Gardening Part 4

I've worked hard yesterday and today - it's such tiring work, but it's kept me out of mischief!

I forgot to take photos while the sun was out, so these are a bit dark. Hopefully the flowers will grow fast for judging on Friday! I've also planted a window box and 6 pots of plants ready to bring out on Friday.

Israel

I'm going to Israel soon! I am so excited (and a little apprehensive!)

I haven't really been abroad much so it will be quite an adventure. I'm going with Oak Hall, and I'm going alone!

We're doing a 10 day tour around loads of Biblical sights and other places including, the Mount of Olives, Garden of Gethsemane, Western Wailing Wall, Bethlehem, Quman where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found, Sea of Galilee, River Jordan, Caesarea Philippi, Nazareth (and many more that there isn't really space to write!) but I'm most excited about floating in the Dead Sea as it's something I've wanted to do since I was a child!

Prayers are appreciated for safety, and I shall try and keep my blog updated throughout, if not watch this space for pics and stuff when I return!

Sing

I apologise for the lack of gardening information. The deadline has been extended until the 25th, and it's been raining, so motivation has gone down. I did receive some nice soil from the builders at the end of the road - although they made me shift it myself whilst they stood watching. Rudeness.

I have been attacking the back garden with the landlord's tools whilst we've got them. It has left my arms shaking uncontrollably though which is a bit irritating. Hopefully they'll stop soon!

First choir practice tonight. Was loads better than I was expecting - well enjoyed it! We're gonna be good!

Gardening Part 3

And this is the garden after a second day of hard work. Well almost, I gave the soil a good digging about after the photo to start the process of removing all the roots that were like a carpet over the whole plot. Unfortunately it was a shorter day as it chucked it down late afternoon (and is still raining now - please stop!)

Met even more of the neighbours today, and one old Irish guy came back with some tools and helped me hack down the rest of the big bushes, and pull out two stumps! I so couldn't have done half of that on my own yesterday. So many thanks to him. Now I just have to figure out how to make the most of the space on my limited budget, and hope that the judges take into consideration the amount of hard work I've done before planting anything!

Gardening Part 2

Here's the garden after one day of hard work!

Gardening

I've entered a gardening competition to revamp our front garden.

Problem is, I know very little on the subject, I've only got until Tues/Wed, and I have a budget of £25

Currently it looks like this:









Anyone care to share anything knowledge/thoughts/tips?!! Pretty please?

York Gospel Choir

Well, today was the day for the audition for the new York Gospel Choir
I was so extremely scared and didn't decide what to sing until the last little while!

I got there and saw other people I know from church who were scared too, so that made me feel better. My name was called, I went in, stood before 3 people (felt like x-factor) and sang! My voice was completely different to my practicing, but I liked it, it felt strong and confident.

So all was good and I got through! Even though I had to stop singing because I forgot the words!

So here's to a new adventure, practices are weekly, and even though the choir hasn't started yet, the guy who runs it has 5 bookings for it! We will be singing a mix of contemporary and traditional Gospel, worship songs, and secular stuff at weddings, concerts and what not!

Looking forward to it.

Oh and for the record, I'm going down as a Mezzo Soprano or just a flexible whatever's needed!

Easter Baptism Photos

Found the pics of my housemates at the baptisms in the city centre - can't get them to work on here, but here's the link. They're the two girls with crowns on at the front!

Interesting articles in The Press

I was interviewed for The Press yesterday, very boring, but hey! Click here for photo, can't find my comment anywhere tho...

In reading the said newspaper the other evening I came across a classified ad for a clothes drier. All fine, until I saw that it was going for 50p, and yet it costs £5 to advertise in the newspaper!! That doesn't make sense!

Other interesting articles were the local Co-op that installed a device that emits a noise that only teenagers and 20-somethings can here to deter them from hanging around outside. How random! I almost want to go there and see if I can hear it! Full Story

Secondly, a new shop opened last week called Joy (I believe there is one already in Norwich's Chapelfield). To celebrate this launch, they agreed to give the first 25 people to strip down to their underwear a free outfit. Not entirely sure what I think about that! Full Story

Oh and people have been knitting jumpers for penguins...

