Charlotte and I decided to take a day off work in the week and go to Worcester. She had very kindly prepared a similar trip for my birthday in December but Lord of the Rails Mick Lynch saw to it that we could not leave Birmingham that day. Thankfully Mick must have been distracted last week as we were able to go to Worcester without issue. We began the day by going to Mass at St George’s, a beautiful church near the station. This was followed by a visit to the Worcester Museum and Art Gallery, the latter part of which was closed. Then we saw the monumental Guildhall and enjoyed a choir of Welsh men singing, as it was St David’s day. Before finishing our day at Worcester Cathedral, we stopped for lunch.
All the coffee we prepare comes from our farm near the central-western region of Colombia, in the municipality of Filandia and Pijao at the Quindio Department
Our first choice, Friars Street Kitchen, was as closed as the Art Gallery. We decided on the fly to go to Francini Cafe de Colombia. We were not disappointed! The first thing Charlotte ordered the Farmer filter coffee. This is a mellow filter with Francini’s original syrup made with honey, cinnamon and cloves. You can try it with milk, lime or classic black. Charlotte had it black. I gave up coffee for Lent and could not have any. This was one of the most acutely painful experiences of my whole entire life.
For the first round of nosh, we had arepas. These are pan fried corn cakes, popular in Latin America. Charlotte and I had the chicken and beef stuffing respectively. These were immensely flavoursome. Charlotte said, while imitating me, that it was delicately spiced and aromatic. We had it alongside some delightful hot sauce which enhanced the flavour to no end.
Our second round was the vegetable patacones. These are twice fried plantain slices. They were topped with avocadao, onions, tomato, olives and a lovely pesto garnish. Having about 2.5 of our five a day in one dish was a plus. This tasted fresh and zingy.
Overall this was a very special place. It has been open since 2014 and they have honed their service to a finely tuned machine. The place was warm, welcome, and the food was superb. We will absolutely return, and perhaps next time I shall be able to sample the coffee!
One album I have kept coming back to this month is Blue Weekend. This album, by London group Wolf Alice is a sort of ethereal rock feast. Produced by Markus Dravs, (Coldplay, Arcade Fire, Mumford & Sons, Florence + the Machine), it certainly packs a punch. Listening to this album transported me into a musical nowhere zone where one floats and lets themselves be carried. There are a few real standout tracks which almost make you feel as though you are at a live show.
Without wishing to heap on unreasonable expectations, it has the distinct tang of an album that could be huge. There’s something undeniable about it, the beguiling sound of a band doing what they do exceptionally well, so that even the most devoted naysayer might be forced to understand its success. Guardian
The first standout for me is Delicious Things. Unfortunately from a lawyer perspective, this song is about taking drugs proffered to Ellie Roswell, the lead singer, while she was out in Los Angeles. It goes without saying that this is not recommended. Musically however, this is a whopper of a track. The way it blends with the preceding track and delivers such force is a marvel to behold.
How Can I Make It OK is another of my favourite tracks. The synth, vocals and driving beat of the track is beautiful and ethereal. The track progresses from a subtle start to an overwhelming wall of sound which I have come to associate with this album. Wolf Alice’s soundscape is very well defined.
Even the acoustic, ostensibly lightweight Safe from Heartbreak (If You Never Fall in Love) packs an Abba-esque lilt to its melody and harmonised vocals. Despite the litany of late-20s worries in the lyrics – friendships floundering as priorities shift (The Beach); the continued allure of hedonism battling the sneaking suspicion it’s not providing the escape it once did (Delicious Things); the desire to keep romantic relationships going despite their evident failings (“I take you back, I know it seems surprising,” shrugs Lipstick on the Glass) – Rowsell’s vocals feel assured, confidently shifting from whispered intimacy to full-throated, arena-rousing, yowling anger, to cut-glass iciness. Guardian
No Hard Feelings is a sensitive breakup track. It is mature and forward thinking, and is also put here sequentially for the purpose of easing us into the last track. We are landing with this track. From a practical standpoint however, I would not take Wolf Alice’s advice and meet with one’s exes.
