Similarities

Feels like my head is up in the clouds at the moment....

I pondered earlier after washing up; watching the water go swirling down the sink. Is that what a Black Hole is like and can we see these phenomena in our every day events? I am on the scout for more of the same.

Will come back later and drop my picture in; problems with the Internet. My router died and the spare one is playing up. It's like trying to push through treacle. (Better).. A temporary fix to the broadband connection. How quickly we become reliant on something as simple as a light switch/ telephone/ Internet. Called an old friend today who I had not spoken to in a long time, so much has happened and 40 minutes was not enough to catch up to where we used to be. Selective points to try and summarise where we are now - sometimes think I do that with the Lord too.
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INNER SELF

Stress, anxiety, depression is a state we cannot fully understand, unless we have been there; and even then - what is understanding? We muddle through at best, follow suggestions and formulae in an effort to find something that works. Like a roller coaster, we can see the bend coming up but we cannot prepare for the forces against us as we go through that bend. A recent training course "mental health first aid! was very interesting, particularly as a close friend is going through this.

We journeyed together to church the other week, a big step for her; avoiding people and questions. Well meaning folk, pleased to see her and wanting to encourage. The early service was a good option, familiar in its ways and unlikely to have any surprises; tea & coffee is provided between the services for the comings and goings. At the final blessing I whispered to her "fancy a coffee"; "I think I'll just go straight home".

As we left we bumped into a lady just arriving, she asked the time of the next service and we suggested she went int the hall for a coffee first.
Sitting in the car we could see the lady, walking around the perimeter looking at the hall; she then sat on the wall, waiting.

Thats when it happened; my friend reached into who she is, a caring person that understands feelings. "Tell her, if she wants to go for a coffee, I will go with her" and that's what we did.

Note to morning office: help me to know me and work out of who I am.
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Gift of Time

Sunday should not go without a mention; after service a friend came to me and said "I'm going to ask you a strange question". With a laugh I told him he would probably get a strange answer; he asked me if I had a wrist watch? Of course and I went on to show him and tell him how it is nothing special and I have had it some years now, the glass is scratched and will only wind the pointers one way. This winding is not a problem as in the fall it will wind back and the watch always gains a little - so winding back is no problem. March is a problem and I need to wind back 11-hours.

Clearly I did not go into such length about my old watch as my friend just held out his watch and said, "I would like you to have this". I was stunned and did not know what to say, I am used to there being a catch/ condition; there was none. This was a very good quality watch, I used to have one the same make many years ago. It seems my friend recieved a retirement gift, a special watch and must have pondered on what to do with his old one; most would keep it in a drawer for use on occasional days. He added, it's quartz and just had a new battery; I am not often lost for words - a simple thank you...

But it must be more than that for it has not left my thoughts since. Our possessions, all that we have - it is not what we have but what we do with it - letting go of possessions is not easy - how much stuff do I/we have in cupboards and drawers and if we could let go of them, then maybe - just maybe we could let go and be who we are created to be. New life indeed.

Note to evening office: do some clearing out.
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Monday walk

Started out this morning at a bird hide and quickly realised

I am a photographer - not a bird watcher. I enjoy taking pictures of our feathered friends but conversation in that small shed was all about what they had seen and where. I think I was looking for a little peace and quiet; so off I went for a walk. Here are a selection of snaps.

Happy Easter.

Eternal Bank Account

So many of us put great distance between ourselves and our bank account when funds are low. The statement, be it on paper or online is avoided at all cost. "I know I am low but I don't want to know how much". It is great to view a statement when we are in credit, spend a little and not worry about the balance (spend a lot and not worry)!

The journey back is always longer than the journey there, as kids we would walk down the fields to the woods, and play all day. Coming back we would often comment how far away the farmhouse was; it seemed as if someone had moved it while we were playing. It is easy for our statement of accounts to move beyond our point of calculation; Dad would always say "look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves". Strange, when the most I would have was ten shillings (but he was right). It dosen't seem to matter how well we are brought up, we still stray and get into bother, now the economic climate seems to be having a day (or two) of reckoning; perhaps the banks have been loosing sight of the pennies.

