Life's Journey

  70 years ago on the 6th February a young man was seen wandering in the grounds of where he and his wife were on holiday. He was clearly quite disturbed, knowing he had a message to give to his wife which was not the best of news in some respects. News had just arrived that his father-in-law had died. If that was not bad enough he knew that this was a turning point in how they as a couple would carry out their lives. His name was Philip, his wife was Elizabeth, and as they began their holiday at Tree Tops, near Nyeri, in Kenya, neither of them realised that she would return to the UK as a new monarch, and a career that would span at least for the next 70 years. It has been said that she "went up a tree as a Princess and came down a Queen"    Roll on 14 years to 1966 and I found myself also in Nyeri. I never got to Tree Tops, but I recall visiting a grave yard and sitting beside the grave of Lord Baden Powell, founder of the Scouting movement. On the grave stone were the ...

  Today, I am taking things a little easier and copying what was already prepared for the church newsletter. Note that it was written on 25th January, just over a week ago. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What is in a date? Today, as I write, is the 25 th January. Some will find the date is marked in their diary as being Rabbie (or Robert) Burns Day. It will be seen as a day to remember the writings of the Scottish poet. Many, particularly in Scotland, will celebrate as they partake in haggis and neeps (turnips), perhaps washed down with Irn Bru (or for some they would drink the other Scottish national drink). Then, of course, there will be the bag pipes heard in the midst of it all. It is a time of celebration. For Joan and I in our diary it is recorded as the day of the anniversary of our engagement in 1973, engaged to be married is the full term, and indication of a life long commitment th...

  This week many throughout the world are remembering the holocaust of the 2nd World war. Between 1941 and 1945 6 million jews were murdered in attempt to rid the world of  the Jewish people. My dad never spoke a lot about his experiences during the war. Few of his generation did. However, on one occasion he spoke of how he arrived at Belsen and remarked that he could smell the camp before he got anywhere near the place. He could never forget the horror and the tragedy of it all, mans inhumanity to man! No doubt others had smelt the same thing and sensed the vile nature of it all, yet for whatever reason never spoke  of it. Maybe it was through fear, but the horror continued. Many of us are familiar of the book called Anne Franks diary. It was the diary of a Jewish teenager living in Holland. Visitors to Amsterdam can still visit the family home beside the canal and can visualise how this was not any ordinary teenage diary. It was the diary of one who faced the tragedy of...

  I find it interesting to discover how many days are currently specified to highlight something that should be special every day of the year.  Today    is National Hugging Day. This event aims to encourage people to hug family, friends, and close ones more often, as hugs are known to have positive effects on mental health. There is some truth in that. It is a part of being human that we need and desire some form of interaction, some kind of message that says "we care".  This year, unfortunately, hugging is not recommended. Often we do not even recognise others, all that we can see is a mask. The image of the person behind the mask is hard to see, it could be anyone. As for hugging, we cannot get close to anyone. For nearly 2 years it has been impressed upon everyone to keep at least 2 metres distance from each other. Not even a shake of the hand was deemed to be acceptable. It seems to me ironic in these circumstances that instead it has been encouraged to "fis...

  Following the recent death of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, here are a few quotes from the man who made his stand against apartheid in South Africa.  Quotes from Archbishop Desmond Tutu “Don’t raise your voice, improve your argument.” It is not the volume of our words but the veracity that determines our outcomes. I have always considered that once you raise your voice you have lost the argument. The story is told of the preacher who wrote in his notes "Argument weak, speak louder" “I am not interested in picking up crumbs of compassion thrown from the table of someone who considers himself my master. I want the full menu of rights.” All human beings deserve to be equality and compassion. Love should shine forth irrespective of the person one is with. “Without forgiveness, there’s no future.” Forgiveness has the power to heal the world, but without it we are headed towards darkness. This must be the best quote. It is with the forgiveness of God comes the hope of an eternal futur...

