Two weeks old

Saturday 19th July 2014

Growing in confidence as well as height

Towards the end of term

Wednesday 16th July 2014

Bellingham First School in church
saying "goodbye" to a favourite teacher  --
but my photography missed their actions to the song!

A more successful portrait

St Swithun's Day

Tuesday 15th July 2014

Good weather for school sports
According to superstition fine day today augurs well for the coming weeks.  It is said that if it rains on St Swithun's Day, it will rain for the following forty days.  (Apparently when he was Bishop of Winchester Swithun said that when he died he wanted to be buried not inside the cathedral but outside "where his grave might be trodden on by passers by and the rain fall upon it".)

About time we checked on the foal

Monday 14th July 2014

One week old and using mother's tail as a fly whisk

Today at ten days old, she was literally running rings round her mother as she revelled in her ability to gallop, buck and twirl like a ballet dancer.

Fruitfulness!

Sunday 13th July 2014

After today's reading in church of the parable of the sower and its reminder of the random generosity of God (in contrast to some of the cautious and calculated strategies of the Church), it seemed apt to be forced to pick five pounds of gooseberries which were tripping me up outside the kitchen door.  I'll gather the rest of the crop (which may have been too well manured) another day.

Strawberry Tea at the Rectory

Saturday 12th July 2014

Fine weather for setting up in the garden

School picnic day

Friday 11th July 2014

I was in time for the end of Bellingham First School's "picnic day", where year 4 were drawing up menus for a restaurant whilst younger ones simply enjoyed being outside all day. 

Around the benefice

9th July 2014


Outside Otterburn on the way to Bellingham from Elsdon where we had had  meeting about "inspiring futures" for the church in the community.  ("Watch this space...")

Mother sticking her nose in

Monday 7th July 2014


I was just taking this picture of the foal when mother stuck her big hairy nose in front of the camera

Staycation?

Sunday 6th July 2014

Mother checks her sleeping foal...

...and watches over her:

In case you wonder if I ever do anything other than admire the foal,  I should say that I'm also having a rest from running around.  Instead of going away for a holiday this year, we're having a couple of weeks without (many) appointments so that we do actually have time to enjoy and look after this little project.

     Now it's on to the next activity, in her case practising cantering and in mine taking Sunday services:

 

 



Day Two

Saturday 5th July 2014

20 hours later: amazing change

It's a girl

Friday 4th July 2014

just over an hour old

St Thomas's Day

3rd July 2014


.
The nave of Canterbury Cathedral
where, with my fellow curates,
I was ordained priest twenty years ago today...



and I'm aware that the weight of responsibility laid on us then was to lead me to delight in my rural vocation and to...

St Cuthbert's Bellingham
where I presided at a celebration of the Eucharist
for a small congregation on St Thomas's Day.



 

A day of organising things

Tuesday 1st July 2014

Clouds over the North Tyne at Bellingham yesterday evening

After a morning of organisation, it was time for St Aidan's after school club to walk to St Aidan's church, stopping on the bridge over the Tarset Burn to look for fish:

Picnic on the church steps,

enjoying the churchyard,

mutual admiration

time to go home