Holy week and leading up to Good Friday, a day of reckoning when our debt was paid in full ,but it is not that simple - our statement needs to be refreshed daily.
Note to morning office: help me to look after the pennies (your sheep).
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Look through any window

I found a new exercise this morning in my bid to keep fit; washing windows.
It is an action that is good for the Body, Mind and Spirit.

For a window to be effective, it should be cleaned regularly on both the outside and the in. When it is unclean, much is hidden but once the cleaning is done; even the smallest of blemish (even in the corners) is noticed.

The view from the window opposite is taken from Hetton Hall Northumbria; a prayer seat at the top of the first floor looking towards the sea and Cuthberts cave. A bell rings and it is time for morning office.....

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The Caravan Pilgrim

The large caravan, pulled by two horses emerged from behind the Black Bull Inn at Ugthorpe. It was 1934 and already much of the pilgrimage had been accomplished. Peter Anson and his companion Tony Rowe began (with a much larger portiuncula) in Datchet - Thames Valley on Ash Wednesday; marked with black smudges on their foreheads and determination in their hearts. The stop-over at Ugthorpe was for 5-weeks and the villagers got to know the pilgrims well. Mum recalled the story many times and the fascination of the local community. A trade for the old caravan was made with gypsies at Guisborough and the re-fit work began. The old van would have been too heavy for the steep hills in Scotland even though Jack and Bill were good strong horses. Earlier as they approached Ugthorpe, just before Jolly Sailors bank, one of the shafts broke in two with a painfully audible sound of splitting timber. Once all was made safe, Tony left Peter to go for help; knowing folk around these parts but it was not till morning that help arrived, Peter spent a windy night on the moor top.

Peter Anson wrote and sketched about churches, Cathedrals and Abbeys up and down the country; he also travelled round Italy, France and Ireland. Peter was with the Benedictine brotherhood on Caldey Island, and one of the twenty monks who followed Abbot Aelred Carlyle over to Rome in 1913. He must have felt quite at home during his stay at Ugthorpe; the community had not changed in it's beliefs or ways of life in many years. Staying true to the faith during the persecution, hiding priests and being married by the church in secret; and later in Whitby to fulfil the law. Peter had a great interest in these times and commented as he found them on his travels.

Peters companion was a local lad, Anthony Rowe from Brotton (only a stones throw from us). Tony was a farrier and an ideal choice for his knowledge of horses and practical sense. He went on to write the first book “The Brown Caravan” followed by Peters “The caravan pilgrim " On their way back from Scotland through Bowes, Yarm, Guisborough and on to Ugthorpe, which was to be their final port, the horses sensed the home run and needed to be held back rather than urged forward. The caravan was sold, the horses too and Peter continued his wandering, writing and drawing; his stories of local folk, faith and determination.

Note to evening office: Keep telling the old stories.
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Hayburn Wyke

The walk last Sunday is still fresh in my mind and I couldn't resist putting the pictures into a video. Tomaso Albinoni now on my Ipod seemed a good choice of backing music. Hayburn Wyke is in North Yorkshire, a little north of Scarborough; close to Ravenscar.

The waterfall comes over the cliff and down to the shoreline; you could not call it a beach. Rocks, boulders and stones; I should also mention - a great place for fossils along this stretch of coastline, all the way up to Robin Hoods Bay.

Note to memo: Take time to smell the flowers. (must be almost spring)?
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Between sleep & awake

Last Saturday was one of those days when things just dropped into place. I had a late morning call to make, which I had not been looking forward to; I was late and running low on petrol. I daren't stop on the way, as I said I was late already. The call turned out better than expected and after a coffee I was back on the road again. The tank was almost empty - yet still no sign of a petrol warning light, as I pulled into the garage at Guisborough.


