‘Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow’ – Thomas Obadiah Chisholm – hymn writer 1866–1960 I’ve been writing this blog for over eight years now, and when re-reading the Christmas posts I discovered that I’ve repeatedly returned to the theme of hope. As I pondered what to write in this Advent piece, I can’t … More Hope For The Hopeless
‘a reckoning with the truth of mortality.’ Unknown So a significant birthday comes around later this month and a new decade begins. While I discover that I have to wait another six years to obtain a much coveted bus pass, I will soon be able to procure a ‘senior’ railcard. Consolation or inevitability? At this … More Spectacular 60
Awesome: ‘something Americans use to describe everything.’ from the Urbandictionary.com I once knew a lady who scattered the word ‘awesome’ into conversation much as you might sprinkle sugar on your porridge and with almost equal abandon. She was as likely to use it in reference to a particularly delicious slice of cake as to a … More More Mountains
‘Having trouble parking?… Get yourself a Sherman tank.’ – Kenny Everett – British comedian Back in the 1980s, the much-missed comedian Kenny Everett had a TV show which once included a sketch I remember simply as, Solve all you parking problems with a Sherman tank. You can still watch it by searching You Tube for … More Tanks a lot!
‘May you live all the days of your life’ – Jonathan Swift (author) Twenty years ago I was madly raising sponsorship for a week long trek I was about to join along part of The Great Wall of China. This was undertaken in partnership with a charity I’ve supported for years and with a bunch … More Another Big One Soon!
‘Now is the moment for Britain to choose its future.’ – Rishi Sunak, announcing the date of the General Election outside 10, Downing Street, May 2024 The political landscape in the UK is pretty bleak right now. With a General Election hurtling towards us this week, this is highly disturbing. I’ve never felt less sure … More My Duty & Privilege
“The British nation is unique in this respect: they are the only people who like to be told how bad things are, who like to be told the worst.” – Winston Churchill (speech 10th June 1941) So, while everyone was frantically casting their vote in South Africa, we left them to it and boarded a … More Ready for Lift Off
‘Just like any other chaotic African country’ – a local So said our friend as we ground our tentative way over gravel roads, in and out of spine-jangling potholes, past the incongruously shiny Chinese and American embassies of the capital, Maseru, and back into South Africa from Lesotho. He’s travelled all over Africa, so he … More Lesotho
‘The mountains are calling and I must go’ – John Muir (1838-1914) naturalist and environmentalist This past week or so has seen us travelling to the Free State province of South Africa to visit friends who used to live in Cape Town. Flying into Bloemfontein we had a bird’s eye view of the vast spaces … More Mountains and scars
‘Elections belong to the people. It’s their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters.’ – Abraham Lincoln I learnt a new word this month: permacrisis. You don’t need to be a language expert to work out that … More Global Tipping Point
