Netbook Fun

Last Saturday i enjoyed a rare experience of what is commonly described as 'retail therapy'. I have never been much of a believer in the medicinal properties of shopping, mostly because i have never had access to enough money to feel simple joy and release when buying new things, my purchases, rather, tend to be infused with feelings of worry and regret.

On Saturday, however, it was different. This time i had money in my pocket that had no other purpose except to be spent AND the thing i was buying could not only be justified as useful but could also be considered a bit of a bargain.

The money had come from the belly of a yellow spotted elephant i keep on my bedside.In a flashback to the simple days of childhood spending i have been saving my pocket money. Spending was always so much easier when you were a kid, you earned it, you saved it, you spent it. It never entered your head that perhaps this money should be kept on one side in case the boiler broke or the exhaust fell off the car. If you managed to save £25 from your paper round (which believe me was no mean feat round our way.......our paper shop paid a whopping £3.60 a week for a paper round- that was 60p a day for between 50 and 60 papers- an hours worth of delivery- per day- six days a week- i believe we would call that child slave labour these days, in fact, i'm not sure why we didn't back then- it was only the nineties!!!). What was i saying?........Oh yeah so IF you managed to save £25 from your paper round then you had no qualms about blowing it all on that new babyliss product that must surely be the breakthrough you've been waiting for in hairstyling technology, the one that will finally give you the glossy curls you've always dreamed of. I'm afraid i was a bit of a sucker for the promise of the beauty section in the argos catalogue as a youngster, not a birthday or Christmas passed by without the receipt of a much requested and highly anticipated but eventually tragically disappointing electrical beauty product.

Anyway in an effort to rekindle this kind of guilt free spending i have been saving up little scraps of money i get here and there, namely the tips i get in the cafe two days a week and the money i earn from an extremely professional and important ironing service i provide for my sister-in-law. And so, many months of saving later and i have enough to treat myself to a new computer...... one of those cute little miniature ones........i believe the technical term is a 'netbook'. I love it!! It's black and shiny and makes cute little noises when you turn it on. Lindon tells me it's also a very good computer in terms of it's processing power yadayada but i've no idea really, it works........... and it's black and shiny!

The other really great thing about this computer is it's mine! I'm aware that this makes me sound very greedy and selfish but i don't really mean it like that. I just mean it's not the house computer, or the work computer or the uni computer. It's not full of things i don't understand or know how to get the best out of. The desktop is not swimming in icons that dazzle me and prevent me from seeing the only one that i want. It's not that i don't want anyone else to use this computer it's just that i really like that it's tailored to me. In fact, i'm becoming somewhat of a computer nerd now i have one of my own. Suddenly it occurrs to me that all kinds of things could be done on computer.......accounts, sermons, journalling, to do lists, christmas shopping (i've traditionally been quite attached to the old pen and paper).

I also particularly enjoy the miniature aspect of my computer. You can literally take it anywhere with you. I have acquired a new pink pouch in which to carry my shiny new toy and have subsequently taken it shopping with me twice. I have yet to actually USE it out and about but i am full of good intention. The theory, on both the aforementioned trips to the shops, was that i would get my jobs done in town and do a bit of computer work in a cafe and enjoy the change of scenery (not to mention getting to feel all important sitting in the cafe tapping away as if my work was so important that the world could not afford to wait for me to finish my coffee and get back to the office lol).

Many people have grown up with a picture of God that kinda resembles their parents dusty old computer which sits on a giant computer desk taking up the whole study. It's not really their's, and it's not really useful, except in emergencies. The bible paints a different picture of God. It describes a God who is personalised, who knows us and wants us to know him. It describes a God who can and will be involved (and indeed, helpful) in any aspect of life we choose to invite Him into. It describes a God who will go with us anywhere we go, whether we acknowledge Him or not. This miniature, portable netbook that is mine all mine has completely revolutionised my thinking about computers. I wonder if anyone is ready to revolutionise their thinking about God??

A stroll in the countryside.....

Last Saturday 7 friends and i walked the 3 peaks of Yorkshire. That's 3 mountains (perhaps officially large hills but definitely high- complete with their own weather systems) one after the other in a big loop totalling 25 miles!! The challenge is to complete the walk within 12 hours......but for some people on our team it was a challenge to get half way up the first hill so for their sake we just concentrated on making it round at all!!

Our reason for undertaking this seemingly pointless explosion of effort was to raise money for a trip we are planning to take to Romania in December taking food and clothes etc to distribute to those in need. Our friends had been generous and all that stood between us and the money we needed was one very early morning and 3 mountains. The alarm went off at 5am! At five thirty we were in the car and on our way to Horton in Ribblesdale- the dales village where it all starts. We arrived at 6.30am but by the time we finished faffing around, meeting up with the rest of the team, visiting the loo etc it was 6.55am and we were twenty five minutes delayed on our starting time. Nonetheless spirits were high as we set off into the grey dawn and up the first mountain. Pen-y-ghent, however, was not in such a great mood. The fog was thick and the winds were high when we got to the top, but with one mountain down and only two to go we were still feeling pretty confident about our endeavour.

Once we reached the bottom of the first mountain we began the treacherous journey across the bogs..... sinking, wading, leaping, slipping and falling- this was no stroll in the countryside. Thankfully the fog prevented us from seeing just how far away the second mountain was. We eventually reached our rest stop two hours later than expected. The second mountain, Whernside, has a more gentle ascent however the weather that greeted us when we reached the top was outrageous! Thick fog and gale force winds battered us as we tried to navigate our way along the ridge that runs along the summit. Walking sideways and being blown into the wall was exciting for the first 5 mins but after twenty it was no longer funny! Finally we staggered into the shelter that marks the top and hid behind the wall- Phew, 2 down!!

The descent from Whernside ought to have been a pleasure considering the hideous weather conditions we were leaving behind and the promise of being two thirds of the way there, but unfortunately injury struck! Hannah, who had persevered without complaint despite acquiring serious blisters within the first hour was now suffering with a serious knee injury and could hardly walk down the hill. Limping and wincing with every step i tried to help her hobble down to safety.

