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Three weeks in Blighty

  We just spent three weeks in the UK. The first week was spent at our mission, UFM's, Summer Conference. We've always enjoyed these times - the conference centres are always clean and comfortable and you get catered for - our children used to think they were hotels. In addition you get some preaching and teaching - this time from an old acquaintance from Northern Ireland - and reports from people who serve in amazing places. We always feel like weaklings alongside the folk who paddle their way up the Amazon, or who work in remote parts of Central Asia. We had to do a seminar on preparing for retirement, which was well-received. Ella took us quietly and smoothly up to Caen for the ferry and we stayed overnight near the terminal before taking the early morning crossing. To get to the conference centre we had to use the M25, and it lived up to its promise. The second week was spent with my sisters and a nephew in a holiday cottage in Tenby. This was a straightforward trip down t...
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Reflections on two weeks, three weekends in the UK

We just spent two weeks, three weekends in the UK visiting our supporting churches, Alan attended the Bala Ministers' Conference, we both were there for our old church's 50th anniversary and some other festive occasions. Here's some reflections : The overnight ferry Portsmouth to Caen was great! We slept OK in our couchettes plus - a sort of dormitory of bunk beds - we were alone in a cellule of four beds and many of the cellules were empty. From Caen to Portsmouth we caught the early morning boat and stayed in a cheap hotel at Ouistreham. Checking in and out of the ferry ports was easy.  UK roads are really bad. The surfaces of town roads and streets are worn, pot-holed and very rough indeed. UK motorways are very crowded, but this means everyone drives slower. this resulted in us getting over 70 mpg in Ella, our Honda Jazz! French motorways are much smoother and less crowded but we pay tolls and you can get bullied by heavy lorries, as you can in the UK. It was wonderful ...
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The new cycle path

For quite some time the city has been working on a new cycle path that brings us all the way along the river from near the church and café to near our home. We've watched it take shape. Once or twice it seemed that it was open to use, but we found ourselves trapped at the far end - occasionally having to clamber over barriers with our bikes before crossing the lights to get us on the small streets where we live. But yesterday Pat said, "I think the cycle path will be open this evening."  Why she thought that I wist not, but lo and behold, as we wended our way home the cycle path was indeed open. Instead of turning right just before the MECA, cutting through the coach station (!) and zooming along the back of the new buildings alongside the busy road, now you hurtle straight on down a purpose-built cycle path, no coaches, no busy road, just beautiful lawns, benches and lovely flowers and, on the other side, the great grey-green greasy Garonne crawling slowly the other way ...
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Ella

We've bought a car. It's taken me over two weeks to tell anyone. Why? Because cars are now SO EXPENSIVE! Anyway, we've bought something very sensible, a Honda Jazz. It's black. It's hybrid. It's called Ella. And soon Ella will take us to the UK and convey us all over Wales and in the midlands of England. It's the first car we've had since the Great Citroen Berlingo Clutch Catastrophe, so I'm understandably a bit yippy, as we have learned to say.  But I'm not sure Ella has a clutch, or not one I can stick my foot on, anyway! It'll be fine!
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Our granddaughter

Thea is now 6 months old and she has real character. On Sunday evening at church she was so excited, flapping her arms and occasionally singing. As yet she doesn't know the tune or the words, but she has a good, powerful voice that carries well. Her close friends, the Coquerel twins, are always glad to see her and she loves them too. They're just about 3 months older than her and together we hope they will enchant, delight and terrorise the good folk of Bordeaux.
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A conspiracy

We were invited to lunch yesterday with some church folk, so I collected Pat from the café where I found everything in disorder and clearing up after the kids' Easter workshop not even begun. Still we slowly got everything sorted. I seemed to take an age to lock the toilet and tidy everything up. Then off we went to find the apartment. I'd not been before. It was raining heavily. Just two tram stops, but it took us ages as we dithered our way along.  We got to the flat, and first had to inspect the living room. The dining room was being kept shut to keep in the naughty cats. The living room was very impressive. I passed the time looking out of the window at the park opposite as various aspects of the sofa were discussed. Then into the dining room. Surprise !  I was gobsmacked. Speechless.  I'd been duped, like the hapless dupe I am, and the church folk were all there for a birthday barbecue, complete with inextinguishable birthday cake candles and enough meat to march Nap...
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On reaching retirement age

I'm so very thankful for all the wonderful things God has given me over the years, and now he's given me the opportunity to serve him in a different way. Twenty years ago there was a conversation where we shared to whom we were responsible. My list was very long. I was accountable to the church and the people I worked for and with. I was responsible to denominational structures in France. I was also accountable to my home church which had sent me to France. There was also the mission who were there to support and take care of us. Then to the many people who were contributing generously to our support. It's good to have accountability and I rarely found any of this to be a problem. From now on, however, we'll be paid increasingly exclusively from our own resources, to which we have contributed over the years. Voices that once were determinative will now become consultative. We'll appreciate people's advice and counsel, but we will have much more freedom in what w...
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