Before anything else, I must pass on the following two messages to our readers who have been so generous. Sister Agnes Azzopardi wishes to thank you on behalf of the refugees at the Good Shepherd Convent in Balzan for the donations you have continued sending her. Every little helps no matter how small. Please keep on sending them.
Another letter from Garissa, via email, arrived from Bishop Paul Darmanin who sends you all ‘Tislijiet sbieh mid-Djocesi ta’ Garissa’ in Kenya. The Diocese of Garissa took the responsibility to act as the ‘leading agency’ for the food section of the World Food Programme. Even the Kenyan government gave the responsibility for distributing food to this Diocese. Many live in the bush far away from habitable civilization and their very lives depend on such donations. Bishop Darmanin also sent me a map of the Horn of Africa which has been so badly hit by the lack of rain. Thank you all very much for your generosity. I believe it is these actions of solidarity which are important in the long run and not whether Daphne CG’s school friend Arlette Baldacchino was married to a Pakistani and has half-caste children. A reader called to assure me that Arlette’s first husband, with whom she has had a child, was Maltese. It was after she had her marriage annulled that she married a Pakistani lawyer. She apparently had no children from him. Oh well! One thing is certain. No Sacred Heart girl would ever write anything scathing about an old schoolfriend!
A couple of readers called to grumble that the genial greengrocer-on-a-van Geraldu is gone and so is Robert in Dingli Circus. “Malice has driven them out,” one of these articulate ladies told me. “Geraldu and his hard-working fiancée, Robert and others like them have been providing an excellent service for years. They are part and parcel of life here.” I agree, if I happen to finish by 7pm I have throughout several years, stopped at Geraldu to buy my fruit and vegetables. They are always fresh and reasonably priced. Another reader commented: “Many old people who do not drive and who can only walk the length of the street need Geraldu and Robert. Will the government provide a service for them which Geraldu used to provide gratis by taking orders and delivering the fruit and vegetables himself?” We keep on being told that we are an aging population and as we know, it is so much better when old people can live at home and look after themselves. But they need more help, not less. Many find it hard to carry heavy plastic bags and these greengrocers provide this help which is much appreciated.
Another reader phoned to say: “The fellow who reported them is a dinosaur of the PN.” Well, in this case it was not for me to comment. But she lives in that area and would probably know.
Could we please have Geraldu, Robert and the other van-greengrocers back? They are part of the fabric of life of towns and villages. No supermarket can provide the excellent service they give their customers and for the older generation they are irreplaceable.
Shaun Wallis, CEO, HSBC Bank Malta invited the media to drinks and canapés at the Quarterdeck Bar, Hilton Malta, a couple of weeks ago. Many of us remarked upon many new faces which seemed to have appeared from nowhere. So many faces one had never seen before! I almost felt like a dinosaur but not quite. Not yet! Not yet! There was Julia in spotted black and white, all the rage in the London shops this season, and the two good-looking Dalli sisters, Miriam and Veronique. All three bright women too. I remarked to someone that Labour has the better looking and more photogenic media people… he disagreed and so we started making a list, over some red wine and canapés but we never concluded anything, as we were interrupted by a lottery draw which was taking place on the podium. One of our girls here won an ipod, another two tickets to the Bob Geldof concert and nicest of all, our columnist J.G. Vassallo no, not a book token, but a Plasma screen. He was more amazed than anyone else. Afterwards he told me: “I shall have a lot of explaining to do, once I get home.”
A most pleasant evening and a chance to meet HSBC personnel, too. Two significant meetings were with Lorna Farrugia who is Area Director for Sliema, a very high-powered lady indeed. She has been working with HSBC since 1970 and has a son who is an appassionato of Manchester United. She also chairs an association of women bankers within HSBC – Banking on Women.
I also met Sally Robson, Chief Operating Officer who has just arrived, another high powered lady. She told us she was about to join a law course when she met and fell in love with her husband who persuaded her to join HSBC instead.
It is always heartening to meet women who were able to cope with jellies, babies, love and a demanding job and whose marriage has survived as well.
Am I going to have to spend the rest of my life on my knees? My daughters are always requesting prayers, whether it is for a dish they are cooking, exams they are taking or much more serious matters. Of course there are many times when I would have quarrelled with God and refuse to address him at all let alone pray to him. But then I give in and with the phrase, spoken emphatically: “If you are there” I pass on my daughter’s messages.
In her latest missive, my 1975 baby told me the plumber was starting work on their house “And you can pray for that too! I think you should become a Tibetan nun. Apparently they have special kneepads there…” Seeing in all likelihood I shall be spending the few remaining years on my knees, maybe it is not such a bad idea. And it would save me having to live with the heat here. I do detest it…and it is still far too early to long for my heaters, my Ciòbar and the cosiness of winter.