Bang, crash, wallop. That’s another day’s work in the lists. Work for the knight who has taken a tumble and has had his lance shattered. Work for the metal-bashers who hammer out suits of armour to save lives in the tournament.
So it was in the Middle Ages. Things mellowed. Men and boys made lists of capital ships --- Nelson, Rodney, KGV, then flat-tops, until we found ourselves listing locomotives, castles, kings, deltics, merchant navy locos. Lists changed. New lists contained Constellations, 727s, 380s and – a special one this – AF1.
The rest of us made up humdrum lists – groceries, laundry, allotment seeds ToDo etc.The magic had gone. We were left with the chores. Except for students deciding on universities, apprentice-ships and other openings. Should it be near home? Near a music festival? A subject I like (because at school it was taught by a teacher I liked)? Mandarin, Spanish – both on the up? English, because you already know it – or think you do? Vocational subject that will one day bring in a hefty salary? Pianist, footballer, architect? Transport – driving, maintaining engines, a life on the ocean wave?
The biblical writer who devoted time and energy to making lists was Ezra. He loved this aspect of his work. He listed his fellow- countrymen in family groups and had an aversion for those who had made unsuitable marriages with natives of the new land. He required them to put away their strange wives. He also listed the numbers of horses, camels, mules and donkeys owned by the Israelites.
Institutions need lists staff, employees, customers, dates etc. The Church, being an institution, needs them. Sometimes the paperwork and box-ticking become more important than the actual work being done. The Church is not proof against procedures like Parkinson’s law.
As a forename Ezra is more popular in the USA than the UK. Ezra Pound comes to mind.
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