No Joking Matter

I've had been present at many occasions that felt that they were the set-up for some sort of joke: you know, the kind that begins with, "An Englishman, a Welshman and an Irishman walk into a canteen..." or perhaps "A teacher, a judge and a politician walk into a bar..." or something like that.

It strikes me that in real life, the matters discussed at such meetings tend to be more serious than that. Whenever two or three (or four, or five) people gather together in the name of gold, guns, graft, gin, government, or God; that name is like a guiding spirit hovering over the discussion. Most times it is barely more serious that what it looks like; sometimes, it is deadly serious. The conversation tends to move with a kind of adept facility into channels which are more portentous.

I remember a few counting rhymes which seem to conceal that kind of sinister dexterity. These include the relatively simple, "One for the money, two for the show, three to get ready, and four to go!" Of course, the one which is a classic to me is the one I quoted just a month ago, "One for the morning glory..."

But one looks for signs and portents, and finds them. In the Bible there are some famous examples: "But when you shall see the abomination of desolation... standing where it ought not, then let them that be in Judaea flee to the high mountains..." is a clear one related to graven images and symbols of pagan power; likewise, the preoccupations of Nebuchadnezzar and the dreams which resulted (it is always fascinating to read the first few chapters of the book of the prophet Daniel if you have the time).

And at first, those too look like jokes: "Two Roman eagles meet in the courtyard of the temple..." or "A statue with a head of gold and feet of clay..." and so on. But of course, there are always lessons to be learnt, and prices to be paid.