Enter the hero.

Feeling sprightly and good natured and upset that Hannah was upset Lindon stepped up to save the day. Knight in shining armour- he would give Hannah a piggy back down the hill! It was a lovely idea but unfortunately it resulted in a second knee injury and we had to leave both Hannah and Lindon with the support team at the bottom.

We were five now and we were tired. We'd been walking for 9 hours already and we still had one mountain to climb. With a distance still to go before we even reached the base of Ingleborough, plus a long long walk back to the car it was starting to feel like a bad idea. I was particularly worried about the daylight situation, we were never going to make it back before the sun set in 2 hours time, thank goodness i'd put torch on the list of important things to bring!!!

The ascent to Ingleborough is short and sharp.......at least it would have been short if we hadn't had to stop for a rest every three steps. The summit was, once again, insanely windy and foggy and so despite climbing three mountains that day we enjoyed exactly NO panoramic vista's. Instead we were lucky enough to receive an insight into what life would be like on pluto......cold, bleak and lifeless. It appeared that anyone else climbing Ingleborough that day had sensibly set off home a few hours ago to make sure they didn't get caught out in the dark.

We began our descent home feeling satisfied.....we had done it....... 3 mountains, one day......lots of money .....and all for a good cause. Now all we had to do was stumble back to the car and we would never have to use our legs again!!!

Unfortunately stumbling back to the car took forever!!

It was SO dark!!! You know when you go the the beach at midnight and it's completely dark. There's no street lights for miles and you look up into the sky and you go "woah"..... "look at all those stars!!!" As long as your lying on your back looking up at those stars it's beautiful right? But then you try and find your way back to the car and you can't see a thing, at all, and your stumbling and tripping and you can't remember where the path was.......

Oh well at least we had torches..........

Or so i thought........ Mine had a dead battery, Jimbob had dropped his on the way down the last mountain and it no longer worked, no one else had read the list of important things to bring and so it turned out that between the 5 of us we had my back-up emergency wind up torch and Steve's iphone. Brilliant!

It took some time and we got a bit scared but with the help of sonar technology (i.e Lindon shouting "hello" from the car and us walking towards his voice) we made it back. Thirteen hours and twenty minutes after we set off. Not exactly a world record speed wise but a world changing example of team spirit. We had helped and encouraged each other all the way and together we have raised about £1500, enough to make our trip to Romania a reality!!

In anticipation of our trip to Romania in December i have spent some time today looking at the country's history and current status on the internet. Previous to our recent plans to visit my only knowledge of Romania was the harrowing images of the orphanages, discovered there after the revolution, and broadcast on our news programs in the early nineties.

Since then Romania has undergone a dramatic transformation. It's economy has boomed and the cities and industries have grown. Romania is now classified as an upper-middle income country. However, this is not the whole story. Many people in Romania are still living in extreme poverty, struggling to satisfy the basic needs of their family; food, medicine, warmth.

http://www.networks.org.ro/

It's pretty depressing looking at the difficult circumstances in which some people are forced to live. And there's so much of it..... all over the world people are suffering in poverty and hardship. And you feel so useless- how can we possibly help them all? Our attempts to help seem so pitiful- like we turned up at an earthquake with a dustpan and brush.

The temptation is to bury our heads in the sand. It's so easy to do that living here in our little Western bubble. Feeling hard done by because we can't afford brand names or a fancy car. It's impossible for us to fully comprehend such lack when we're living amongst such plenty.

But incomprehension and feelings of inadequacy never got anything done. We may not be able to meet all the needs in the world but if we recognise at least one we can focus on doing something about it.

Our trip to Romania in December is not going to meet the needs of the whole country, it's not even gonna come close to meeting the needs of the city we are visiting. But hopefully it will make some small difference to the lives of the people and families we encounter- and if it does......it's still worth doing right???

Chillin out Max and Relaxin all cool

It's funny how time marches on. You look forward to something for months. It feels like it's never gonna come. And then it's here, and your doing it and it's amazing. And then it's over. And your home. And you've been back to normality for a week, and it seems like a distant memory.

Still- it's a very pleasant distant memory!

We had a fantastic time in Portugal. The weather was amazing, 35 degrees centigrade and clear blue skies (bit of shock to the system arriving home!!), the beaches were beautiful and the company (i.e just my lovely husband) was perfect! We swam, walked, read, dozed, snorkelled, sailed and explored our way through a week of pleasure. It was awesome!

One day while visiting the beautiful little beach town of Luz we found a quiet spot on the rocks and dug out our picnic; Chicken sandwiches on white crusty bread with loads of butter, a huge bag of crisps and a bar of chocolate (everyone knows the 5 a day recommendations are suspended when your on holiday). While nourishing our bodies with white carbs, sugar and fat we were treated to the comedy of watching people getting dragged on inflatables across the ocean. Our particular favourite was a giant inflatable sail which we later discovered was named the 'flying fish'. This thing bounced and flew up in the air every time the wind blew- leaving it's passengers clinging on-to what was they're seat, legs flailing out behind them like a flag. Needless to say much screaming and laughing and falling off ensued. We decided we had to have a go!!!

Strolling down the beach we sauntered casually up to the inflatable station trying not to look like two giddy school children and cautiously inquired whether the 'Flying Fish' would be making any more trips today. To our delight and hopelessly disguised excitement we were invited to ride the beast immediately. The gauntlet had been clearly thrown down..... the challenge was clear..... do not fall off this thing no matter what!!

I'm not sure if it was simply because i was a girl or because i screamed like child being tickled the moment we started moving but the man driving the boat seemed to have mercy on me. Lindon not so much. I think the driver thought it would be more funny if he could get the guy to fall in the water but keep the girl on.....and he'd be right!!! The boat sped along and twisted and turned and the fish flew up in the air and I screamed and laughed and was thrown onto the inside of the sail where i could easily climb back on.........meanwhile Lindon was flung to the other side and dragged along with his whole body in the water stubbornly/ valiantly refusing to let go. Fifteen minutes later and i was still smiling (apart from the chafing) while Lindon, though yet to fall, was providing a living explanation for the phrase 'white knuckle ride'. The next day Lindon's arm was so stiff he couldn't lift it up to his mouth, not even when it was holding something good like ice cream.