Back at the friary all was quiet, no one around. Great, I decided to do some housework and a little in the garden (it's surprising how much I can get done when there is no-one around); a little lunch and then some more clearing up and mopping the floors. Latter I must have been flagging and in need of some caffeine, I put the kettle on and made a nice cup of coffee. Going through to the sitting room I found the easy chair and put some music on (Classic FM).

Before long I was nodding off, the music just holding me between sleep & awake; it was a pleasant state and not one I wanted to change. The old clock struck the hour and I wondered what time folk would be back. An oboe concerto began and I felt I was listening to perfection; the sound was moving me through emotional dimensions - I guess I could put it down to being half asleep. Excerpt from concerto - let me know what you think.


Note to evening office: All work and no play/ rest makes David a misery.
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Where it belongs

A ticket for the church bazaar; I would be only 6-years old and can't say I remember it, though I am sure I would have been there. Mum and many ladies of the parish would have been knitting, sewing and making jars of produce through the year, I am told it was a bazaar of great quality and variety. Presents would be bought and put away till Christmas. A ticket, almost 50-years old; to admit one person for just one shilling. I don't think eBay will be interested in it; so where has it been for all these years? Well it has been just where it belonged, in a drawer in the desk and why, I have no idea, but I was glad to find it - and leave it right there (apart from sharing this glimpse of it with you). It is possible that this was the last bazaar held under the name St Philomena as the Holy See in 1962 removed her name from all liturgical calendars; St Philomena's School and Church became The Sacred Heart.

I was wondering (as I do) how much difference there is between nothing and something? Can we really imagine, nothing? the absence of everything. The great film "Never ending story" fears the approaching "nothing", every thing is consumed by it and within it is - nothing - Nothing must be the state we fear most, but never experience in the physical; what we create/ experience, mentally/ spiritually can be something else.

There is little difference between nothing and something, because that something may be very small indeed. But of course the difference is huge, for no matter how small something may be, held in the hand, it gives us hope and puts us a million miles away from nothing.

Note to evening office: Romans 8:38-39 - He took the nothing, that we should have hope.
PS - Looking forward to Lent.
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THE POST

The walk this evening was pleasant, one of these cold crisp nights that catch your breath. I needed to post a letter (I knew I would forget tomorrow) so I set off up the High Street. There is a post box some 300-yards from us but the notice on the box implied a late collection next day.

The moon was just past full and casting a glow on the parish church, still in the trees were Christmas lights; the glass reflecting the moonlight. Doors open and lights on at the public house but no sound of music or chatter. Someone heading towards me, head down and sending a text; which side shall I step, left or right? "Now mate" he said as he passes; I swear I do not know him. Now post boxes used to display the time of the next collection, but here again it just says Monday - Friday last collection 4.30pm. I am sure it would have been fine to pop the letter in the first box.

Photograph above is blending two pictures, the stepping stones and the viaduct. A walk into town through the woods one fine morning the other week. I was interested in the footprints laid ahead of me; one on each of the stones across the stream. Leading me on, even though it was a route I had already decided on.

Note to morning office: Lead me on Lord this day, however I may step; left or right.
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Come and see.

Last weekend we had a lodger, a four legged one roaming around the friary; intent on finding the cat. Situation resolved, the cat lived upstairs and Poppy lived downstairs; that is until bedtime. Poppy was used to sleeping in the bedroom so there was a little shuffling of doors, cat & dog until morning when the process was reversed. Brother Cyril was much amused and suggested leaving them in a room together for a few minutes. I needn't have fussed so much for when they did meet, apart from the noise there were no claws or teeth to be seen. She was good company and joined me on my evening walk through the village.