African Snow

I went to see this over a week ago, but I've been a slacker in getting round to blogging about it!

My friend Lydia went to see it on Wed, and here are her thoughts.

I don't really have any great thoughts on it, so I shall just jot down my randomness in the order it comes to my head!

Very interesting to go to a play, where there is just one white actor and the rest are black. Seeing as though I've come from Norfolk where we're a little slow on catching up with the multiculturalness of the rest of the country, and now moved to York, where it's even more predominantly white (we do joke that my housemate is the token black person in York), it was quite weird to go to a performance in the city centre where the roles were reversed. But I appreciated it. It got me thinking.

On top of this, the black actors also played white people. I didn't twig this until Wilberforce came into the story! Again a little confusing, but an interesting take.

Unlike Lydia, it rather spoiled the play for me, having seen Amazing Grace the week previously. It's the same story, just from a different angle, so a times it felt like covering the same ground - potentially I needed to have a longer gap between the two. I did appreciate understanding the story from Olaudah Equiano's point of view though. It was a very long play. Both the film, and the play made me cry.

The question the performance is asking, is can a victim and abuser ever be reconciled? I don't think they really answered it, that wasn't the point, but it was good to get people thinking about it. As Christians is sometimes really easy to throw about words, saying that we should forgive each other etc etc. But seriously, John Newton caused Olaudah Equiano and his people so much pain, asking for forgiveness is asking a lot. I guess it can only be done with God's help.
There's so much hurt and pain, revenge and unforgiveness in this world.

Easter

Easter Sunday

We celebrated Easter as a house today. Probably the first time I haven't been with family at Easter.

Lorna, Bek and I went to church together this morning for a packed and lively service complete with entertaining children dressed up suitably for the Easter story with one particular boy running around with a sword shouting, 'kill Jesus!'.

We then met Lillian (our housemate) in town, grabbed ice creams and went for a walk around the walls. It was a beautiful sunny day. Following this we went to a celebration in the city centre organised by One Voice. There was face painting and crown making, and a red carpet to have your photo taken on to symbolise how we're all stars/unique/special to God. There was worship and an open air service involving an address from the archbishop and 21 baptisms. We were impressed at the speed and enthusiasm at which the archbishop carried out the baptisms, especially since each one got dunked 3 times - something I've not seen before! We were also impressed with his directness throughout the service for example telling the band to do just one song and not 'dither' about.

I was annoyed with the press though. They were around the whole thing like a swarm of bees, ignoring relatives of those being baptised who wanted to get closer to take photos.
Story here

We finished the day by sharing a roast together (cooked by Lorna) and just having a good old chat. Topics including whether Mary was always a virgin, to a strategy on getting into parliment, to the death penalty and anglican litergy.

Sarah and Helen's Trip to the Beach!

Oh the joys of Scarborough :D

Hover over pics for description

Voice

After being ill a few weeks ago, I still don't seem to have quite got my voice back properly.
It never fully went, and now it's only a problem when singing.
But since that's something I spend a lot of time doing it's quite irritating!

Any suggestions?

For the benefit of Rachel (and Lucy)

It's great working in a charity shop isn't it?! ;)

Mainly for the benefit of mum...

Had a free hair cut

Talcum Powder

It's snowing/hailing right now.
But it's so heavy, and the wind is blowing so strongly that it just looks like talcum powder flying horizontally across the window.
It's already stacked up in the corner of my window after a few minutes!

Little Is Much...