“No Hard Feelings” mostly consists of Rowsell’s voice backed by bass guitar and almost nothing else—none of the triple-tracked vocals, no guitarmonies, no bleats of synthesizer or Sistine Chapel reverb. Not that it lacks for drama: Rowsell spends the second verse heartbroken in a bathtub, listening to Amy Winehouse, trying to siphon the pain in her music as her own. A few lines later, she realizes “there’s only so much sulking the heart can entertain,” and “No Hard Feelings” emerges as an unusually mature and forward-thinking breakup song. Pitchfork
A masterful, coherent, stellar and varied work. This album showcases a range of talents and a high aptitude for creating a lasting and individual sound. What will Wolf Alice do next?
What is a sacrament? The sacraments are “efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us” (CCC 1131). A sacrament is a sacred and visible sign that is instituted by Jesus to give us grace, an undeserved gift from God. We covered in the last post the seven sacraments (Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Reconciliation, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders and Matrimony). This year, I will likely be receiving the sacrament of confirmation, as I am working towards becoming a fully integrated member of the Church. Working towards this has opened my eyes to the marvel of the faith and its importance in our lives. Charlotte and I will also be entering into the sacrament of matrimony. I wanted to have a look at this painting with you, ahead of this wondrous day.
Jesus told the Pharisees, “What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder” Matthew 19:6
Pope Paul VI wrote: “By it [the Sacrament of Matrimony] husband and wife are strengthened and…consecrated for the faithful accomplishment of their proper duties, for the carrying out of their proper vocation even to perfection, and the Christian witness which is proper to them before the whole world” (Humanae Vitae, n. 25).
The composition of this painting is beautiful. The priest is standing over the engaged couple, who kneel at the altar. The light is falling on the priest and also the heads of the two betrothed, which makes for a beautiful effect. The bride has a rosary draped over her robe. The scene is plain, and the robe is not white or elaborate. Rather, the priest is the one in white in this painting. I imagine this was done this way in order to accentuate the importance of the sacrament, rather than the wedding itself. This was done as a series of paintings on the seven sacraments so it stands to reason Crespi would have wanted to keep the focus on the sacrament itself. The couple here are confecting the sacrament of marriage. This is a very important moment in the Mass, which I look forward to taking part in later this year.
This is a beautiful painting which represents a beautiful moment. Charlotte and I have both said the Nuptual Mass is the part of our wedding day we are most looking forward to (as well as the panettone bread and butter pudding).
I came across this painting as it was the feature image on an article by a priest who was rather upset at Pope Francis’ off the cuff remark that nobody should be denied absolution in the confessional. This is not in line with the Church’s teaching, which states clearly that if a sinner is not repentant, he should not be given absolution (essentially wiping the slate clean) in the confessional. In any case, the painting is quite striking.
The sweet yet pert woman kneeling in the confessional was thought by some contemporary critics to represent a young mother who had yielded to the advances of an admirer. Meticulously captured in all the details of furnishing and dress, the contemporary scene was instead seen by the Catholic critic Pietro Estense Selvatico as designed to illustrate the moral beauty of everyday life. Google Arts & Culture
This is a beautiful painting, to me. The situation is not necessarily in keeping with confessionals which I have seen, most of which are closed and private, but it is impressive nonetheless. A young lady is kneeling in humility on the outside of a confessional box. A priest, wearing a beautiful purple stole is listening attentively to her words. Confession involves a a ritual praying for the healing of a person from the power of evil and a reunion with the God. I won’t go into any great depth about sin here, but I wanted to include the wording of absolution which the priest utters, after hearing a confession (and if the penitent makes a firm purpose of amendment, mind you):
God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church, may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Part of the reason I wanted to share this painting was to show you a beautiful work of art, with wonderful proportions, depth, colours and hues. I also wanted to pipe up as an advocate of confession as a humbling and beautiful sacrament. It is not something to take on lightly, but when done, we are kneeling in the confessional, speaking to a priest who is in persona Christi, representing Christ opposite you. Confession unburdens us from our sins, makes us white as snow, and is a humbling as well as therapeutic. It helps us to consider what we have done to put us far away from God in the week(s) between confessions. Considering what we could do better in our every day lives is key to continually improving, and building momentum in our growth towards grace and God.
