Saying goodbye.

Today we said goodbye to an ancient parishioner. She was 94, and had lived in this parish since 1952 (the year I was born!!!)
As I talked about her I started to cry. I always fear this. My experience leads me to believe that I am not entirely aware about when I am going to cry and when I am not (I'll tell you the Jack Somerton story another day..!). I have learnt , amidst my arrogance, of over 30 years as a priest that, and all the rubbish that goes on in religion, what it's actually about is the people.
I come home from Kirk on Sunday and think..."That was not so great this morning!"...and when I actually ask myself what was good ...it's the people. Always the people!  They get you every time.
Having been here for over a decade and a half...a great privilege in itself.... I now know that  I have deep connections with all sorts of people.
This is a deep insight about what I think I am doing...I love the doctrine, particularly when it makes sense and connects with everything that I am as a person. This is true about the strange doctrine of the Trinity which we celebrate this week. Some will think this is the God of doctrine, I choose rather to think this is the God who is relating to us as people. (here)  Sisters, brothers, sons, daughters, ancestors.
Joan, whose funeral it was today, was a woman of deep faith. She was so in love with God, the Lord holy Jesus, and all that God had given to her, that she was able to love hjer children, her friends, her grandchildren (she really loved them) and she even loved me!
So, I cried, surprisingly. I desperately didn't want people to think that I was faking it.
I wasn't 
It just happened.
I am privileged to have known her
We all need to be a bit more aware about how privileged we are to share our lives with others.