  He is coming! Something special is happening. Surely that must be true as the decorations are set up. Lights are lit up, Trees are erected Who is it that is being expected? For some you would be forgiven if you thought it was a chubby man in a red suit flying around the world on a sleigh pulled by reindeer. However, could the real answer lie with a clue in the name of the event Christmas? CHRIST mas does seem to emphasise the name of Jesus Christ, and the full name literally means the "feast of Christ". To celebrate Christmas and ignore the central character seems to be a strange aspect of modern life.  Certainly there is much debate on the date, 25th December, but I can understand that because no one knows the precise date of the birth of the babe in the stall. Yet as Christians we do not claim this is his precise date of birth, but rather this is the date we specifically remember the birth of Jesus as it is recorded in the bible. Over the net couple of weeks many of us wi...

Seeing the smiling pictures of the Bee Gees it seems ironic that the word that comes to mind is tragedy! It is that song that they sung in which "tragedy" is continually repeated that seems so appropriate today The big news today is the funeral of a much loved Member of Parliament.  Southend will say goodbye to much-loved MP Sir David Amess with a procession through his constituency and funeral service today. Conservative MP Sir David Amess died after being stabbed several times at his constituency surgery, almost 40 years after entering parliament. It is a tragedy, irrespective of where we stand politically. Indeed in the past decade a number of MP's of different political positions have been tragically killed, the last one being Jo Cox who was a Labour MP. In a world that seems to often to be a harsh place where everyone tries to bring others down, but on this occasion all political persuasions in Westminster came together to speak well of this man loved across the poli...

  "Lest we forget...." It is that time of year, and how can we forget that through out the centuries young people, both men and women, have gone to war and given their lives for others. Many of us will take up the poppy and pin it to our clothing. Our red poppy is a symbol of both Remembrance and hope for a peaceful future. Poppies are worn as a show of support for the Armed Forces community.  The poppy is a well-known and well-established symbol, one that carries a wealth of history and meaning with it. Wearing a poppy is still a very personal choice, reflecting individual experiences and personal memories. It is never compulsory but is greatly appreciated by those who it is intended to support. During WW1, much of the fighting took place in Western Europe. The countryside was blasted, bombed and fought over repeatedly. Previously beautiful landscapes turned to mud; bleak and barren scenes where little or nothing could grow. And so the poppy emerged as a symbol of hope as th...

an interview on radio  November is certainly a month for remembrance. In a few days, the 5th November, many in the UK will be recalling the poem "Remember, remember, the 5th of November" which continues to detail the story from history of Guy Fawkes and the failed gun powder plot over 400 years ago. The 11th November is also known in the UK as "Remembrance day", remembering the day that peace came to the world in 1914, with the hope that we might have seen the war to end all wars. That hope was so disappointing, wars continue to this very day but we continue with that memory seeking to find lasting peace. Today, the 1st of November, is also a day to remember, "All Saints day". It is a day to be reminded that there is something personal in all of this, for the bible indicates that saints are the people who have trusted Jesus as Saviour. On the day of that commitment God has set us apart for him, not about being perfect for none of us has gained perfection b...

  History plays a role in so much of life today, but who would have thought that sufferings of one man 110 years ago would have played a part in what has become an important part of caring for folks today. In 1911, a young man named Douglas Macmillan watched his father die of cancer. His father's pain and suffering moved Douglas so much, he founded the Society for the Prevention and Relief of Cancer.  Douglas wanted advice and information to be provided to all people with cancer, homes for patients at low or no cost, and voluntary nurses to attend to patients in their own homes. So how does that affect us today? Many of us know someone who has suffered from cancer. My own father died of cancer in 1977. He died one month from the diagnosis. Where do people seek support? For many its in those circumstances that the role of MacMillan nurses is discovered. Today much of Douglas's legacy lives on. They have continually adapted the support offered to ensure it’s right for peopl...

 "Hart to Hart" was a TV series that many of us enjoyed watching between 1979 to 1984. The series majored on a married couple by the name of Hart who travelled the world as amateur detectives solving crimes wherever they went. However, the topic that comes to my mind this week is not about a RV series, nor anything fictional, but something that we all carry with us wherever we go. The heart! It is a major item that keeps our lives running as it pumps the blood around our body. What happens, however, when the heart runs into trouble? Who has the heart to prepare to meet the needs of another persons heart at such a time as this? Restart a Heart is held every October, where thousands of people across the UK, and many more worldwide, come together to increase public awareness of cardiac arrests and increase the number of people trained in life saving CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and defibrillator use.   The initiative is led by  Resuscitation Council UK ...

