climbing hiking camping

So lets’ recap why I can’t blog so often, tweet so often, or do my work properly.... This is day 41 without broadband and you are no nearer a solution. Just so you know, this is the story so far.... We moved house on 10 th June. The electric contract took a day to transfer. The water services took a day. Sky TV took two days. The Post Office took a week to change the address. And BT have taken 41 days. And counting. First I went for a Sky package. BT Openreach apologised when the first deadline was missed. They said they had sent the instruction to the wrong exchange. A week’s delay. Then, when the second deadline was missed, they said they had lost the link with the phone number. Funny that one, as it’s their phone number. Finally, after a month of trying, Sky were told by BT Openreach that they were unable to facilitate a service at the required exchange. So.... Unwind the deal with Sky and go to BT. Twice the cost. Half the service. Two week delay while BT retrieve the phone line f...

I live Between the Times. Between my birth and my death. Between my salvation and a final day. Between the morning and the evening. I live Between Each Breath. Between the gulp of air inhaled before the start of a new journey. And the sigh of fatigue at the end of a long day. I live Between the Arms. The loving mother at the day of my birth. The caring child as I slip into eternity. I live Between the Times. And every precious second given to me. Tells a story. Of Life. Love. Pain. Passion. And finally. Of Glory. ©Ralph Turner 2014

Be careful what you ask for. Apathy and protest have won in Europe this weekend. Apathy in that only 43.1% voted throughout Europe- even less in the UK at 33.8%. And protest, with many fringe parties winning big majorities. But here’s the problem. Today’s protest vote is tomorrow’s policy. Is it really wise to have the right-wing and reactionary UKIP as the overall winners? Are we so naïve as to think they are going to have answers to our nation’s problems? Who are we punishing? Ourselves of course. It may be we’re unhappy with the government and with a weak opposition leader – but UKIP?! And what goes for the UK goes for France too. In spades. Are our neighbours so short sighted and racist as to vote for their National Front party? It seems they are. There may be racial tensions in France. And it may be that the main parties are not responding well. But the French have just put the fox in the hen coop. Perhaps that should be spelled ‘coup’. It’s not the first coup in France of course....

Here's a quote from the late Malcolm Muggeridge that sums it up pretty well: "I've spent a number of years in India and Africa where I found much righteous endeavour undertaken by Christians of all denominations; but I never, as it happens, came across a hospital or orphanage run by the Fabian Society, or a humanist leper colony."

When a group of Atheists and Secularists write to the Sunday Telegraph decrying the Prime Minister’s comments that we are a Christian country, they are ignoring history. There is no doubt we are a Christian country. Our democracy, our schools, our hospitals - even our Trades Unions - have a Christian foundation. Without the faith of our forefathers, we would not be the nation we are. Today the UK is multicultural with many minority faiths. But this doesn’t take away for one moment the foundations we stand on. We are a Christian nation and my prayer is that as a nation we will once again embrace a living faith and always appreciate the incredible debt we owe to the Christian pioneers that have gone before us.  

“Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity.” Henry Van Dyke  This is a portrait of a girl filmed by her father every week for 14 years

Just met an amazing friend for coffee. He's recently lost his wife and continues to care for two wonderful daughters, one of whom is severely challenged with learning difficulties. It reminded me of a blog from 2012, which I re-post in his honour: Her name is Rebecca and I saw her on Saturday. She is maybe 9 or 10 years old, but I guess with a mental age of an infant. Her chair was amazing. It kept her body from twisting and held her head upright. There was a big smile on her face as her father teased her and tickled her and cheered her on as she ate. Her name is Jessica and I saw her on Saturday. I guess she’s in her 20’s. Her race was amazing. She pulled away from the opposition to win the heptathlon gold. There was a big smile on her face as the crowd cheered her achievement. Jessica has her gold medal. One day so will Rebecca.