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Good morning.

They say that confession is good for the soul, so I want to admit that I'm a cake fiend. I just like cake - all types of cake - chocolate cake, fruit cake, Victoria sponges, Madeira cake, carrot cake - you name it. If it's cake then it has my attention.

I say all of this for two reasons: the first is that today is National Black Forest Gateau Day – yes a special day dedicated to that most famous of cakes, which also happens to be a particular favourite of mine. The second is that during Lent I decided to abstain from cake, which has been really good for my waistline and wallet, but not necessarily my taste buds. Consequently I'm doing my best to avoid the cake aisle at the local supermarket, and the patisseries and bakeries where I live.

I suppose my liking for cake stems back to when I was a child, and my mother would bake a cake every Sunday. I would always help her so I could get to lick the cake mix from the mixing spoon. And I would always be the one to eat the first slice of the cake when it was baked.

In a strange way, I suppose cakes, or eating cakes, remind me of my late mother. Pleasant memories of pleasurable times. With this Sunday being Mothering Sunday, and given that Sunday allows us a Lenten indulgence, I will be treating myself to a slice of cake, possibly Black Forest Gateau, as a tiny reminder of my mother, and all that she meant to me.

So let us be thankful for the precious memories we have of those special people who made a massive difference in our lives.

Amen.