  President Ronald Reagan was once challenged by a college student who said it was impossible for Ronald Reagan’s generation to understand his. “You grew up in a different world,” the student said. “Today we have television, jet planes, space travel, nuclear energy, computers. . .” Taking advantage of a pause in the student’s litany, Ronald Reagan said, “You’re right. We didn’t have those things when we were young. We invented them.” Nancy Reagan, My Turn: The Memoirs of Nancy Reagan (Random House)   In the political world there can be so much that is challenging that we miss what are the real issues of the day. We are in the midst of the party conference season in the UK which gives the opportunity for politicians to make the headlines, but not always for the right reasons. Sadly we have had a senior politician in one party giving time to name calling those of the other party. The response has been for a senior politician of the other party suggesting that the name caller mus...

 This month there have been many displays through out the UK celebrating the Battle of Britain that was fought in the UK in 1940 between 10 July – 31 October. Adolf Hitler expected UK to admit defeat following the defeat of France but Britain continued its fight defying Germanys hopes of superiority in the air.   There are many interesting memories that were shared from that period by those who lived at that time. My own mother worked with the London Ambulance service as part of the "war effort". She spoke of how she had to travel in the midst of the bombing to assist those in need. Such was the need that removal vans were commandeered and converted into ambulances. She was only 4 foot 8 inches. Can you imagine the fears of drivers, not only dodging the bombs but seeing the ambulance coming along the road and due to her small stature there did not appear to be any one driving! In 1975 I was posted to RAF Brawdy in Pembrokeshire where I was given a new insight into the pilots ...

 Footballer, televsion personalty, and man who still had higher hopes! James Peter Greaves MBE (20 February 1940 – 19 September 2021), or Jimmy Greaves, was an English professional Footballer who played as a forward. He was Englands fourth-highest international goal scorer (44 goals). What a record! However, thats not the full story. He was also Tottenham Hotspurs 's highest ever goalscorer (266 goals), the highest goalscorer in the history of English football (357 goals), and also scored more hjat tricks (six) for England than anyone else. Due to an injury he failed to have a place n the 1966 world cup team.   Such a distinguished football career would have been enough for many folks, but Greavsie still looked for more. After retiring as a player Greaves went on to enjoy a successful career in broadcasting, most notably working alongside Ian St John on Sant and Greavsie from 1985 to 1992. During this period, he also made regular appearances on TV-am.Yesterday it was repore...

It was 2pm UK time on the 11th September 2001. I was visiting an elderly lady who had at some point suffered from a stroke which had affected her speech and her mobility. As such it was agreed that when visiting her I should knock on the door and  walk in. As I walked in I was met with a lady visibly distressed as she watched her television. I wondered if this was the emotional reaction to a film, looking into the screen and seeing the horrific scenes of what is now known as 9/11. I could not understand. "Is this a film?" I asked "No, no film" she said. It was real, I began to realise as a second plane flew into the Twin Towers resulting in  many deaths and even more nightmares for so many families in New York. Is there anyone who was of an age to see these scenes who could not recount where they were at this time and date. For 20 years the shadow of this horror has been held over so many of us. This past weekend the media has opened it all up once more as it recall...

Happy New year!   Or as the Jewish community would say    '   shanah tova'   , which   means 'good year', or '   shanah tovah u'metukah   ', which is Hebrew for 'a good and sweet new year'. Jewish communities across the nation will be celebrating the high holidays in the coming weeks. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, begins on Monday night (September 6) as the sun goes down and ends at nightfall on Wednesday, September 8. The beginnings of a new year from one perspective, so what a great time to start this new blog and in the times that lie ahead to see a record of what happens in a journey of life. There will be the positives as well as the negatives, but together we can discover so much to celebrate in the miracle of life. As they celebrate apples are dipped in honey to mark a sweet and fruitful new year and pomegranates, honey cake and round  challah  bread are also eaten. Hope is something we all look for in every tradition. ...