writer's moll

Oh dear. My woeful knowledge of the bible has been exposed by the comment on my last post. Although I guessed the message, I had to google Matthew 14.31 to find not only that the quote wasn’t, as I’d always thought, o ye but o thou of little faith, but also the beginning and end to those five well-used words. This set me thinking that maybe it’s time I enrolled at Atheists Anonymous and took the floor to admit that yes, I’m an atheist, but no, I’m not unwilling to accept the importance of such an influential book. And while I’m at it, I might even get round to putting aside my grievances against the church for the role it’s played in the miseries of the world and accept the enormous contribution it’s made to the world’s great works of art. Without it, we may have spent our holiday craning our necks at something much more prosaic than the magnificent Sistine Chapel. And do we know or care whether Michelangelo was inspired by God or the size of his commission to paint it? So, whilst I may never ‘drink from the bottle’ I should at least endeavour to examine the contents, learn its origins and marvel at its complexity. You never know, I might be able to persuade the local book club to adopt the bible as its book of the week.

I love the Italians. Whenever you go to Italy you just can’t help smiling – They’ve got such flair, gaiety, drama, style. To watch them on their evening stroll is a feast of sights and sounds: the clothes - who but an Italian guy could wear a brown corduroy suit and look great? Even the elderly are impeccably dressed in fabulous shirts and skirts with not a crimpline dress in sight; the young - all with the obligatory motor scooter and mobile phone, gesturing theatrically whilst chattering at lightening speed in that wonderfully musical language; and the restaurants - delicious food and wine served on red checked tablecloths. BUT, last night, Italy’s world cup match against Australia wiped the smile off my face. Totti’s blatant dive to win a penalty made even me wish a defeat on them in the next round.