MUCH CRICKET CHAT WAS HAD!

You may remember that Keith, Mr. HCB’s cricket buddy, fell just before Christmas and was in hospital.  He has now been moved to the Prospect, our local hospice and is receiving palliative care, but we didn’t think we would be able to see him as he has many friends in the Salvation Army, to which he belongs, and we thought they would probably be the ones who would visit him. 

However, we were delighted a couple of nights ago when Graham, his son who lives in America, but who is staying here at the moment, emailed and said that his Dad didn’t want a lot of visitors, but in the new environment, he said he wouldn't mind a few visitors, and he specifically mentioned us two among his "top group."  What an honour to be in someone’s “top group”!

Of course, we said we would be delighted to go and see Keith and today was the day.  I had already sent him a card, but last night printed off a collage of the various photographs of Keith, Mr. HCB, Graham when he used to visit and go to cricket with them and several other shots - see my extra.  When we arrived, there was a nurse in the room with him and it transpired that we knew her Mum and had known her Dad before he died - what a small world.  I gave Keith the collage, and immediately he and Mr. HCB started their “cricket” chat reminiscing about various people in the photographs.

We then spent sometime chatting about Keith's time in the Salvation Army and his family, and recognised many of them from the various photographs on his windowsill, all of whom live in America and he told us that one of his grandsons paid a “flying visit” last Thursday to see him and he is hoping to see one of his other grandsons very soon.  We also talked about our family and Keith’s memory was amazing!

We were delighted to see that Keith was in good spirits, and although he was in pain with his broken arm, which was in a sling, said he wasn’t in much pain at the moment.  Inevitably, the conversation got round to cricket again, so although we made to leave after about an hour, by the time Mr. HCB and Keith had chatted a bit more about cricket, it was another half an hour before we left.  Keith did say he would love to see us again, so we told him that if Graham emails us to let us know when there is a “free slot”, we would be delighted to come again.  We prayed with Keith before we left and I even played him a snippet of one of the Salvation Army band hymns, “What a Friend we have in Jesus”, that I had downloaded yesterday in anticipation of our visit.

What a lovely afternoon and we hope that Keith was as blessed as we were.  Keith knows I Blip every day, but of course, I didn’t take any photographs of him today, although he was always game for a photograph before he and Mr. HCB set out for cricket, as you can see in the extra.  This collage shows some of the stained glass windows, doors and paintings around the hospice - and what a beautiful place this is - the staff are all so friendly,  and we are so grateful to have this amazing hospice on the outskirts of our town.  Interestingly, the middle stained glass window, at the rear of the reception desk is of Liddington Hill, which we can see from our bedroom window.  

Keith is well into his 80s, but this quote by William Booth, an English Methodist preacher who, along with his wife, Catherine, founded the Salvation Army and became its first “General” says much about the way Keith has always lived his life - and we are so grateful to have his friendship.  

“Your days at the most cannot be very long, 
     so use them to the best of your ability 
          for the glory of God 
               and the benefit of your generation.”
William Booth