Inmate 357
Day 5 Wednesday: I Meet a Bible-Reading Guard and a Structural Engineer
Family and friends all FaceTimed us, which was nice, but it took up most of the morning again. When I came back from the exercise yard, the “Roof Garden” on top of the 5th floor, I spoke at length (I had been trying to do this for a few days) to one of the guards, Richard* at the end of the corridor by the lift. He is a very nice guy. He is reading John Gresham’s ‘The Client’ and had recently read ‘The Da Vinci Code’. I explained to him that it is seriously theologically suspect! He said he thought so too.
Later, Inmate 356 and I met a pretty Chinese lady guard sitting where Richard* had been and I asked what she was reading. She said she had just started to read the whole Bible! Was she a Christian I asked? No, she wasn’t but she had thought it a good idea to read it. I went to talk to her later but she had been replaced by Richard* again so he and I talked about pantheism and panentheism and how Guru Si Baba had talked about there being one God only who was present in all things. Bingo! True Franciscan theology.
Inmate 356 and I then walked round and round the entrance (forecourt) as I said a chaplet and then a Rosary and the time flew. On the way back up the lift, we found that Richard* had again been replaced by the young lady guard who was reading the start of Genesis. I explained that it’s hard to read the Bible from cover to cover and it’s best with a commentary, but that she mustn’t give up.
I went back later to the lift where the guard sits and talked again to Richard* who had again replaced the Bible reading Chinese lady. He had come to New Zealand from India with a masters in Structural Engineering. He told me that he can’t get that type of work at the moment and he can’t go home as he would not be allowed back in!
One of the COVID Managers rang us (he calls Inmate 356 and me “The Honeymoon Couple”) and told us that we were both COVID negative on yesterday’s swabs. More than that, he told us that the whole planeload is negative! He hadn’t been asked to track any contacts because of this. He was very happy and so were we.
I was so grateful for the prayers of Jesus’ Mother to whom I took the whole business of getting over here safely months ago. I often look back and see how much I enjoyed that economy flight that I was not particularly looking forward to. I dreaded the last leg – 19 hours with a refuelling and ‘recrewing’ stop in Kuala Lumpur where all passengers had to remain on board – but the time just whizzed by and we had great people around us and some VERY good kids.
I start to write my ‘Father of the Groom’ Speech (unusual but these are unusual times!) at 2am and then took more zopiclone.
Day 6 Thursday: Some Detainees Escape and Some Guards Avoid Eye Contact
I stupidly hadn’t booked an exercise slot the day before and was told that all slots were fully booked for the ‘Roof Garden’, so Inmate 356 and I had to do a quick session out front before the foyer was closed to let a group of detainees leave. Wow, freedom! We watched some of them leave the hotel and they wandered about in the street dazed by the normality of life outside. Perhaps they will turn around and bang on the doors to be let back inside…
Inmate 356 is fascinated by the window cleaners swinging about on ropes outside the 34th floor of the building opposite. It looks like fun and it looks as though they think so too.
We did 8,000 paces in the 2 sessions on the forecourt and our son Tyler* dropped off more grog and marmalade and milk round the back of the hotel. We spent the afternoon looking up passages and prayers for him to put on the inside of the Order of Service cover. Sadly, no Richard* or Bible reading lady guard that day, only guards who don’t want to be instantly converted and who avoid all eye contact.
*Not their real name
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