Live, Laugh & Love

There lies a story…

 

As I washed up my blue and white striped Cornishware teapot, I mused on the idea that a great deal of the stuff I own have stories attached to them, and that’s a good thing. I glanced around my kitchen, at the coffee cups inherited from my grandmother, the green glass bowls that originate from a family holiday home on the Isle of Wight. I wondered of the tales that these objects have to tell. Of conversations they have witnessed, fun days they have participated in and occasions they have shared with their owners.

There are the things that I have that have been given to me as well. The Cath Kidston mugs, loving gifts from people who know me and my tastes well. Every time I use the sharpest and nicest of my knives, I think of my brother who gave it to me.

I shall be bearing this in mind as I shop and make for Christmas. The things I buy and make will carry stories of their creation and be blank pages for creating tales of their own.

 

Rediscovery

I really forget I've written so much.

Started in October 2005, I've mused and thought my way through over 5 years!  Delving about in the archives I found a blog about the Olympics and my horror at figuring I'd be 35 then. It's nearly here- eek! 

More than anything it reminds me of otherwise long forgotten events. It's the same as my journal, I read back through that and re-discover small and random thoughts that would otherwise be forgotten in the filing system of my brain. They are precious, important and cherished.

Phew, I am normal!!!

Felt like a complete idiot again today after taking my second tumble from my new road bike. Nothing really injured beyond a couple of grazes and a few more bruises to add to the collection, more my pride which took a denting.

Determined to prove that this was normal and I wasn't a totally un co-ordinated freak, I checked out the tritalk.co.uk forum and was thoroughly reassured (and amused) by people's stories of their clip-in pedal disasters. Phew... at least I wasn't in the middle of a queue of traffic or outside a packed tube station like some of the poor folks who'd posted their stories. In some ways I feel like I've joined a club- Is falling off some sort of initiation  rite of passage? I think I qualify now thank you...

Hope Springs Eternal

Hope has been following me today.

I'm a day behind in the 24-7 Prayer Spaces Podcasts and Scot's thoughts on hope and losing it starting off my musings about this word. "Have we lost hope?" He asked. 

Yes, there are many situations that are facing us today that could well indicate a loss of hope, but I chose to focus on the positive. Actually, there are a lot of things that I can be hopeful for right now.  I began to think of some of the stories shared at church of late. Of new opportunities to get involved in people's lives and in the lives of the people of this city- ways we can bring hope into people's lives through our words and actions. 

I was meant to be reading Psalm 13 today, but as I flicked the pages to it,  my eyes got stuck on a word I'd  highlighted last month as I'd read Psalm 33. 

"We wait in hope for the Lord..." - I'd circled the 'hope' and written 'important' above it. Hope, indeed, is important. I'd go so far as to say it's essential. 

I've seen hope today in the small signs of spring as I've weeded my garden. I've chosen to see hope for people who are suffering. 

Hebrews 11v1 says " Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. "

If we lose hope,  I wonder, do we also lose faith?

I love you Saturday mornings!

The sun is shining and I'm sipping tea in bed, exactly the perfect start to a Saturday. They have become sacred as the only morning when I am not forced to arise either for training or work. I treasure them. Listening to the radio and the world outside knowing that, if I want to, I can stay here is bliss. Inevitably, being a morning person I'm up and beavering away and what some would call an early hour anyway, but knowing that it's not compulsory is wonderful.

Thank you God for Saturday mornings :O) 

Who am I?

 
 
This is a question that we could, and probably do, spend a whole life-time working out. Stephen Covey in ‘7 Habits of Highly Effective People’ urged me to think about the roles I take on in my life… friend, teacher, manager, daughter, sister, member of church family, all things that in some ways compartmentalize my life.  

But I don’t fit into boxes.

All these roles merge into one another and in many ways I love that these strands of who I am bleed into each other. I love the fact, for example, that at CFT I am a manager to some, a daughter to one and hopefully a friend to all. 

 

I'm back...

 
It's been an age since I stopped writing in this way. With the rise of Facebook and Twitter it has become so much easier to give people bite-sized pieces of insight into our lives. I think this may be a new season for writing in a more extended way. It stretches me more in writing and allows me to remember little details that will long be forgotten after they roll off the bottom of your 'feed'.

We'll see...

Interference

At work I had this rude little device that sat in my ear and hissed all the time. While it was useful for telling me what was happening in the show, I found it constantly grabbed my attention when it didn't need to. Trying to talk to anyone with it in proved difficult as I felt constantly distracted by the bee like buzzing feeding itself straight to my inner ear. 

This example highlighted to me what happens when I try and listen to God sometimes. The busyness of life is a constant buzzing in my ear and distracts me as I try to focus on him. I've been reading a lot recently about getting yourself to a place of quiet and rest, both amongst the busyness of life and through purposefully retreating and taking quiet time. Two little books I've found helpful are 'Finding God in the Fast Lane' - Joyce Huggett and 'Coming to God in the Stillness' - Jim Borst. This comtemplative prayer thing is something I've never really grasped, but this little book is really useful in breaking it down into steps. I'm still only on  step one - "Be still..." "come and rest..." I think it may take a lifetime to reach 12 :O)

A Big Few Days Out

I am absolutely exhausted but the last few days have been fun. WIth a show that finishes at 11 each night, early nights have not been plentiful with a weekend of working at CFT. Couple that with a very long, 19 hour day on Sunday and you get a grumpy Helen. I really hate being tired, it makes me miserable and bad company, I hate that. 

Still... the Big Church Day Out was such a  good day. I loved talking to people on the 24-7 stand (despite the sweltering heat) and listening to some awesome bands in the background, even managing to sneak out a few times to watch. What I loved was standing at the back of the crowds looking down onto the thousands of people as they worshipped to such a variety of styles over the course of the afternoon and evening. The flags made it feel like a Narnian field as they billowed on the top of the hills. As I turned around 360 degrees, I was surrounded by worship, hills and beautiful countryside, some of my favourite things in the world, awesome. 

Today was just as good. lunch with my very favourite ladies, soooooo good to catch up after Carla's jetsetting of the last few weeks. Rounded off with Star Trek. I love half term!

Looking back

I looked back today over what is now several years worth of blogging. I haven't done much lately, mainly because I haven't taken the time, but also because I really didn't think anyone would want to read my musings. Actually, going back over events of the last few years reminded me of small details that i'd forgotten and it was quite nice to be reminded. So if for no other reason, I can blog to remind myself of the small things of life :O)