It's funny what we do for fun. We all love to sit and relax and sleep. But lets face it we'd get kinda bored if that's all we did. God has wired us with a passion for adventure and challenge. Some more than others i concede, for instance, the guys and girls featured in the triathlon magazine i was reading in the waiting room at the dentist today, clearly got more than their fair share. But it's present in all of us. We all have the capacity to embrace hardship and come through to a (hopefully) glorious finish. I know it can be really hard when your going through a difficult time and clinging on for dear life- but when you make through without falling off it feels good right?

The bible has a lot to say about endurance and perseverance because they're a big part of life, and we are encouraged to be strong and not give in when times are hard. But it's not just about what we have to do. The Bible also teaches that in those times of difficulty when we are struggling to hold on, we can call out to him and He will help us.

He's listening.

He's not spying or trying to catch us out.

He's waiting.

Waiting for people to look up from all the chaos that surrounds them and recognise His goodness and love. Waiting for us to ask for His help.

And if we do...... He is ready to answer.

Holiday!!!!!

The day after tomorrow i will be waking up in Yorkshire, lunching in the sky and going to bed in Portugal.

That is blinkin amazing!

It's SO crazy that we can just whizz anywhere in the world in a matter of hours........ and yet we complain that it takes too long! Most of the time i take it for granted but every now and then it hits me how lucky we are to live at a time when it's possible to visit all the different places in the world and see all the different animals and scenery and cultures. Not only are we lucky enough to see all these things described and pictured in a book or filmed and presented on T.V we can ACTUALLY go and visit.

Which brings me to my visit to Portugal. I've never been to Portugal before but apparently everyone i know has. And they all say it's lovely...... so that's a bonus. Ever since i booked it people who've been already have been telling me about it. What the weather was like when they were there, what the beaches are like, what things they saw and did there. Similarly i have had a quick look on the internet at pictures and weather forecasts. I know what the hotel looks like, what the beach looks like and what the temperature will be when we get there on Thursday. (28 degreees C and gloriously sunny in case anyone's interested- not to rub it in or anything!). In theory i know everything there is to know about holidaying in Portugal......i don't really need to go.............but i still WANT to.

Just because you know a bit about a place and have seen some pictures doesn't mean you really know what it's like to be there. The sights, the smells, the atmosphere...... these things can all be described or depicted perfectly but they cannot be truly 'felt' unless you ACTUALLY go. Just because someone you know and trust has been to place and told you all about it, and showed you pictures and given you their opinion doesn't mean you can tick it off your list of places you'd like to visit.

It's funny how we know this instinctively when it come to things like holidays. We want to experience these things for ourselves. If anything, the things other people have told me about Portugal are the very things that make me really want to go. They don't satisfy my desire to holiday, they stir it up.

Some things need to be experienced, they need to be felt. It's not enough just to read about someone else's holiday. It's not enough to watch a romantic comedy and watch the happy couple live a happy ever after. It's not enough to watch that skinny girl on T.V eat a bar of Chocolate!!!

Christianity is one of those things that really needs to be experienced.....that needs to be felt. Your not doing it justice if you just glance at the brochure or take someone else's word for it. You have to invest in something properly to truly discover what it has to offer. I may think i know what it is to holiday in Portugal from my friends and the internet but i won't really know til i fork out my money, take time off work, and get my butt out there.

If your interested in taking some time to investigate the concept of God. If your looking to go deeper than the thoughts and theories about God that you have simply accepted and begin to experience the reality of knowing God in your life then this is what you should do......

Come to an Alpha Course at Cobbles and Clay. Beginning Monday 4th October at 7.30pm and running every Monday for ten weeks, the Alpha Course is an opportunity to explore the Christian Faith. A friendly environment to question and discuss thoughts, fears and hopes.

Bear Grylls did it!!!!

For more information find 'Grapevine 2.0' on Facebook or email grapevinetwopointoh@yahoo.co.uk

Baptism

On Sunday i went to FERN Christian Fellowship's annual baptism service. The baptisms take place in the river at the bottom of the valley........the freezing, stony bottomed, muddy watered river at the bottom of the valley. The sun was shining (which seems unlikely looking out the window at the rain today) and the river looked lovely. Green leafed branches dipping in the dappled water, a squirrel dashing along the bank (honestly there actually was.... i'm not just saying it for effect!). It actually looked quite inviting.

Then people started going in!! Apparently; judging by the screams, contorted faces and chattering teeth, it was FREEZING!!! Four people got baptized i.e. dunked completely under the water, and the photographs i took confirmed my original suspicions........ the water was definitely FREEZING!!

It's a funny thing getting baptized.......especially if your perspective is that of an unsuspecting dog walker who encountered an unusual bunch of people gathered by the river! I like to think of it as being a bit like a wedding........ apart from the obvious difference in outfit choice. When you decide you believe in God and your going to try and follow after his ways with your life, you usually say a prayer to this effect and remember that day as the day you became a Christian. This is kinda like getting engaged......you have decided you and God are going to spend the rest of your lives together...... you plan on involving God in your life till the day you die. This commitment is between you and God...... you tell people, but only you really know how serious you are.

Now you see where i'm going with the whole baptism/ wedding thing. Getting baptised is like the big day...... you invite all you friends and celebrate the commitment you've made to God. It's the big display, the sign to everyone else of the commitment you made in your heart!

Getting baptised is not magic. It's not a ticket to heaven or an initiation ceremony into a mystical society to which you are forever bound. It's a person, making a commitment, to follow God.

Is it worth the effort?

