Bathsheba holding King David's letter by Willem Drost, 1654, Louvre Museum / Wikimedia Commons
So here I am, after a fabulous dinner, trying to make coherent sense around the nature of the world (which, truth be told, is no different from most days). And the core idea today is what if things don't go the way you expect them to?
Hence the opening question which was raised by Hammond Innes through one of his characters in The White South (1949).
The reference goes back to the Old Testament. Essentially, David (yes,the one who slew Goliath), saw Bathsheba bathing and lusted after her, so he had his way with her. She became pregnant. When David discovered this, he had Uriah sent to the forefront of battle so that he might be killed and David's adultery would not be discovered. Sure enough, Uriah was killed. David married Bathsheba who gave birth to Solomon.
It's a sordid tale which Sting wrote about in his ballad " Mad about you".
But the basic point raised by Hammond Innes still holds; everything depends on everything going according to plan. What if Uriah had lived?
Happy Valentines Day.
