The Passing

Last week I attended a burial.

It was a jolt, a reminder of the timelessness of  a body returning to the earth.

A simple ceremony, echoing back forever.

'Ashes to ashes, dust to dust' , came the windswept words, accompanied by the forlorn smattering of  handfuls of earth on polished wood.

We are all but dust.

A young pine tree swayed in the breeze next to the open grave.

It was growing where my uncle lay.

My aunt and uncle had been married over 60 years, constant companions in life.

Here they will  dance together again in the wind.

Two trees, growing stronger,

Side by side.

*********

The Passing Strange by John Masefield

Out of the earth to rest or range,
Perpetual in perpetual change,
The unknown passing through the strange.

Water and saltness held together,
To tread the dust and stand the weather,
And plough the field and stretch the tether,

To pass the wine-cup and be witty,
Water the sands and build the city,
Slaughter like devils and have pity,

Be red with rage and pale with lust,
Make beauty come, make peace, make trust,
Water and saltness mixed with dust;

Drive over earth, swim under sea,
Fly in the eagle's secrecy,
Guess where the hidden comets be;

Know all the deathy seeds that still
Queen Helen's beauty, Caesar's will,
And slay them even as they kill;

Fashion an altar for a rood,
Defile a continent with blood,
And watch a brother starve for food:

Love like a madman, shaking, blind,
Till self is burnt into a kind
Possession of another mind;

Brood upon beauty, till the grace
Of beauty with the holy face
Brings peace into the bitter place;

Prove in the lifeless granites, scan
The stars for hope, for guide, for plan;
Live as a woman or a man;

Fasten to lover or to friend,
Until the heart break at the end:
The break of death that cannot mend;

Then to lie useless, helpless, still,
Down in the earth, in dark, to fill
The roots of grass or daffodil.

Down in the earth, in dark, alone,
A mockery of the ghost in bone,
The strangeness, passing the unknown.

Time will go by, that outlasts clocks,
Dawn in the thorps will rouse the cocks,
Sunset be glory on the rocks:

But it, the thing, will never heed
Even the rootling from the seed
Thrusting to suck it for its need.

Since moons decay and suns decline,
How else should end this life of mine?
Water and saltness are not wine.

But in the darkest hour of night,
When even the foxes peer for sight,
The byre-cock crows; he feels the light.

So, in this water mixed with dust,
The byre-cock spirit crows from trust
That death will change because it must;

For all things change, the darkness changes,
The wandering spirits change their ranges,
The corn is gathered in the granges.

The corn is sown again, it grows
The stars burn out, the darkness goes;
The rhythms change, they do not close.

They change, and we, who pass like foam,
Like dust blown through the streets of Rome,
Change ever, too; we have no home,

Only a beauty, only a power,
Sad in the fruit, bright in the flower,
Endlessly erring for its hour,

But gathering, as we stray, a sense
Of Life, so lovely and intense,
It lingers when we wander hence,

That those who follow feel behind
Their backs, when all before is blind,
Our joy, a rampart to the mind.

The Accidental Archer

Recently, I accidentally found myself in an indoor archery championship.  I thought I was just going to enter a basic competition for fun, but no.  I was locked into a sports hall the size of Wembley Arena (or so it felt) with the best archers in Surrey and Middlesex.  I knew it was a mistake when the judge asked to see my 'release mechanism'.  I have a longbow, so this was my floppy, three fingered, bear paw glove.  The judge also asked if I wanted to check my bracing position.  As I had no idea what that might be, I said, 'no thank you' and hoped he hadn't spotted my confused look.  So here I was, surrounded by people with very high tech equipment, bows with winches and wheels on them, long sticky outy things at the front (stabilisers I think), and complicated sighting equipment.  It took them ages to set up, as they had to get out screw drivers to build the bows and set the sights.  I just strung my stick of wood and started bitterly regretting a) filling in the application form and b) having a very large coffee.

The targets were lined up along the far side of the hall, it looked like a long way away.  There was a very large curtain hanging behind them, the sort used to separate badminton courts.  The archers, bows all assembled and strung, stood in ranks behind the shooting line.  And so it started.  I was with a group of three, very nice and chatty archers, and we took turns to shoot, and then walk up to the target to calculate the scores.  This became increasingly embarrassing, as they were all getting golds or reds (the centre of the target, or near to it), while my arrows wouldn't go anywhere I wanted them to.  Once or twice, I would suffer the indignity of an arrow hitting the backing curtain, which then rippled the full width of the hall, showing that someone, further down the line HAD MISSED THE TARGET COMPLETELY.  When we went to collect our three arrows, and I only had two in the target, and the scoring person looked confused, I had to confess the missing arrow was the one dangling above us.

One of my arrows bounced out of the target, which I didn't mind too much, at least it had hit it.  I hadn't realised that this meant, after all the other BEST ARCHERS IN SURREY AND MIDDLESEX had finished shooting that 'end' (round), I had to stand BY MYSELF in front of them all AND SHOOT THE BOUNCED ARROW AGAIN.   After pleading quietly to whichever deity might be listening, 'please, please, please let me hit the target', I was very happy to not only hit it, but apparently get the gold IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TARGET.   I noticed a ripple of applause go round the hall, and realised I WAS BEING APPLAUDED BY THE BEST ARCHERS IN SURREY AND MIDDLESEX.  When I went to get the arrow, it was actually in the red, but I wasn't too worried.

After what felt like a very long afternoon, I achieved a personal worst score and came bottom in the ladies section.  This was no real disappointment, as was pointed out to me, I had actually achieved my best ever score in a tournament.