I think my dog has 'ADHD'. He's a twitcher. He cannot stand to be still. Right now he is lying down in front of me in an awkward 'i'm lying down because you made me, not because i'm comfy' kind of position, whining relentlessly. I wouldn't mind if he was badly done to, but we're talking about a dog who has just got back from an hours walk in the wind and the rain, been fed a big bowl of gross smelling dog food and is now in trapped (poor soul) in a room full of toys with a warm fire blazing. What kind of dog doesn't settle in front of the fire and go to sleep in that scenario. Or even if he wasn't sleepy you would think he would be happy to curl up with a chew toy. But not Blue, bless him.......he just cannot understand why i would want to do anything other than throw his ball or tug his rope.

Ok so the dog seems to have settled now that he's been in and out of the room several times creating draughts and being a general nuisance. Now it's the cats turn. Independent and stand- off-ish as she normally is Bell has decided that today she wants to sit on my lap.....on the laptop on my lap (I just very nearly lost everything i have written so far). She would also like to use the corner of the laptop screen to scratch her head, which would be fine if the hinge on our laptop wasn't broken and the screen didn't keep falling flat. Bell would also like to go out now please. And back in again now please. That's lovely......out again please...... i'll leave the rest to your imagination.

Pets eh! They get in the way, they make lots of mess, they cost lots of money and they take lots of work. And yet........i'd hate to be without them. They're my little buddies, they keep me company, they bring me so much joy, i love to watch them and marvel at their crazy little characters. Taking a dog on a walk is so much more rewarding than just going for a walk by yourself. They just love it so much. Every day i take Bluey for a walk. And every day when i pick up his lead he looks like he just won the lottery. All his dreams have come true. It doesn't matter that we're walking the exact same route we did yesterday. It doesn't matter that it's rainy and cold and blowing a gale (secretly i think this is in fact Bluey particular favourite kind of weather). And then when your out walking his tails up and he's bounding around like he's just been released from a ten year stint down a mine. I feel like i just gave him the gift of a lifetime, and honestly, it really wasn't that much effort on my part.

I love my pets. Sometimes they drive me crazy..... but they're always worth it.

The best things in life always take bit of work don't they. Family, for instance. Families always require effort and patience, money and time but who would be without them. Relationships of any kind are complicated and require sacrifice but very few people would be happy living all alone. Sometime when i'm tired and stressed out and everything seems hard work i just want to curl up in a ball and not have to deal with or think about anyone or anything. But if i'm honest, i think i'd soon get bored. Not to mention the pins and needles and the compulsion to eat!!!

Some things are worth the effort. We each get to decide what's worth the effort for us. Some relationships are worth the effort, some aren't. I think pets are worth the effort, many people don't. Families are usually worth the effort. Careers are worth a certain amount of effort, though we have to be careful not to put all our efforts in this particular basket. Health is probably worth the effort, even if it's sometimes hard to see that when faced with the option of walk or a run vs the sofa and a bag of malteasers!

I think faith is worth the effort. Some days it seems like it would be a lot easier not to believe in God. I could just live my life however i wanted, i could be entirely selfish. I could stay in an watch TV on sundays and mondays. But then i wouldn't know the comfort and security of having God by my side through every situation. I wouldn't have an overriding purpose for my life that makes everything seem worth while. I wouldn't know God's unconditional love and forgiveness in my heart giving me value and self worth. Jesus said that if we chose to follow his way with our lives it would be like choosing a narrow path instead of a big broad easy route. But he also said that if we did choose to follow him...........it would definitely be worth the effort!

Pub Quiz Glory

Last night our grapevine group got together and attempted Dave's Quiz at The Old Hall in Haworth. It was, of course, organised with the knowledge that we probably wouldn't be any good but with the hope that we would have good fun trying. However as i looked around the pub at all the little groups of two and three people, from my vantage point in the middle of a group of ten my competitive side reared up and i began to feel quietly confident. "I'm reasonably intelligent", i thought to myself, "i have 11 GCSE's, 4 A-levels, and a degree. I listen to the radio, watch movies and scan the bbc news page whenever i go on the internet. I have had good success at exams.... i suspect i may in fact be a pub quiz genius!" Then the questions started.....

How anyone is expected to know what the oldest animal rescue centre in the country is called is beyond me. I don't have the foggiest who Alex Higgins is, nevermind where he comes from. And while i'm sure i could have a crack at guessing WHY a famous reggae singer christened Orville Richard somebody-or-other would change his name, i definitely can't tell you WHAT he changed it to.

As i sat there wallowing in my own foolish pride and bemoaning my apparent stupidity, i suddenly realised we actually had some answers written down. Other people on my team apparently knew this ridiculously random information. SWEET!!! If i had attempted to undertake this test on my own i would seriously be lucky to get a grand total of 3 questions right out of 50, but blow me, between us we got 28. Now i'm not saying we should consider a career in pub quiz's, there were plenty of teams ahead of us but get this..... we were not last!

Thank goodness for friends. I would definitely have snuck out under the pretence of using the toilet and scurried home with my tail between my legs after the first ten questions if i had been by myself. It was shameful how completely blank my sheet would have been. As it was, not only did i stay, we even handed our sheet in....and did i mention that we weren't last!!!

I know it's an obvious link but it's such a good example i can't help myself....... this is why God wants us to work together. It's not about building an empire it's about working together to do a better job. We can all make a difference in this world by the way we live our lives individually, but how much more can we achieve together. Our problem with together is often that we are jealous or insecure. We want to be more important or else we feel we have nothing to offer and we are worthless. In Paul's first letter to the early church in Corinth he deals with these issue's among the people and it's such insightful teaching;

The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body.....If the foot says "I am not a part of the body because i am not a hand," that does not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear says "I am not a part of the body because i am not an eye," would that make it any less a part of the body? If the whole body were an eye, how would you hear? Or if your whole body were an ear, how would you smell anything?

