First and foremost, Happy Memorial Day. What do you do on this day? We’ve been going for many years to a commemoration ceremony that takes place in a nearby park. After, we’ll join friends for a time together.
The discussion of The Remains of the Day has started today at Karen’s blog. She’s done a great work spotting the main theme of the book, the pressing questions on honor and dignity, and how Stevens, (butler and main character) answers those questions, and how the answers change in time.
I plan to answer in the comments. If you have read this book, don’t miss the chance to relive it, or to go deeper into understanding it and discussing it together with us.
Silvia Cachia 
Pingback: Homage to Ishiguro, #just.ordered.the.missing.titles | Silvia Cachia
Thanks for that beautiful prayer, and for the interest on my situation.
Thank you for the update. I’m so glad that you will, God willing, be able to go be with her. I will pray and pray for grace and mercy and peace and that God will pour out abundant blessing on your family – that he will bring redemptive beauty out of hard things.
She’s a bit better. She still has the tube. Maybe they take it off tomorrow, but that tracheotomy will have to happen. They tell us it’s a good transitional thing. I’m waiting this week to see if we are given an idea of when she’ll be back home. I’m trying to fly to Madrid the last two weeks of July.
Thanks for the prayers.
Silvia, I am so sorry to hear about all these hard things. How is your mom doing now? I can’t imagine how difficult that must be for you, especially with being separated by an entire ocean. I will be praying for her, and for you. ❤
Emily, who passed away today, is the mom of three boys ages 7, 5 and 2 and something, married to Jay. They are both christians, she was a devoted mom, always smiling, always taking care of her happy and fun boys. She was very proud of her father in law. who also has been such an incredible presence at hospital, commended by his always positive attitude, and his remarkable faith. He’s always talking to others about how amazing our Lord is. (I still remember the last comment I heard her make at a study we are attending on 1 and 2nd Peter, where she asked if trials such as what has come to her father in law, can be counted as trials christians endure. -She couldn’t understand why such a good man, healthy, without any vices or health conditions, was going through that extreme challenge that pulmonary fibrosis (or whatever it is when your lungs don’t work) that has put him in need of a double lung transplant, and has kept him at hospital for over a month now.
This is a time like no other. I can’t describe it. While my mom is fighting for her life since Saturday, -trying to get back to breathing, in the middle of being intubated, and with doctors deciding what to do next, (tracheotomy?), we received news that a young mom who attends our congregation, married to a young man whose father (only 58) is awaiting double lung transplant, has died today at 1:00pm. We don’t know details, and even if/when we do, -which may be never-, I won’t be writing about them. This is a day of mourning and prayer for the sick. Our life is surely in the Lord’s hands, and when burdens are this heavy, one realizes so soon there’s nothing else to do but to leave it to Him. (No person can carry loads this heavy. This is a time to stop asking any questions, and start praying and depending on Him for every step and every thought.)
Thanks much. Prayers are appreciated and very needed at the moment.
Nightmare. Hugs, hugs, hugs. I’ll keep praying.
Thanks, she’s still very grave. Now she’s developed pulmonary distress. She’s going through a lot.
Ok, I wasn’t sure if she was with your family when it happened. I finished it last night. He was such a fool with Miss Kenton. She’d have walked right into his arms! And he could not admit he was wrong about Lord D. Now I MUST re-watch the movie. I thought we owned it but maybe in went with Capture the Castle in a box of library donations. No matter, I’ll just request it at the library when I get back from my conference.
Ok, I wasn’t sure if she was with your family when it happened.
I just prayed for all and will do so throughout the day/week. Hugs.
She is still at the ICU, in serious condition.
Hahahs, I know. Don’t worry. I am so far away, and the time difference, distractions are OK some times. Thanks for the prayers.
Silvia–forget the silly book!! I’m praying for you, your Mom and everyone. The book will be there!!
Sorry, Lisa and everybody. My mom had a colon cancer tumor removal procedure two Mondays ago, but she got serious complications, and they had to operate her again this past Saturday, to place a bag on her, when she developed peritonitis, had a colon fugue or leak, and she had sepsis, infection all over… she’s since been stable, doing slightly better, they even removed her breathing tube and sedation yesterday, but they had to place it back today while she battles the lungs infection.
I’m not there, my siblings keep me informed. This was a shock, but I’m trying to stay calm and be hopeful and patient and think that she’ll recover, even if she needs much time to do so.
I’ll write later, however, because the part when he’s asked by his Lordship and a guest several political questions of the time, and he keeps saying he had nothing to contribute to that, was painful to me. Stevens is not stupid, (as the guest was implying), he willingly relinquished his political participation and opinions. He may or not have one to respond to those questions, but he doesn’t answer because he doesn’t think it’s his place to debate with others who are his superiors. To me he was answering as a robot, and it felt profoundly denigrating for him, he was being treated as a second class human being. That pained me.
I am intrigued by Stevens justification for not being insulted when he is asked opinions by the political movers and shakers. Also intrigued by his denial that Lord Darlington is a fascist or at least a serious appeasor.
I understand. Don’t worry.
I wish I was reading with you all! I managed to fit Hannah Coulter in with CR. We have one more week of school and then my days will open up. Maybe I will jump in late. It’s hard to resist. 🙂
Yesssss, lol, me too, I wanted to smack him, to say, c’mon, open up to her, smile, laugh.
Dignity as a theme is a good one. I wanted to smack him last night though! When she was flirting and trying to get his book out of his hands and plays the [pardon me] stick up his butt butler instead of just being a man and going with the fun.
I saw your comment over there. I truly enjoyed it. Thanks for participating. This is such a great book to discuss, in my opinion.
Silvia, I posted my thoughts on your friend’s blog. I had to switch to audio to get done in time so I don’t know how many more quotes I’ll be able to capture. Hopefully having both I can still get the quotes down.
Ahem, (clears her throat), yes, that was the word, Maximilian.
My copy just arrived today and I am about 20 pages in. What was the word you used? Enabling?
A lot of what we can do depends upon the season of life we are in. We did things differently when are children were at home, too.
🙂 Thanks for sharing!, and for giving thanks to God for these men and women. I was looking at past Memorial Day posts, and in 2014 I already wrote we had been doing this for 4 or 5 years! I have to give credit to my husband for thinking about things like this. When the girls look back in their lives, they’ll remember them, I hope. (Even such a small thing as hanging the flag, including a special mention in our daily prayers… all that, when you accumulate it through the years, are small changes or actions that mean a lot.)
Silvia, it’s Monday; so I do what I do every Monday: wash clothes. I did hang out the American flag. My husband and I will watch the great American pastime, baseball. That the Astros are playing makes it fun. We’ll stay cool in our house and rest. If we fall asleep for a nap, that’s even better. Seriously, I began the day thanking God for those who have given their lives to protect our country and for those who are standing on that line now.