Perhaps…

Yesterday morning there’d been a frost and the sky was clear. As I walked along the beach there was a lone swimmer in the sea. Usually swimmers are in pairs or small groups for safety reasons. So why was he alone?

Perhaps his friend hadn’t turned up… perhaps he’d fallen out with his friends and no-one would come swimming with him… perhaps he was expecting a hard day and felt he needed to be alone…

I enjoyed creating my own story…

Yesterday afternoon I’d arranged to see Ann and Peter. When I arrived Ann apologised that Peter wasn’t there. He’d had a dental appointment but should be home. We wondered what might have happened.

Perhaps he’d forgotten that I was coming and was having a cup of tea… perhaps he’d met a friend, got talking and forgotten the time (Peter can talk at length!)… perhaps there’d been an accident…

Finally Peter arrived. Our stories were better than his explanation!

In the evening I was at The Jolly Sailors with a friend. Close to us were sitting six young people – five boys and a girl. They knew each other well and were involved in friendly, robust, discussions throughout the evening. But why five boys with a single girl we wondered?

Perhaps they’d been at school together or worked together… perhaps they were five brothers and a sister… perhaps it was a lads night out and the girlfriend of one didn’t trust him…

We’ll never know.

Earlier this week I had two separate conversations with friends caring for elderly parents – difficult decisions, planning for what could happen… anxieties and ‘perhapses’ regarding physical wellbeing mental health, finances…

Many years ago my grandmother gave me my first Bible. In the front she wrote: ‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.’  …about my faith in the God who knows about, cares about, and is control of, all of my ‘perhapses’.