funerals. From small wedding blessings with only a couple and a priest present to large affairs with over 300 guests we feel glad to have supported people during key moments in their lives. I've noticed that life event services need cooperation from the whole team at St. Mary's: Cleaners keeping the church spotless; Clergy and Vergers running a seamless service on the day; talented Musicians providing deeply moving music; the Events team rearranging schedules and tours to fit services in the diary; much admin preparation before the day; careful diligence from our Finance Manager to ensure every penny of donations are sent to families charity of choice. The love and care put in by the team here is apparent to me and hopefully reassures you that St. Mary's will be here for you in both the highlights and hard times that you face. Beth Herbert
Kingdoms of Europe card game, circa 1895 Jaques & Son, 102 Hatton Garden, London
Preached by the Revd Dr Brutus Green
Preached by Canon Dr Stephen Spencer