There are two main points i believe God is teaching us through Paul in this extract from the Bible. Firstly; we are all important. We may all be very different but we all have our specialities, our gifts, our skills, our natures. Just because some people may appear more skilled or more prominent doesn't mean they are..... they just have a different purpose. Secondly; we were designed to work together. We were made 'parts' and it's only when we come together as a group that we achieve our full potential as a whole. Jesus taught his followers to encourage one another and help one another, to work together to be salt and light in the earth. To come together and create a whole, capable of changing the world and making it more like God intended it to be.

Working together with the members of Grapevine, i know we will be able to make a little difference in our world- it might not be big but it'll definitely be bigger than i could manage on my own. I know for a fact that i will never attempt Dave's quiz by myself but maybe if we go together......

One Man's Junk.....

I just got back from a week camping in Wales. We went with a small group from church and a good time was had by all. We've actually been to this particular spot before, many times, and seen all the sights, many times but it's quite comforting to go there again and look at the bays and the cliffs and the lighthouse and remember all the good times you've had there over the years.

The weather this year was so-so. Which means i feel bad about complaining because we did have some sunshine while the rest of the country was having rain however there wasn't nearly enough of it for me. What i was really hoping for was the kind of sunshine that sends you scrabbling desperately around your tent at 7-o-clock in the morning looking for a zip so you can stick your gasping head out and breathe. The kind of sunshine that makes you think "you know- i don't care if my bum looks big in these shorts i'm wearing them anyway". The kind of sunshine that makes a day on the beach sound like heaven on earth. The kind of sunshine that makes you believe you might actually go for a swim in the sea - nevermind whether you chicken out as soon as your feet make contact with the water....we all know it's the thought that counts! Indeed i was secretly hoping for the kind of sunshine that would make English people complain.

Unfortunately we got the kind of sunshine that makes the clouds bright enough to stop you sleeping in; but leaves you wriggling round in your sleeping bag trying to keep out the draughts. The kind of sunshine that is completely non-existent in the morning when you decide to wear jeans and only appears at 3 in the afternoon when your well and truly dressed for the day. The kind of sunshine that is accompanied by a windchill of -15 such that the suggestion of a day on the beach produces either a stoic smile of defiance, or an unconvinced grimace (neither of which are particularly flattering expressions for the holiday snaps). We got the kind of sunshine that produces incredulous admiration for those brave souls who actually went anywhere near the sea. It was indeed that rare kind of weather which English people don't complain about. It wasn't too cold or too wet, and it definitely wasn't too hot. Remarkably, considering how far from my hopes it was, the weather seemed to illicit positively cheerful comments from my fellow campers.

Apparently the sun was "trying to come out". It wasn't trying hard enough in my opinion but i think this apparent effort on the sun's part gave it grace in the eyes of holidaymakers everywhere. Patches of blue sky were celebrated and cheered, and pockets of sunshine were rewarded with "it turned out nice again"s and rapid purchases of ice cream. The official school report for the weather in wales during the last week of July 2010 was 'good effort', however my personal feelings were more of the 'could do better', 'must try harder' variety.

Still, we had a good time anyway, and it's amazing what you find to do when the sun's not shining. One day we stumbled upon the treasure that was the Travelling Fair, which we wandered around with morbid curiosity. We dare not ride anything but the dodgems. Partly because everything looks like it was built in the eighties (ie 30 years ago!!!!) and partly because the fact that these rides travel makes me very suspicious. How safe can it be if it also has to be portable? Portable versions of thing are always second rate. FACT. Portable loo's, portable chairs, portable homes (i.e tents), portable loo's......need i say more.

On the bright side this fair was accompanied by a Majorettes competition.......it's true. Unlikely as it may seem there are hundreds of enthusiastic baton twirling, high knee lifting girls in the UK and they all convene in Holyhead in late July for a big stand off. It's definitely not something you see everyday and you can be certain you would have missed it if the sun had been shining!!! Whether you would later bemoan your loss is another matter.

We also spent a happy hour wandering the most impossibly ridiculous car boot sale i have ever seen. I know they say 'one man's junk, is another man's treasure' but i'm pretty sure this was any man's junk. You would not believe how much rubbish was being put up for sale.....i heard one lady enquire after a lava lamp that she fancied to which the man replied "oh well er actually er that's not for sale, it er doesn't actually work". This, the same man who had presumably set said lamp in a prime position on his table earlier that morning. Incredibly the woman persevered with the sale....it seems a broken lava lamp is in fact hidden treasure.

I did buy one thing from the car boot sale....... a soft toy to give my dog to destroy. I gave it to him as i sat down to write this post and it is already lifeless and limp, and the lounge is now a sea of fluff. It has provided much hilarity in it's short life though, since, unbeknown to me, it contained a sound device which made freaky mioux cross laser gun noises when it got bashed.....much to Blue's surprise and excitement. It's the best 10p i've ever spent....... (seriously though, how many items would you need to sell at 10 pence to make it worth standing in the cold at a car boot sale all day- 10 items, 10 conversations, 10 transactions, 10 times rooting for change, 10 carrier bags later......congratulations you've made a pound, thanks for all your hard work.....now, can i get you a drink from the burger van? Cup of Tea? Certainly.....that's a pound please).

So i guess i did find treasure amidst the junk after all, Blue certainly looked pleased with his present (don't be fooled by the fact that he destroyed it- he only likes things he can destroy- his tiny tail was wagging the whole time).

Rain Rain go away!!!!!

It's July.........

It' RAINING!!!!!!!!!!

And I'm not talking drizzle.

Have you ever noticed how much worse the rain is when it's supposed to be summer? I don't mean physically. Summer rain is actually positively pleasant compared to winter rain. It's wet yes, but at least your warm, and so being wet could almost be described as refreshing. Winter rain on the other hand.....not so much. It's freezing, your already struggling to walk from all the heavy layers you've been forced to wrap yourself in, and the wind is, inevitably, blowing directly in your face driving the freezing raindrops into your forehead like pins......euuuwwaaahh...it's just horrrid.