"What is the measure of a life well lived
If all I can offer seems too small to give
This is a song for the weaker, the poorer
And so-called failures

Little is much when God's in it
And no one can fathom the plans He holds
Little is much when God's in it
He changes the world with the seeds we sow
Little is much, little is much

Who feels tired and under-qualified
Who feels deserted, and hung out to dry
This is a song for the broken, the beat-up
And so-called losers

Consider a Kingdom in the smallest seed
Consider that giants fall to stones and slings
Consider a child in a manger
Consider the story isn't over
What can be done with what you still have"

from a band called Downhere been listening to it on the radio, I like it. It's encouraging that God uses even the smallest of people that the world looks down on.
You can listen to it here

Momentum - moving

After three days of being in bed, today I woke up and felt almost human :D

I am now going to Clifton Parish Church. It was a long and difficult decision, but in short I felt that it wasn't right for me to be at MV York any more. I've learnt a lot, but it's time to move on.

Tonight, David that vicar spoke. Him and a load of guys have just got back from two weeks in Rwanda (*mental note to figure out where that is, wonder if I could go there sometime...*). Of what he spoke about, the thing that stood out to me was what he said about momentum. Not momentum in the sense of Soul Survivor's student event, but momemtum as in movement. He compared it to starting to move a massive wheel. At first it's really hard, and it takes so much effort, and you really don't seem to be getting anyway for all this effort you're putting in. Then it starts to move, and you're pushing and pushing, and repetively doing the same little things, which again don't seem to amount to much on their own, and you still don't seem to be getting very far, but you've got to keep doing them or it'll stop. Then finally once the momentum is going, you really go for it and it takes little effort.

I like that picture. It encourages me.

He also said that it works especially well when you're using your gifting/talents, because that provides energy and enthusiam.

Not quite sure what I'm going to do with this, but hey ho!

Installation

Apologies for the lack of blogging. I don't really have an excuse!
Quick update:
Am currently unwell :(
Work is good, charity shop is good, housemates are great, as are friends.
I've been to the cinema and the theatre, and generally spent time socialising.

That brings us to today.

Today is the official installation day of The Most Reverend and Right Honourable Dr John Tucker Mugabi Sentamu as Chancellor of York St John University. (Where I study if you hadn't gathered...) Otherwise known as the Archbishop of York.

I am sad that I didn't take a camera, as the service (or act of worship as our chaplin called it) was varied and exciting - including a giant. I have included a picture of my order of service, and two badges that I was given. The small silver one was received as a member of staff at uni, the larger one with green bits everyone got who went to the service.

The service started with our gospel choir singing the Circle of Life from the Lion King, and Happy Day, some organ music and then the procession of minster officials. This was followed by the York St John University Fanfare, and a procession of gowned tutors and members of staff. I would be very interested to know what all their different styles and colours of gown mean.

The service was very 'Christian'. A lot more than I was expecting! Although it York St John was founded by the Church of England, so maybe I shouldn't be surprised. There were many Bible readings, including John 10:10b 'Jesus said, "I come that they may have life, and have it abundantly"' - this just so happens to be the verse we use at CU. There were a number of prayers throughout too, by staff, students, the chaplain.

We then had a performance by the Faculty of Arts called 'The Flourishing of York St John'. It basically told the story of St Johns and was all based around the idea of a seedling growing and florishing like the students of the university. It involved a giant version of Edward Cordukes the first student to enrol, students processing around the minster with small trees on their backs, young children from the minster school running down the minster and flags. It was good.

We sang two hymns - entertainingly some of the congragation thought they new one better than others and got out of time! We had a York St John University Prayer:
'Loving God,
you have bound us together in the unity of a learning community,
so that we may have live and have it in abundance.

Help us this day and in all our futures to draw on the wellsprings of your love,
so that people and justice may be on our lips and in our lives,
now and forever. Amen'

The actually installation took no time at all, and Kate and I wondered whether he came with an installation disc incase we need to uninstall him....

The Archbishop gave us an address, unfortunately I didn't hear much, but I did catch his final comment:
'Remember, never stand between a lamp post and a dog'

Clearly important...

I thoroughly enjoyed the service. Most excited to discover the York St John drummers - I wonder if I can join them...