Category Archives: Uncategorized

Last night Rachel and I went for a meal to The Ship; we haven’t been there for several years. New owners took it on last year, and we’d heard good reports… A young man sitting at the bar said ‘Hello’, with a smile, ‘It’s good to see you!’ I had to do rapid thinking. WhoContinue reading “Grabbing the Opportunity”

Andrea and Laurence have just got engaged; their love will lead to plans for their wedding and hope for the future. Yesterday was Valentine’s Day… St Valentine married couples who were in love but couldn’t get married in Rome legally. Emperor Claudius II had outlawed weddings because he thought that marriage would be an obstacleContinue reading “Love’s Plans and Hopes”

Yesterday was Pancake Day; we enjoyed our pancakes. Others celebrated Mardi Gras – Fat Tuesday – with more elaborate festivities. It was also Shrove Tuesday. ‘Shrove’ comes from the Old English word ‘shrive,’ which means to confess our sins to God and receive His absolution or forgiveness. Traditionally this happened in preparation for the periodContinue reading “Seeing Beyond the Pancakes”

Reading through the Bible, the first few weeks were easy – Genesis, Exodus – great narratives – Adam, Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses… Leviticus, Numbers are fascinating but less straightforward. Rules and regulations, sacrifices and sex,  health and haircuts… are either avoided, ignored or accepted selectively. Then, today, in the middle of offerings and vows, tabernaclesContinue reading “The Lord Bless You…”

Yesterday we celebrated grandson-Zak’s twenty-first birthday. Daughter-Jo had asked him what he wanted and ‘Granny’s roast dinner’ was part of the requirement. Girlfriend Cay came too. There were presents and balloons – as well Granny’s birthday cake, cheesecake and banoffee pie. It was a lovely family occasion. Zak talked about his ‘now’ – his currentContinue reading “Now and Always”

My worth is not in what I ownNot in the strength of flesh and boneBut in the costly wounds of loveAt the cross My worth is not in skill or nameIn win or lose, in pride or shameBut in the blood of Christ that flowedAt the cross As summer flowers we fade and dieFame, youthContinue reading “My Worth Is Not In What I Own”

This is Larry and Ray from Men’s Shed. One suggested caption was the old joke, ‘You nod your head when you’re ready and I’ll hit it’. Another was ‘Must get Larry a bigger workbench.’ I prefer it without a caption, imagining what was going on, what happened before and after, imagining their conversation. Under thisContinue reading “Saying Nothing”

When the night has comeAnd the land is darkAnd the moon is the only light we’ll seeNo, I won’t be afraidOh, I won’t be afraidJust as long as you stand, stand by me The original Ben E King version of this great song is always the best; yesterday I enjoyed a different version… The messageContinue reading “Standing with Frogs, Nicholas, Seagulls, and Marion”

I thought I knew Bohemian Rhapsody. I’ve heard it so many times… Freddy Mercury and Queen, the stage-show ‘We Will Rock You’, I’ve played it (badly!) for children to sing… Then I heard it performed by 13-year-old Angelina Jordan. It has different emphases, suggesting different meanings. It’s different, reinvented. Nick Cave talks about life’s turningContinue reading “Reinvention, Reordering, Rebirth”

Yesterday I read: Author and journalist Jemimah Wright: ‘At the end of 2023, Pamela Anderson, 56, went make-up free to the British Fashion Council’s fundraiser in London and the reaction was, predictably, huge. It is very unusual for anyone in the public eye to have their naked face ‘unmasked’; exposing the fact that they areContinue reading “Unmasked”