My problem with summer rain is not physical it's psychological. It's the fact that it's supposed to be sunny. I feel robbed on two levels. Not only am i wet......i'm NOT basking in the warmth of the sun when quite frankly i should be....it's JULY!!! The English weather system apparently missed that crucial day at primary school when the rest of the class was taught about seasons.

Our expectations often affect our response to a situation. If your expecting a 'C' in your exams then 'B' is the best news ever, it's so exciting, you can't wait to tell everyone, your really proud. But if your expecting an 'A'...........

We're so lucky in this life our expectations have become ridiculously high. I was expecting a homemade pudding with custard for my dessert tonight and so a bowl of luxury ice cream is somehow, a disappointment. I'm sure if you weren't expecting to eat at all til tomorrow a two course meal including luxury ice cream would be cause for quite a celebration.

I know it's obvious that we have so much to be grateful for, yet no matter how many times i get told i still drift back into my own little world with my ridiculous expectations, and find myself disappointed or feeling hard done by. We are continuously presented with images of people who are better off than us and so we feel let down cos our world doesn't match up.

This isn't to say that we should necessarily lower our expectations in life, ambition and high expectation can be the very things that drive us to get the best out of this life. It' just that sometimes......

when we're feeling badly done to...........

when pudding is not lathered in custard,............

when it buckets it down in July.....................

maybe we should examine our expectations and be prepared to recognise they are the only thing that's stopping us from appreciating what we have!

ON the way or IN the way

I've been reading "The Message" Bible a little recently, just for a change. For those of you who are unfamiliar with "The Message" it is a modern translation of the Bible with all the chapters and verses taken back out (they were not there to start with but added in much later to make it easier to find your way around) so that it reads like a book made up of historical accounts, poems and letters. The author is a bit of an embellisher and so it always ends up quite dramatic sounding but it puts the bible and it's message into our time......not merely by using modern words, like me and you instead of thee and thou, but by switching to modern examples and using modern language and sentence structure. It is really great for helping you see new exciting teaching in the Bible because it sounds so different that it feels like you've never heard it before, and because of it's modern context it's easy to see immediately how what the Bible is teaching is relevant to life in the 21st century.

So anyway, I read a verse in The Message Bible that i really liked this morning. It's in the book of Romans (which is in fact a letter written by Paul the apostle to the Christian Believers in Rome) but it is a quote from the Old Testament book of Isaiah (which is an account of the life and prophecies of a man called Isaiah, an Israelite who lived a long time before Jesus was born). The verse simply says:

"Careful! I've put a huge stone on the road to Mount Zion, a stone you can't get around. But the stone is me! If your looking for me, you'll find me on the way, not in the way."

The verse is there to explain an earlier point that Paul is making but i love that phrase "ON the way, not IN the way".

It reminded me of an incident that occurred recently when Lindon and i were driving home. We were cruising down a country lane near our house when a calf from a nearby field wandered out in front of us. Instead of seeing the danger and turning back to the field of safety, (where all the other cows were) it did that ridiculously annoying thing that rabbits always do and set off in the same direction as we were trying to go. We could not get past it since any further movement forward on our part simply herded the poor thing further down the road and further away from the field of safety (where all the other cows were). Now, as i said earlier we were simply cruising home, it was a lovely summer evening and we were in no real rush to get to our destination so this whole incident was quite an exciting adventure for us. We stopped the car and i got out and attempted to establish friendly relations with the calf (here calf-y calf-y).

Unfortunately a man and his wife in a fancy Mercedes arrived at this point.......and they were not just cruising! These guys were trying to get somewhere and they had no time for a lost calf in the middle of the road. They weren't mean or unkind they just needed to get past and started shuffling impatiently to drive around us. Thankfully the calf decided to make a break for it whilst we were negotiating with the Mercedes man and squeezed past the cars and set off back up the hill toward the field of safety (where all the other cows were). Lindon did the honourable thing and ran up the hill and fastened the calf safely away and we drove home with a smile on our faces thinking of the cute little calf tucked up in the field of safety (with all the other cows)!!!

It's funny how the nature of our journey affects the way we approach the things we discover on our way. When your out for a scenic drive a tractor going 25 miles an hour is not really that big a deal but when your trying to get to work........

I like the idea that God has set himself in our path...... we will encounter Him. But it's up to us how we view that encounter. If we're focused on our own plans, set upon our own destination then talk of God merely gets in the way. But if we are looking for God, seeking to discover Him on our journey.......then eventually we will find Him.... somewhere along the way.

So far Not so good

So far Not so good

Hmmmmm!!!! So those of you that read Tuesdays entry will know that i am currently embarking on a mission to positively affect people with my words. Wednesday started out well.....i decided to practice as soon as i got up and immediately enveloped the dog in a cloud of positive and genuine words regarding his general loveliness, my affection for him, his secure place in the family etc etc. It was a good start. My next encounter was with the car (lindon was still asleep, he would have to wait for his moment to be inspired to greatness with the subtle yet impressive power of words). Now unfortunately it all went down hill from here.....the car was not inspiring me in my endeavour with it's clunks and rattles and unfortunately i resorted to calling it heap of junk....at this point it's only 8 in the morning!! Not such a good start.

I consoled myself that the car didn't really count since it had no feelings and resolved not to be put off. Unfortunately the day continued as normal and while i was encouraging to the participants in my fitness class and friendly to the customers at the cafe (apart from one old lady who was particularly annoying and stirred up a little rudeness in me) i didn't really get the opportunity i was looking for to spectacularly make someone's day.

But who knows....maybe i did. Sometimes people have said things to me that probably didn't seem like a big deal to them and yet they affected me, for better or worse, and i remember them. It's often the little things you say over and over and the way you treat people day to day that conveys a message about your perceptions and expectations of a person.

The following extract is from The Message version of the Bible, the book of James chapter 3:

A bit in the mouth of a horse controls the whole horse. A small rudder on a huge ship in the hands of a skilled captain sets a course in the face of the strongest winds. A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything—or destroy it!

It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell.

