Fame and Fortune in Small Communities

Soon to be step-son was sitting in the back of the car the other day as I was driving him and his mother back to their house in West Linton. Children are always a good source of village gossip in West Linton. They share amongst themselves the things that their parents might not talk about in the Precinct so it's always 'all ears open' when the boy begins to speak. As I remember S was moaning that his life was dull and ordinary (as was, by extension, the lives of the adults connected to him).

As an example of what life could have looked like if he were luckier he gave us the example of one of the little girls in Primary 5.

"Her family's famous" he said
"They are?" I asked. "I didn't know that"
"Yes, of course they are. Her grandfather does the voice of the Gaelic* Pig on the television"

*Scottish Gaelic - not the other one

Rev'd Ruth - my colleague in Portobello reports:

“At a wedding ceremony that I was performing, I raised my hand to give the final blessing. The bride misunderstood my gesture and surprised me with a high-five. Not wanting to exclude the groom, I offered him a high-five, too. I was finally able to get my blessing in, amid the laughter of the guests.”