Man-flu is a real phenomenon, and I have just proved it by careful scientific experiment. My wife and I received our annual flu shot, and within hours, I was feeling woozy, but she wasn’t. Even though – and here’s the science – we had been injected by the same nurse. And both in our upper left arms. And both with the same vaccine. And both at the same time. So many controls. Such a safe conclusion. So QED. Self-pity justified.

I wonder if the prophet Jeremiah suffered man-flu, for God once had to say to him: “If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?” Translation: Jeremiah, you’re going to have to man-up, and stop feeling precious. There are going to be some tough days ahead, and you’ll need to be ready. So let’s drop the lemon tea and hot water bottle.

Some things are unique to the prophets, and can’t be personally applied, but I have that feeling that the ‘running with horses’ saying has broad application. And so too that counsel to be ‘strong and courageous’, and also that instruction to ‘fight the good flight’, and that saying of Jesus about ‘taking up your cross’, and that one from Corinthians about ‘not losing heart’, and from Hebrews ‘you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood’. So QED. Toughen up princess.