Sunday, 11 May 2025

Celebrating Mother's Day at the Church of the Epiphany, Gurgaon

Mother's Day was celebrated with great enthusiasm at the Church of the Epiphany, Gurgaon, with enthusiasm and fervour. Sunday School students presented a special service, and tokens of gifts were distributed to all the mothers present during Sunday Mass.







Mrs Purnima Lal read out a special message on account of Mother's Day. The WFCS put up a special stall on the occasion of Mother's Day. It was a special moment for all mothers, especially as they were pampered with love and affection!











Nathania read a heart-touching poem for all mothers, and Sahana recited a poem for a mother she loves with all her heart.











Thursday, 24 April 2025

Revision RTC Questions for A Photograph by Shirley Toulson

 Answer the following extracts carefully and answer the questions that follow: 3X1=3 marks

1. And she the big girl - some twelve years or so.
    All three stood still to smile through their hair
    At the uncle with the camera. A sweet face,
    My mother's, that was before I was born.
    And the sea, which appears to have changed less,
    Washed their terribly transient feet.

    a) Who is the "big girl"?
    b) The poetic device used in the second line is?
         i) Assonance
         ii) Consonance
         iii) Refrain
         iv) Metaphor
    c) How are their feet transient?
    d) Who is the fourth person?

2. Some twenty - thirty - years later
    She'd laugh at the snapshot. "See Betty
    And Dolly," she'd say, "and look how they
    Dressed us for the beach." The sea holiday
    Was her past, mine is her laughter. Both wry
    With the laboured ease of loss.

     a) How old was the poet's mother?
     b) What did the poet's mother laugh at?
          i) The uncle for his funny pose
          ii) The daughter for her curiosity
         iii)  The dresses of the three girls
         iv) The memory of the beach holiday
      c) Fill in the blank.
          The word wry means _________
      d) The expression "Both wry with a laboured ease of loss" means
           i) People try to carry loss with dignity, maybe even humor,
              but the effort shows.
          ii) A subtle, perhaps ironic or resigned response to grief or sorrow.
          iii) Both i) and ii) are correct
          iv)  A feeling of regret, and anger at loss.


3. Now she's been dead nearly as many years
    As that girl lived. And of  this circumstance
    There is nothing to say at all.
    Its silence silences.

    a) Who does "that girl" refer to?
    b) Identify the best option that suggests the type of feeling these lines 
        evoke.
         i) Nostalgia and happiness
         ii) Peace and solace
         iii) Joy and remembrance
         iv) Loneliness and grief
      c) What poetic device is used in the last line?
      d) Why is there nothing to say about the death of the poet's mother?
          i) The poet is confused.
          ii) The poet is not in her senses.
          iii) The death of the mother has left a deep void in the poet's heart.
          iv) The poet did not have a good relationship with her mother.

Friday, 18 April 2025

Vignettes of the Celebration of Palm Sunday and Good Friday at the Church of the Epiphany, Civil Lines, Gurgaon


I eagerly looked forward to attending the Palm Sunday Service at the Church of the Epiphany when I was told that I would have to do a duty on the thirteenth for a Government entrance exam. It was only at the last moment that I learned that the exam had been postponed so I could attend the service. 






In his sermon, Pastor Prateek spoke at length about the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem to the joyful welcome of the residents. He mentioned how this would be, at best, a disruptive moment that would herald tumultuous times in the days to come. It was also a joy to see Sunday school children dressed in their Sunday best, waving Palm Fronds in memory of an event that had taken place more than 2025 years ago.
















The customary procession around the Church took place with great enthusiasm.








The Good Friday service was a more sombre moment and the preacher for the day was Dr. S.P. Singh, Ex-Principal of St. John's College, Agra. He led us through the nuances of the Crucifixion of Jesus and the significance of the event for us today.