This is scary: You can tame a tiger, but you can't tame a tongue—it's never been done. The tongue runs wild, a wanton killer. With our tongues we bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and women he made in his image. Curses and blessings out of the same mouth!

My friends, this can't go on. A spring doesn't gush fresh water one day and brackish the next, does it? Apple trees don't bear strawberries, do they? Raspberry bushes don't bear apples, do they? You're not going to dip into a polluted mud hole and get a cup of clear, cool water, are you?

The writer makes a really interesting point at the end there.......we have to be consistent with the words that come out of our mouths. We cannot go around being selfish and unkind and angry with people generally and then say something nice on a special occasion or write an impressive message in a card and expect that to produce good results in a person's life. We have to be consistent with our encouragement if we want to help people succeed. Consistent with our words of affection if we want people to feel loved. Consistent with our praise if we want people to feel worthy and valued.

And out of the heart........the mouth speaks!!!!

Par-tay!!!

So last night we had our first Grapevine 2.0 party at Cobbles and Clay Cafe on Haworth Main Street. It was a really relaxed night, chance for a few of us to meet each other for the first time, face to face, like they did in the olden days. I really enjoyed myself and had lovely chats with pretty much everyone who was there. I hope you all enjoyed it too....humour me if you didn't, i'm a sensitive soul and can't handle rejection (did i mention that i only really welcome positive comments).

I used to work as a manager at Marks and Spencer and we had to have regular reviews with our staff and our bosses and give out 'REDS' and 'GREENS'....it was hideous. I hate that kind of thing. I'd go first.......ahem..."Well Marjorie, I'd say a 'GREEN' for you is, (NB you should always give 'greens' first- build the poor beggers up before you really let rip with the insults), you always get to work on time, well done that's really great! However a 'RED' for you is that you always go home as well and really i'd prefer it if you just stayed cos your such a great person." I'd be feeling quietly pleased with myself for having managed to dodge the 'RED' bullet....i hate giving 'reds'....i had, i felt, successfully managed to disguise a green as a red and therefore done my job as outlined by my superiors without spoiling poor Marjorie's day. It's a bit like when you go for an interview and they start with the trick questions...."so what would you say are your biggest weaknesses??" To which we all reply, "well i hate to admit it but i'm afraid my biggest weakness is that i am a workaholic....if you give me this job i won't be able to help but slog my guts out and do free overtime it's a weakness i know but what can i say i'm flawed". (you know you've done it!!!)

Then of course it would be my turn to be 'GREENED' and 'REDDED' and my boss would start "Well Sam, I'd say a 'GREEN' for you (my heart is swelling with hope) is that you always come to work on time, well done that's really great!" Aw shucks, i'm glowing with pride, i can't believe she noticed...it was definitely worth all those speeding fines. "However a 'RED' for you is that your not actually any good at what your supposed to be doing when your here." Booyah!! The killer shot....my boss was never afraid to fire the 'RED' bullet!!! Floods of tears and months of self doubt ensued.

I guess you could say my experiences of 'feedback reviews' from both sides were RED. Marjorie (whose name has been changed for legal reasons) didn't learn anything useful about how she could do better at her job. And i, had my heart ripped out and my confidence shattered. (NB for those of you currently shedding tears on my behalf i'd like to point out out that i later got the opportunity to work in a new store with a new boss whose management technique was more suited to my sensitive self and i did very well there and all was forgotten....until now lol)

I'm not sure quite why i started telling this story but i'm not deleting it now so here's the lesson....always be nice to Sam or she'll cry.

That and, use your words wisely. It's amazing what we can do with our words.....we can push someone on to greatness or we can undermine their very foundations. Everyday we talk all day long and everyday we have the opportunity to help or to hurt people with our words.

After years of trying desperately to be liked i've gotten pretty good at not saying nasty things (except by accident.....i fear i may often offend people without realising what i'm saying....sorry if i've done that to you recently). However i am, quite rubbish, at saying encouraging nice things! I often think them, but have you ever noticed how embarrassing it can be to be nice. It always makes me feel like a school kid trying to butter up the teacher while all the other kids moan and roll their eyes! Still, when people say genuinely nice encouraging things to me- it makes me feel amazing so i'm gonna try...i'm gonna be brave....i'm prepared to be a bit of a dork.....i think tomorrow........i'm gonna inspire someone to greatness! (I'll let you know how i get on)

Nettles

The other day i was walking my dog down one of the many narrow lanes that are a speciality of Haworth, when i found myself stuck in traffic. Today's tourist traffic was a group of young American girls who were stopping to take photo's of themselves stood next to a horse. Whilst negotiating the group with expert manoeuvres, performed by both myself and Blue (the dog), i couldn't help but overhear one of the girls complaining about a mysterious collection of itchy lumps that had appeared on the front of her foot. Meanwhile, in her attempt to give her friends the best view of said itchy lumps, she was hopping around on her other foot into the middle of a big bunch of nettles- no doubt acquiring a matching set of annoying itchy lumps.

Now, for reasons that remain incomprehensible to me i had, at this point, mistaken the true identity of these 'cute' American girls. In my head their American accents were clearly the sound of French girls attempting to speak English. Unperturbed by the apparent language barrier i decided i must help these poor ignorant foreigners with my local knowledge, and so in true English style i adopted the slow pigeon version of English that we always assume everyone the world over speaks fluently. Complete with pointing, actions, and wide mouth syllables i embarked on an explanation...... plant...evil....stingy......ow! They were all very pleased with this important piece of local knowledge and responded with many pleasing "ah's" and "thankyou's", but i had more. Surely even more exciting than the discovery of the existence of nettles is the discovery of the existence of doc leaves.

I could not wait to tell them of the healing power of this magical 'good' leaf that always grows alongside the nasty 'bad' leaf. However, by this time it had become obvious that these girls were in fact native English speakers and after my embarrassing performance earlier i was unsure how to proceed......i decided to stick with the pigeon English and embrace the legend i would become. While walking down a narrow lane in a remote English village these girls had encountered one of the few remaining true Yorkshire folk who don't speak very well but have mystical bush-tucker survival knowledge about poisonous plants and healing leaves!

