Trip to Oxford

I've spent the last couple of days in Oxford looking out the Beddome archive at the Angus Library in Regents park College. It is easy enough to get a coach to Oxford from Baker Street and be in Oxford in about 90 minutes. I've done it before. This time I popped into Lincoln College where I once spent a night many years ago exploring being a student there. I hope to get there again soon.

Visiting Dad 14

I managed to get down to see my dad again last Thursday. I went down by bus and basically just saw him with not much time for anything else. It was a pleasant surprise to find him very well and we had a good conversation. I even plied hm with questions about the family tree and he was able to answer quite well.

He even told me a story (though not a great one) from the war time of how my grandad was with Jonesy from Fielding Street or Witham Street and they had a midnight feast of spuds and two ducks. The punch line was concerning these ducks. When my grandad asked where they came from Jonesy told him not to mind where they came from , what really mattered where they were going - ie inside them.

We had a bit more of Mark's Gospel. We've reached the end of Chapter 4 now. I also prayed.

This bout of good health was short lived I understand and he has been more sleepy and more vague since. I found the whole saga of dying especially with all there is in the news at present most fascinating. I do fear some would have written my dad off a while ago and even now are not that enthusiastic about helping him to get better. If we weren't there rejecting suggestions like putting a DNR (Do not resuscitate) sign on him, who knows where he would be. He might live a few years yet. I know it is costing a fortune but what sort of a society wants people dead just to save money?

Cardiff

This is a little video marking the recent trip. I feel fine.

Visiting Dad 07 Plus

So last Friday I was off on the National Express bright and early once again. From Newport I made my way to Cwmbran and eventually Croesyceiliog. Ironically, it cost me £5 to get from London to Newport and £4.30 to complete the journey.

Anyway dad is now as well as before the big operation really, although some problems linger and he is still visiting the hospice weekly. It was good to join him in his little flat for the second half of Loose women followed by the news and the compelling Dickinson's Real Deal . We then integrated Daily Cooks Challenge with the end of a Gary Cooper film which turned out to be a 1953 film called Blowing Wild with an actress who turned out to be Barbara Stanwyck (not that my dad could remember her name). Not that I was sat about. I was busy making cups of tea, washing up and doing a wash in the machine.

Just after Heartbeat started my sister Gail and her two eldest girls arrived so it was nice to have time with them (and the third one later but not William). Most of them are in the Carey Family Conference this week.

Gail then gave me a lift to the station. I had a 40 minute wait before leaving and got chatting to the man who runs the cafe. Juma is a Turkish fellow, originally from far eastern Turkey near Harran (where Abraham lived one time!) now living in Wales and a professing Christian. Interesting fellow. I also spoke to two people on the train who turned out to be Canadians. The older lady (mother?) described herself as an aboriginal, which I had suspected though to be honest she looked a little oriental to me (I remember studying this one time - Native Americans are said to have come across the Bering Straits some time). of course, being Welsh makes it easy to identify. (That reminds me - Eleri took Dewi and Owain to the zoo while I was away. She told me that when a stranger asked where they were from Dewi (15) said 'Wales' even though he was born and bred in London. Interesting.) Anyway, I eventually got to my sister-in-law's where I often seem to end up for one reason or another (they are so kind). That's where I spent the night.

In the morning Glyn drove us down to Bridgend where Gwion and my nephew Iwan had been on an EMW camp all week in Bryntirion. They'd had an excellent week under Andrew Rees and Jonathan Thomas. Gwion had been commended for listening well and asking good questions. He'd spent over half of his spending money on a graphic version of the Bible that he continued to devour en route home. I'd have lots of objections to the book but for getting the sweep of the biblical narrative it looks brilliant. Gwion continues to get nearer to the kingdom I trust.

Glyn and Fflur and the family were off camping in Pembrokeshire so after a cup we caught the bus into town and then wandered through Cardiff doing a little window shopping. (I bought a book on vinegar for Eleri in The Works). We stopped at one of at least three Greggs bakeries to get lunch (there are 15 I see).

I'd booked the bus for 2 pm in case of hold ups so we still had a three quarter hour wait but that was fine. the journey home was straight forward and both of us slept a while. We had to stop briefly at Membury to pick up some people whose bus from Cheltenham had broken down. it was getting toward six by the time we arrived but we caught an 82 straight away and were home at a reasonable hour.

Newport again Glimpse 1

My dad is in hospital again so I set off for Newport once more first thing on Thursday morning. The National Express coaches are quite cheap and I was able to get there and back for £10 (I nearly had it down to £2 at one point). I left Victoria at 8 and headed back at 4 pm. I was with my dad for just over an hour or so and spent the rest of the time reading, working on my sermons for Sunday and checking my e-mails in MacDonalds. I won't repeat things said before about previous trips but limit it to five glimpses.

1. I came from the bus station up to the main street where the shops are. It isn't a very interesting collection. At least there's a bookshop - Waterstones. I popped in and spent a happy time looking at the local interest section, where I found a book called History of Cwmbran Vol 1 by Gareth John and Graham Lawrence. It seemed very well done. I had a little look through the Llanyrafan section and then read the Croesyceiliog one. I knew most of what was in there but it was good to see it all together - The Garw, Jim Crow's Cottage, the old board school, the comprehensive, Pontrhydyrynn Baptist Chapel. etc.

North Yorkshire

On Thursday and Friday this week I was in unfamiliar territory up in North Yorkshire. I had been asked to preach at a monthly North Yorkshire Bible Rally. On Thursday afternoon I left by coach from Golders Green and went all the way to Thirsk (it was going on to South Shields). We have friends very near Thirsk and they kindly put me up for the night (I deprived their 17 year old of his bed for the night) and got me to the meeting which was in a small church in Northallerton.

I suppose about 50 gathered in the small chapel . The chairman was the pastor at Geneva Road, Darlington, Mark Rowcroft, who we got to know when he was a student at LTS. It was good to be among friends - several I'd met before, others I'd not and one or two in between (!). I preached on Christian Freedom, a fresh sermon I'd felt led to preach that arose out of studies in the Confession. It was sound and helpful stuff but lacked power I guess. (I'd been reading about unction all the way up and so that was on my mind).

So after good fellowship back in Carlton Minniott, a good night's rest and a brief look around Thirsk (picked up two nice old books of anecdotes - on Mark and Acts - in Oxfam) I was soon back on the coach again. A very friendly Nigerian lady I'd sat next to on the way up, a professing Christian, was on board again and we ended up chatting most of the way home which was very pleasant. I passed on a copy of my sermon. I arrived home just as everyone was coming back from school. Good to be home again. It was then off to the clubs for children and young people. Lots to do now before Sunday.