A short tribute

My dear friend and until recently minister of my church in Perth, David Ogston, died last week aged 63. Yesterday, after a private family service at the crematorium, there was a thanksgiving in St John's Kirk. It was a wonderful service in a packed church, as uplifting and inspirational and David had so often been in that same ancient house of prayer which was first consecrated nearly 800 years ago. It's hard to come to terms with the fact that David is no longer with us. I first met him back in 1984 when I was doing the PR for Scotland's Whisky Festival and we invited David as our after dinner speaker. He was utterly brilliant - I don't think I'd laughed so much in my life! Then came the time - again through PR - when I was working with the Perth Festival of the Arts and I went to the Service of Dedication held in St John's - as so many civic occasions are. Again David had me laughing my head off - and then : POW! A sermon that was not only relevant to the occasion but resonated with deep faith, with perception and with poetry. Now at that stage in my life I'd kind of drifted away from the church and when, at the lunch following the service, this came to David's attention he immediately demanded my presence at St John's on a regular basis (in the nicest possible way). I said I might. From there grew not only a wonderful and hugely valued friendship, but also the renewal of faith, wobbly though it can so often be. I loved a description given by The Rev Johnstone Mackay yesterday (I can't remember if he was quoting David - I rather think he was). It was along the lines of there being a window high up out of reach with no apparent access. So the person stood below it throwing gravel to attract attention but to no avail. But (he?) kept on throwing the gravel because - just once - he thought he saw a curtain twitch. How true that is of so many of us who don't have the luck to be so sure of everything. And so today my world is a poorer place, but heaven is the richer.