just the facts

I’ve had an aversion to blogging for years.  I even have a soapbox especially dedicated to it, but the irony or using my own blog to debunk blogging is too embarrassing to allow me to ever climb up on it.  After the fourth of fifth person felt that God impressed upon them the importance of recording what happens this year, I decided it might be better to humble myself as it concerns blogging rather than risk ignoring helpful instruction from the Lord.

That being the history, I’m not entirely sure of the best approach here…my tendency would be to drag you along whatever "internal processing" I’m having at the moment without giving you any context for it.  Sorry about that.  I’m learning slowly and realizing it might be helpful to just have some answers to basic questions.  So here are some raw facts for a start:

Where are you, exactly?

home sweet home

Wellington, Somerset, England.  I live on the third floor of the house on the corner.  My window looks out over the town to the hills.

What is Wellington like?

A cocktail of Tolkien’s Hobbiton and the town in which I grew up.  High Street is the only major road in Wellington, and from our front gate, you can reach it on foot in five minutes.  Just walk up past the Indian takeaway place, the habadashery (read this as, “shop full of random spools of yarn, thermal socks, garden trowels, and fresh flowers”), and the South African shop, and you’re there.  High Street is teeming with people from about 9:00 am to 5:00, at which time everything closes. (And forget going anywhere on Sundays…even the grocery stores close at 4:00.) There is a cinema that plays one movie at a time.  There are no fast food establishments.

hand-drawn maps: more Middle-earth parallels

What is the food like?

It’s good.  Really good.  Probably too good for my own good.  The first time I ate a carrot, I felt like Charlie trying one of Willy Wonka’s Everlasting Gobstoppers for the first time…there is no rational explanation for a mouthful having that much flavor.  Everything fresh is like that- devoid of GMO tweaking and processing and consequently, delicious.  Unfortunately, everything else- meats, hearty meals, and most of all, “puddings” (desserts)- are also excellent. (This is probably the place where I insert instagrammed photos of my breakfasts…stay tuned for those riveting updates.)

What are people like?

I constantly have the impulse to grab complete strangers in a bear hug.  I haven’t done it yet, mostly because the average person seems shocked by someone just saying ‘hello’ and asking how the day is going.  So, people are reserved…but usually warm if you doggedly pursue a conversation.  Conversations can fizzle quickly at the mention of “church” or “God”- another reason I pray for words of knowledge.  That cloud of apathy and heaviness commonly hangs over people, making friendliness, kindness, and encouragement feel like light in darkness in a markedly tangible way.

What do you do every day?

I roll out of bed before dawn, shove my feet into my Asics, and run a few miles- usually in the rain.  After I’m back and cleaned up, I make my first cup of tea for the day, get in the Word, and pray.  I ask the Holy Spirit where I should go and who I should talk to.  I ask for words of knowledge.  When I know I have meetings scheduled or errands to run, I ask him to speak to me for people and situations there.  And then I try to do it.  I see people- in the church and outside- lots.

last flowers of autumn...

When I’ve got “free time” from doing these things, I work on learning the Thriller dance with the girls, get beaten in Uno by the younger two (they cheat…really), chat with John and Kim, and disappear into the remote countryside for an hour or two.  The latter usually involves trying to keep my wellies on my feet rather than left behind in the mud, avoiding nettles (more annoying than a bee sting), and crawling under barbed wire fences.  It’s absolutely fantastic.

What’s happening with the church?

We’ve had to push the start date back to November 18.  We’re going to be meeting in one of the local schools…though we’re not sure which one yet.  Once everything is kicked off, there will be plenty to do.  Until then, I’m “researching” as much as I can…what is the general “atmosphere”?  What are the good things in the community?  What are the issues?  Where are the poor?  Is poverty even an issue?  What’s the best way to connect with people here?

Is the weather really that bad?

one of my walking routes...this is why wellies are essential!

Not as bad as I anticipated.  Every six days or so, the skies clear up, and then everything looks stunning- like the background photo here.  After about four hours of this, the rain usually returns.  I’ve given up on ever doing my hair.

There you go.  I’m gradually remembering to take photos, so I’ll aim to give you more visuals and less philosophical meanderings from now on.