Last Monday at 9pm the Lodge of Friendship (and friends) attempted their first Zoom 'gathering'. It was a chance to see faces and catch up. Twenty two faces appeared. The invitation had not specified dress for the occasion but our DC excelled with what looked like a smoking jacket that would have delighted Hercule Poirot. However, unlike the neat and precise Hercule he sported a set of whiskers that could have been offering residence to a family of small birds. It would not be too much of a surprise as he has spent almost the whole of the lockdown hacking undergrowth in his garden. Our Almoner had obviously washed, shaved and found a clean shirt. Maybe he was wearing a Provincial tie as he had recently learnt of his promotion to Provincial rank in November (2020? or sometime in 2021?) Variations in connections meant some came, and went. One never got beyond a blank screen. One couldn't find the unmute button of his new iPhone and spent the whole time gesticulating (silently) but, hopefully, he could at least hear the rest of us. One joined us now feeling a little better after he and his wife caught the virus when they didn't get out of Spain soon enough.
Another gathering is planned for our normal Lodge night in June and hopefully someone is already scribbling something stimulating and enjoyable. Altogether, a happy hour, spent with friends and a relief to the sense of isolation forced on us by this pandemic.
To our next merry 'gathering'...