My little Gnudren,

Old Gnu apologises to the two readers of his blog for his prolonged silence. He has been busy following Mr. Trump’s example of building a wall. Gnu’s wall is not aimed at keeping out Mexicans – they are always welcome. It is for converting an open plan attic room into a self-contained unit, a quiet haven for Mrs. Gnu while deaf old Gnu clatters and bangs his way round the house.  And so far, there hasn’t been an executive order from the president to stop building it. So, all things being equal [which they’re not], this wall will be completed.

This is the stage it has reached to date:

At the top of the stairs there will be a non-regulation door. “What is a non-regulation door?” you ask. Well, it’s best explained like this: it’s a door you open and forget there is no landing and fall straight down the stairs. Old Gnu has found this a very worthwhile project for someone who is nearly 70. It comes from watching too much “Escape to the Chateau DIY”. He is planning an extension on the house next when Mrs. Gnu isn’t looking.

Now consider the photo above. The vertical posts – “studs” – and the short cross members – “noggins” – are the frame on which the “herniasly” heavy sheets of MDF board will be screwed. Until this latest endeavour, he hadn’t come across noggins. The word can mean one of at least five things. Yet no one is certain of the origin of the word. It’s a good candidate to send to Susie Dent for her to unscramble in her origin of words slot on Countdown. According to Mr. Waki Pedia she won’t be able to find an answer. This is Susie Dent:

It was once alleged that Susie Dent has all the letters of the alphabet tattooed down along her spine? Not the optimum position if you forget what they are. Anyway, Old Gnu loves her. [Sorry he has cut half her head off in this photo.]

Old Gnu was screwing his noggins into place, he was minded of one of his childhood heroes, Noggin the Nog.

Young Gnu used to go to a friendly neighbour, who had a black and white TV, to watch Children’s Hour on the BBC. There he encountered Noggin from the very start of the saga. Old Gnu encourages you to watch the first 2 minutes 26 second extract from the beginning of the very first episode on You-Tube [“Noggin the Nog 1959”] and you will be hooked. The first episode starts with his father, old King Knut. He sits and looks down on the town from a hill. He sees his subjects going about their business and worries if they will have enough to eat through the winter and whether they will have warm socks. These are the sorts of rulers we need in our world today.

Jesus talked about the leaders of his time, they have eyes yet do not see and ears and yet do not hear. Not so King Knut, a compassionate ruler. Well let us not just blame rulers. How about us?

Blessed are the poor in Spirit [Matthew 5:3]. People who are poor in spirit have extremely good hearing. They are not proud, and know that they don’t know everything. So they listen. Pride can lead to thinking we know, and we only listen to what we want to hear. This is what Mother Daran of Norwich would have called The Dark Wall of Unknowing.

We have all recently witnessed on our TV screens what this can lead to. In his own way Old Gnu has been guilty of such sins; something which we are all capable of in some degree.

Blessed are you who mourn (weep) now. (Luke 6:21). Jesus is not talking about bereavement here, or simply being sad or depressed. There is nothing blessed about any of those things as many millions have prematurely experienced throughout the world at the present time. Rather they, like King Knut, are people with extremely good vision. They look on the world and see the needs, the wrongs and sadnesses, and “hunger and thirst after righteousness” for justice to be done for the downtrodden and many other issues besides.

Blessed are the meek. Meek people are truly strong.They know their own strength but do not use it for their own advantage above others. This is a real test for national leaders and those in government. It was bad enough being a vicar.  Meek people know how their strength is best used.

Well, after much unwise pontification, Old Gnu must get back to building his wall and non-regulation bi-fold door.

Blessing on you all my Gnudren.

Vetus Pater Gnu
Academiae Musicorum et Theologia
Turris LA
XXIV Mensis Ianuarii  MMXXI