Well.. this could be a long update

Sorry yet again for the absence. I am not sure how much to write about the situation at the moment. It is entirely mixed though there is a great deal of sadness there are moments of amazing grace of God's provision and steadfastness - for that I am grateful and humbled.

So the good...
I did get a Wii for my birthday so can't wait to set it up and start playing. I may even beat my super in tennis if I practice though she will NEVER beat me in cow racing - Oh dear have I set a challenge here. Birthday was nice with a house full of folk and some wonderful gifts and cards, and still more today left on the doorstep.

The crowning of the Junior Church Queen on Sunday was a first and a highlight - we are blessed at Latchford with some wonderful young people and Symone and Eve looked stunning as the retiring queen (Eve) and new queen (Symone).

the bad
I am not sure how to write about the bad. I have been visiting the hospital daily and on most days, twice, seeing my Nan who is not at all well. Fortunately the hospital is just round the corner. We have cried with her and laughed with her but mostly the tears have flowed. Nan is a star you see... when others would have given up she kept going.. caring, helping and was instrumental is establishing Mencap in the North West many many years. She has met the Queen Mother for tea and has told countless stories of challenging the system in relation to Down's Syndrome. She has knitted,sewed and crocheyed countless items to raise money for the society - a gem. I have always had the most tremendous respect and admiration for her so it is heartbreaking to see her ill and so confused.

The smiles come when she recounts where she is at that moment. In the last week, in her mind, she has been to the following places:
a posh wedding (she didn't buy them a present because they were snooty)
London
a lovely village in Wales beginning with P
the theatre to watch two plays about a murder!
Manchester
College.
Her descriptions of the encounters in these places have been amazing and she has certainly enjoyed them. Heartbreaking is her non-recognition of family and friends and hallucinations of relatives no longer with us. We await further results today from her CT scan to see how the mass is progressing .. in the meantime we go with her in her mind's journey and hold her hand.

When I can I will keep updating ......

Please pray

for Helen - for a miracle

Just feeling...

exhausted really. My Nan is in hospital and it is a scary time - yet there are moments of grace when you can draw alongside others. There are other moments when people have astounded me through there thoughfulness .... I am tired though..

Just under two weeks.....until I get a

Is this a first for a probationer?

I am delighted and proud to introduce a new arrival. Named "Jackie" and born on Thursday 5 June at some hefty weight .... All is well - tagged and sorted!! (involving an elastic band). I am just so proud... thanks Jayne and Stephen.... Yes I have guessed half your comments already - just let them fly folks......

Ooops

the other quiz players were a hoot too - Loraine, John, Alan, Gill, John, Pam and Helen....

Quiz night

What a laugh.. well I think so anyway. Our team was quite large in size and we came third though my discourse with the quiz master that Pakistan currency is the Rupee as well as India was met with "the quizmaster is right" except when he is wrong. Of course we are not bitter but we would have come second and been engaged with a tie breaker question for the marvellous bottle of wine prize. Nevertheless, it was a cracking night with a lot of laughter - thanks Jayne and Alison........

Hi

I am starting with another apology as it has been, yet again, some time since I blogged. Life has been hectic and I guess a bit up and down but having the gift of a week off is becoming a good way to find balance again. It is assignment writing time again - a time which excites me for a number of reasons. 1) I learn and research something very new... 2) I find myself with the tidiest cupboards as diversion tactics set in and I look for alternatives to sitting and writing.. escapism is another way of looking at it.

So what else have I been doing. I had a gardening day on Saturday when some gems from church arrived to help dig, paint and make bacon butties - a great day and wonderful chance to have a giggle together. It was strange not to lead worship on Sunday and I spent some time with my nephew and niece - Thomas told me all about his excellent results in his exams (well done Tom - are you reading this?) and also Leah showed me her 4 football trophies. They are both stars....

The rest of the week will consist of quizzing, have lunch and dinner with friends, writing an assignment, gardening and sorting out my knicker drawer (which has everything to do with assignment writing and diversion tactics).. what a week....

Sorry for the absence

I apologise for not writing for a while - there have been a number of reasons for this - what I thought therefore is to show a series of images which sum up the last few weeks and also the emotions.....

Just something different - to make you smile

oh yes she did..oh no she didn't

Well it went really well tonight and everyone seemed to enjoy it and the audience were absolutely brilliant... the next question is blonde or green???? Answers on a postcard

Thank you Maam

I am so excited about working with a certain individual who furnishes me with so much info for this site. What is the difference between shaker and shaper? Hmm good question isn't it Maam.

Probationers Committee - Part two

Back home and phew all is well. I am "warmly encouraged" by the group - that's the words they used. It went very well actually.

Probationers Committee

Just waiting to be collected for this by Loraine - feel somewhat nervous - not sure why I have no doubt it will go well with the support of others around me. I guess historically all other committees have been pretty major so I assume they all are. Of course I am not playing this one down - the work of the probationers committee is vital in ensuring we are coping and receiving the necessary support... just hope there are no tricky questions on CPD.

Inspirational Leaders and ducks

So what do inspirational leadership and ducks have in common? Well surprisingly they are to do with encounters today. This morning and part of the afternoon some of the circuit leaders met and had a fascinating time with Jon and Alan (Superb individuals)who inspired and challenged us to explore leadership. Using Dr Meredith Belben's team roles analytical tool I came out as a plant. Well what worried me initially is that I kill plants quickly so I wasn't too enamored. Also, I have struggled with labelling of individuals - for me labels are for packages and not people .... however, I can fully understand and appreciate their validity in team dynamics and it can certainly help team relationships if we understand the profile and tendency of others - we can also idenitfy what we are lacking in our team.

So what is a plant - Plant (PL) - the Plant is the creative innovator who comes up with new ideas and approaches. They thrive on praise but criticism is especially hard for them to deal with. Plants are often introverted and prefer to work apart from the team. Because their ideas are so novel, they can be impractical at times. They may also be poor communicators and can tend to ignore given parameters and constraints.

Hmm if you know me you can probably see part of my personality in this definition and other parts which are not.... Introverted?? Poor communicator? creative - yes. Of course no one particular model is complete in itself – but all can be useful in different contexts. They are simply tools to engage in reflection about ministry and team dynamics.

So what about the duck then? Well perhaps that question is best targeted to my esteemed leader Maam. Who whilst discussing the Lymm duck race and the fact that ducks were going backwards due the weather and were being hit back into a place with a man and a stick, "isn't that a bit cruel - how did he get away with it?" Attempting to keep our straight faces failed as we all simultaneously responded - "they are plastic". Bless her....