It's amazing how something we English people know so well, like the fact that nettles sting, can be so baffling to a foreigner......it was truly tragic watching this poor girl bemoaning the unpleasant rash while vigorously acquiring another. It really made me think how much we all need each other with our different perspectives and different experiences to help each other out. All societies work by distributing skills and knowledge among different people and then working together to meet everybody's needs. We have some doctors, some teachers, some drivers, some farmers etc and only that way can we function. Imagine if you had to produce all your own food, work, build, cook, organise your taxes and then perform open heart surgery on yourself. Even in small tribes and villages different people take on different roles; trackers, hunters, farmer's, cooks.

This kind of helpful living was God's grand plan for the church. Some people think of the church as a School master, telling them what to do and making them feel bad. Some people think of the church as a building; impressive....but always flippin freezing! Some people think of church as a service that they attend once a week to keep God happy. But the Bible talks about church differently. The Bible talks about church as a body, a body with many parts, each with different skills and strengths and knowledge, but each part working together and helping each other to make the whole run smoothly. We're not supposed to live this life alone, struggling though trying to manage everything ourselves..... we need to rely on each other, we need to help one another. We need to point out the nettles and hand out the doc leaves (even if we have to do it in pigeon English) :-)

Hey....just wanted to invite my MANY many followers to a party.......now now don't all talk at once!!! YES a party! Monday 28th june (that's less than a week away) at Cobbles and Clay, the funkiest cafe on Haworth Main Street. (It's number sixty....about half way up on the right if your panting up the hill, and about halfway down on the left if your cruising down it). The party starts at 7.30pm and it's for anyone whose interested in being a part of Grapevine 2.0 a new christian social network we are starting. It's just a social event so don't feel intimidated.....come along and hang out with us. (I put 'hang out' cos i thought it might sound cool....but then i decided i sounded more like a mum trying to sound cool in front of her kids mates so i was gonna change it but then i couldn't think of anything better....'chill out'; 'party'; 'make some new friends'; 'socialise' .......hmmm suggestions welcome!!!) Anyways....just come alright!!!

I just read an amazing quote in the Bible (Luke 7:35). It's Jesus speaking and he said, hehem "Wisdom is shown to be right by the lives of those who follow it". It just struck me that wise sayings and clever truth's are just words unless we prove them to be right through actions. It's so true, you can't argue wisdom, you can only demonstrate it. I could present you with a million reasons why it's important to exercise (and believe me i could, i'm always trying to convince people who come to my aerobics classes that losing weight is not the only reason to exercise) but it's not until this conventional wisdom has been proven to be true in the lives of others that we accept it as wisdom.

Advertiser's know this....that's why all adverts today come backed up with some clinical study or staggering percentage of agreement that what they are saying to you is true! Didn't you know that 96.5% of women agree that moisturising cream feels nice? How can you deny such wisdom when it has been proven to be true in 96.5% of women's lives!!! You MUST go to town and buy some immediately!

Interesting though, how more effecting this proof of wisdom is when it is demonstrated in the lives of people we know (or think we know). Every advertiser knows that their advert will be EVEN more effective if they can get a celebrity to say the product worked for them.....we take one look at their airbrushed faces and we just have to have it. But how much more convinced are we when someone we actually know uses a product and they can tell us, and indeed we can see for ourselves, the difference it has made.

How much more then do our lives need to demonstrate and prove the wisdom we believe. We tell our children that it is better to share, that they should accept apologies, that they shouldn't eat too many sweeties. We insist that they be kind to one another and not exclude other children. We encourage them to be grateful for what they have and to obey the rules which make life run smoothly and fairly for everyone. And yet so often our days are spent selfishly focused on making our way in the world DESPITE everyone else instead of alongside everyone else.

Jesus said a lot of wise things when he was on the earth but unfortunately the Christian church in it's many forms has not always demonstrated this wisdom in it's actions. There are a few people on this earth who prove the wisdom of God to be right because they follow it in their lives......i hope i can be one of them.

Today is Thursdy 17th June 2010. Is today a good day to start a blog?

What would I know, this is my first venture into the slightly daunting world of blogging. It doesn't seem like a particularly good day to start seen as the most exciting thing to happen to me today so far was the discovery that, yes there was enough cheese in the fridge for me to have a panini for lunch, despite my deep concerns to the contrary. Still, i guess that's the nature of blogging. What would be a good day to start? Maybe I should wait till I do something amazing like climb Everest or get knighted (do you get knighted when your a girl?) but then, to be fair, i'm not sure I'd have time to post a blog on either of those days what with the icy storms and/or waiting around for the Queen to get to grips with that heavy looking sword.

So, after much deliberation today's the day- carpe diem and all that. Today is, after all, the first day of the rest of my life. Cliché's anyone??? I'm not really a lover of sentences that come with the introduction "well you know what they say....." however I have to admit that there's usually an amount of truth embedded in them. Why else would circumstances to which these sayings seem relevant occur so often. I think it could get pretty stressful if we all actually 'lived each day like it was our last', it'd get kinda exhausting 'living life to the full' twenty four seven. Would there be time to sleep if we truly lived with this attitude? Personally I think I would set some time aside for sleep during my last 24 hours, maybe a nice siesta, you can't beat a well deserved nap. Seriously though, sometimes you've just got to do stuff. Sometimes you just have to make decisions and follow them through. Sometimes you have to have faith.

With this in mind my Husband, Lindon, and I are setting about establishing a Christian community via Facebook (Search Grapevine 2.0). A community where people can ask questions and discover God. A community where people can support each other in their daily lives. A community that put's it's faith into action and makes an impact in the world around it.

And I, am setting about establishing a blog. A blog which will, hopefully, encourage people to consider God, and the teachings and doings of Jesus, in everyday things. I hope some people will come on a journey with me.......a journey I'm definitely starting today.