It is said that this painting may have been inspired by Guiseppe Maria Crespi’s Confession, which he painted as part of a series on the Seven Sacraments (Baptism, Confession, Confirmation, Communion, Extreme Unction, Ordination and Matrimony). I will likely do a post soon on the latter.
One day Crespi saw a man in the confessional at San Benedetto’s confessing his sins to the priest. A ray of sunlight fell on the man’s head and shoulders, and was reflected inside the small chamber to produce the most beautiful contrast between light and dark that can be imagined. He [Crespi] studied it very carefully and, as soon as he was back home, did a small drawing of the scene. Then he sent two porters to fetch him a confessional, which he promptly installed in his room with staged lighting. He introduced Ludovico Mattioli, who chanced to be there, into the scene of the confession, and painted him so well that everyone recognised him, as they did the priest, who was the same person who had lent him the confessional.’ Zanotti further recounts that Crespi made a gift of the painting to Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni in Rome, who was highly delighted and commissioned the remaining six paintings. Web Gallery of Art
I will try to post more regularly going forward. Life does get in the way sometimes!
Heartfelt thanks to my dear Papa who first suggested this to me. I am not as familiar with Graceland as I ought to be but I understand this is an album which was sufficiently weighty to square up to it. Indeed I have listened and re-listened to this album countless times over the year, by myself, with Charlotte and with Nick and it has improved on every listen. It covers themes like love, ageing, and the onslaught of modern life. Regrettably I do not have enough time to give this album the depth of review which it deserves. However, the album does not need my endorsement, it sold two million copies and was nominated for two Grammys.
Though he recorded the album’s prominent percussion tracks in Brazil, Paul Simon fashioned The Rhythm of the Saints as a deliberate follow-up to the artistic breakthrough and commercial comeback that was the South Africa-tinged Graceland.
In the opening track, the protagonist seeks solace in a higher power when he considers his own mortality. The cross is in the ballpark,” Simon sings. “Why deny the obvious child?”. This is followed by The Coast in which a family of travelling musicians take refuge in the harbour church of Saint Cecilia, who is the patron Saint of music.
In counterpoint to these portraits of human affirmation, Simon casts haunted images of damage and helplessness. On the hypnotic “Can’t Run But,” he parallels with unrelenting grimness the steady erosion of the environment, romantic love and even the ability of music to transport the soul. Rolling Stone
This album does require a few re-listens in order to be fully appreciated. Simon paints abstract musical and poetic tableaus with the tracks in this album. The Cool Cool River is one such track, and is worth having a few goes at. The rewards are legion.
Powered by a surging, jagged 9/8 time signature, “The Cool, Cool River” runs through the thematic center of the album. After sketching a canvas of violence, oppression and isolation, Simon fixes the moment when a soul takes flight: “Anger and no one can heal it/Slides through the metal detector/Lives like a mole in a motel/A slide in a slide projector/The cool, cool river/Sweeps the wild, white ocean/The rage of love turns inward/To prayers of deep devotion.” In a startling moment, Simon offers this stark epiphany: “And I believe in the future/We shall suffer no more/Maybe not in my lifetime/But in yours I feel sure.” Rolling Stone
Overall, while I wish I had more time to explore this wonderful album, I shall leave it there. Suffice to say, this is one of those rare albums which hit hard and stay with you for many years, as I am sure will be the case here.
