There's no doubt about the popularity in Rhuthun/Ruthin of our new mayor, Cllr Anne Roberts MBE. The esteem with which she is accorded resulted in I'd suggest about 170 to 200 Ruthinites present at her Civic Sunday church service yesterday at St Peter's. These ranged from a modest choir of youngsters from Ysgol Borthyn to congregants in their 80s.
The civic service probably wasn't quite as some would have expected. It certainly wasn't like any other such civic gathering at St Peter's. Our new Warden Revd Luke Bristowe and his wife Becs nevertheless successfully blended a new informality with due decorum.
Still, there would be those present who probably raised an eyebrow at the Revd Luke's shorts.
These "Bristowe's Breeches" seemed to symbolise both a change of tenure and culture. This will probably be the first time that many of the congregants had witnessed the more relaxed style now evident at St Peter's. It wasn't to everyone's tastes: some declined to sing the more modern hymns as (presumably) chosen by the mayor. Others looked around the ceiling and walls as if they were visiting for the first time. But these were in the minority. Rev'd Luke preached on God's goodness as seeds scattered generously. Some fell on barren ground or among weeds and did not take root. Others on good ground multiplied profusely. Let us hope for the sake of our town that there were more present representing the good ground than the poor, especially among our councillors tasked with representing us.
The good, the great and our councillors then went off to the Castle Hotel for lunch. Just as well, then, that the Castle Hotel has now moved forward on its food hygiene rating, from zero to four. We wouldn't wish to see a mass outbreak of anything nasty among the mayor's guests.
There will be those who remember the civic Sunday last year, when resigned Ethan Jones felt that the whole thing was a waste of money. Should we really deny our *volunteer* councillors a once-a-year cheese & pickled silver skinned onion cocktail sticks, mini sausages, sliced buttered baguette and a dollop of Eton mess, though?