A funeral

I awoke early this morning to get ready for the Mass honoring Mary Magdalene. Since gardens are rare and precious in the Middle East, I thought I would begin my homily on that note. Then I would talk about how Pope Gregory conflated Magdalene with the sinful woman and her history has never been the same again. My words were extricate her of that improper judgment. 

Speaking of gardens, I had a little visitor from yesterday's garden, After showering and dressing, I felt what might have been a spider on my neck and onto my hair. I flicked it away but I wasn't confident that I shooed it away. Maybe it was nothing at all. Your imagination takes over when you are in a foreign land for this spider felt massive, and one never knows if it is poisonous. I felt it again a minute later, and this time I knocked it off me. I was tiny and it did not look ferocious. It was maybe an eighth of an inch but it felt like three inches when I could not tell where it was. I laughed at what our minds can do.

After Mass, a friend stopped over for a coffee so I baked some medium-sized quiches and a chocolate cake. She left before they were ready, but the quiches were quite tasty, and the cake was cooked just the right amount of time. I was relieved. I planned to frost it later, and since the oven was hot, I baked some ready made meat pies for lunch because we only have a cook on Mondays and Wednesdays. 

Later on when I came back to frost the cake, I discovered we had half a stick of butter, so I had to improvise and I made dark chocolate ganache to cover the cake. The cake should go very well with ice cream.

During the afternoon, I altered my plans to attend a funeral of a friend's husband. I know this woman from Bible Study, and her husband had been suffering from terminal cancer. He died yesterday so the burial was today with some prayers in the church on Sunday when his son can return from the U.S. The poor man was in a coma for half a year.

The funeral was Orthodox and it was supposed to last ten minutes. Since this was a well connected family, many priests arrived, but as one priest pointed out, not one of them visited him in the hospital or her at the family home. The service lasted 40 minutes because they needed to earn their tip. 

The body was brought in and the top of the casket was removed. The chapel was at a funeral home octagonally shaped with an altar stone in the center. The chanting of the priests was quite moving and at points there were five point harmony. I had no idea what they were saying except Alleluia and Amin. They would occasionally used the thurifer to incense the body, the priests, and the assembly. This thurifer was quite cool because there are ceramic balls attached to it as the incensing must have sound with it. Most people like the smells and bells of church rituals. 

Few people attended the burial, and the reception line moved quite fast. Afterwards, a meal was to be held at the function hall at the Orthodox Church in Sweifieh. I was invited to the lunch, but I was told I would sit with the men and eat mansaf. I like mansaf, but it would have been awkward to sit in silence with people I don't know for an hour. I'll get to the prayer service on Sunday, and I'll get to see the women of the Bible Study group.

I had no idea where I was. I followed a GPS to the cemetery, which I think was northeast of Jebel Hussein, where I live. I did not recognize any place on this route. There was a tall building called the Mega Mall but it seemed like an old empty shell of a building. I did like the Christian cemetery though. It was comforting to see the crosses and statues that are so familiar to me. It is, however, in a part of town that is not well connected to the major centers. 

Afterwards, I came home and worked on a watercolor painting. After sketching a supposed scene of Baghdad with pen, I quickly threw down some watercolors. It was a bit fun. After I did that, I walked to Al Abdali Mall to get in my steps. It is alway better to go in the evening. On my way, I met a man walking a dog. I had seen them before so I stopped and asked it I could pet their dog, whose name is Lucky. He was delighted, and so was Lucky. Lucky's coat was very soft and he was a mid-sized dogs. Most Muslims do not like to have dogs around, but I see more and more of them that are cared for well-enough. I was glad to be able to pet Lucky.

I took a long walk to the Mall, passing by the Judicial Court, the Education Center, some other official buildings, and some barracks. I always greet the soldiers, who look so stern, and they their face changes when I greet them. I like seeing the smiles, and I hope it is a bright spot in their day as well.