We have had snow, gales, rain - you could say we have had a lot of weather recently. Just the other night as I put the dog in the garden, our tawny owl was hooting for all he was worth only 15-yards away from me, silhouetted against the clear sky. The easterly wind has brought the cold and it is strange to see the waves coming in diagonal to the shore. Yesterday a flock of Lapwings were heading to the moors and the seagulls were charging around as if on a roller-coaster.

I am prompted by my friends blogsite "Awareness" when she uses John O'Donahue's words:-

"The Mystery never leaves you alone. Behind your image, below your words, above your thoughts, the silence of another world waits. A world lives within you."

I seem to pop in and out of other worlds as easy as getting on a bus. My teacher used to say, "Boy! where in the world are you today"? Portal is a fascinating word, we are very familiar with Si Fi time-shifts, dimensions, warps and portals. TV programmes such as Stargate, Dr Who and Primeval. Computer jargon uses it - in fact, throw this word into a sentence and it will be regarded as impressive. Portal: The word meaning gate or gateway, doorway, entrance, particularly one of great importance; the entrance to a library, portal of knowledge. I see portals everywhere I look; windows, trees, music, art, words, people, emotions, candles. Each one inviting me to step through the doorway and enter in. I know they are there but my busy world causes me to walk right past; dare to pause for a while........


Note to evening office: Behold I stand at the doorway and knock - enter in.
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Bible Puzzle

There are 30 books of the Bible in this paragraph. Can you find them?

This is a most remarkable puzzle. It was found by a gentleman in an airplane seat pocket, on a flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu, keeping him occupied for hours. He enjoyed it so much; he passed it on to some friends. One friend from Illinois worked on this while fishing from his john boat. Another friend studied while playing his banjo. Elaine Taylor, a columnist friend, was so intrigued by it she mentioned it in her weekly newspaper column. Another friend judges the job of solving this puzzle so involving; she brews a cup of tea to help her nerves. There will be some names that are really easy to spot. That's a fact. Some people however will soon find themselves in a jam, especially since the book names are not necessarily capitalized. Truthfully, from answers we get, we are forced to admit it usually takes a minister or scholar to see some of them at the worst. Research has shown that something in our genes is responsible for the difficulty we have in seeing the books in this paragraph. During a recent fund raising event, which featured this puzzle, the Alpha Delta Phi lemonade booth set a new sales record. The local paper, The Chronicle, surveyed over 200 patrons who reported that this puzzle was one of the most difficult they had ever seen. As Daniel Humana humbly puts it, "the books are all right there in plain view, hidden from sight." Those able to find all of them will hear great lamentations from those who have to be shown. One revelation that may help is that books like Timothy and Samuel may occur without their numbers. Also, keep in mind that punctuation and spaces in the middle are normal. A chipper attitude will help you compete really well against those who claim to know the answers. Remember, there is no need for a mad exodus, there really are 30 books of the Bible lurking somewhere in this paragraph waiting to be found.

Enjoy the challenge; I did...
For those looking for answers - Here they are Bible answers

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Ask the expert.

It is surprising just how many thoughts, fly through this empty head of mine during the course of the week. Then it comes time to write a little and it is nowhere to be found! I believe I am not alone with this? I am not too good at giving straight answers and if you were to ask me a question I would probably first find you another one and then go away to check it out.

Imagine my embarrassment, I am in my element, spotting birds in the wilds of the North York Moors; equipped with my new hi tech scope and camera, when along come some walkers. "Hi, have you seen anything"? I clearly look like the real thing, an expert, with all the trimmings. It is at this time I wish my Italian was better, I could say something and they would just pass by. Yes I had just seen this amazing bird but I don't know what it is till I get back home and look at the book, quite common really, a redshank. What would it be like to be invisible?

I guess we assume great knowledge from those who have the gadgets and the dress. Priests, Doctors, Garage mechanics and Teachers; would we ask a man in the street, when is the next eclipse of the moon? Does God really know how many hairs left on my head? Yet, bump into an "expert" and out pop these questions.
Note to evening office: Give thanks for not being an expert, and not being invisible.

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