A Few Ramblings…
Forty-six year old Christian happily negotiating the world with a wife and three daughters
An evening with Stuart Townend – 18 October 2014
St Mary’s Church
Maidenhead
Floodlights gaze down over wooden pews while the stone church fills up
Drum kit and guitars stand ready at the front
An excited hubbub of voices chattering
Waiting
Stuart arrives, clad casually in jeans and jacket
Trademark cap in place
Two sons, Joseph and Eden will play alongside him
Some songs played for those gathered to sing along to
Some songs played for those gathered to listen to
Singing mingled with words from Stuart
Explaining his inspiration for writing certain lyrics
Recounting tales of people he has met
Recalling verses from the Bible
Challenging those gathered to think about the words they are singing
Reminding them of the great hope they have ahead
Teaching them new songs
Praying for their needs
A man of humility
A man of faithfulness
A man who uses his song-writing to praise and lead others to praise his Saviour
Mixture of musical accompaniments to the singing
Guitars
Keyboard
Piano
Drums
Banjo
Percussion
Harmonica
All carefully considered to sit perfectly behind the words
Old songs
New songs
Favourite songs
The evening ends
Closing with a reminder of why the songs were written
And why we are here
And who it’s all for
‘In Christ Alone’
Stuart talking in between songs
Holly getting a CD signed afterwards
Should auld acquaintance be forgot? – 16 September 2014
Scotland stands, poised on the precipice
Ready with the mark of pencil on paper
To change hundreds of years of history
To put paid to the partnership of the United Kingdom
To raise the Saltire and sail away alone
Across the country, heated discussions
Held in town halls
Held in shops
Held in homes
Yes versus No
Opinions split across the land
‘Better together’ or ‘Yes Scotland’
Outsiders seek to sway the decision
Pointing to the break up of ‘The Union’
Passionate speeches
‘Don’t leave us!’, ‘No going back!’
Their time to influence is almost at an end
The world waits and holds its breath
Waits for millions to make their mark
A pencil cross to change their country forever
In the silence and privacy of the polling booth
Only Scotland can decide its destiny
Emily’s first day at Infants – 8 September 2014
Following on from her sisters, who started back at school last week, today it was Emily’s turn.
As expected, the big event was carried out with a typical calmness and self assurance.
We should have been prepared for the anticlimax following her first day at nursery, almost exactly a year ago:
Emily raring to go
Three sisters
Blackberrying – 7 September 2014
The sky is blue
The warm rays of the early autumn sun shine down
In the hedgerow, ripe blackberries are waiting
Small spheres of juicy sweetness
Waiting to be plucked by eager hands
Waiting to be placed carefully in a container
Waiting to be devoured
The spiny barbs of the brambles scratch against bare arms
Arms outstretched, struggling to grasp out-of-reach fruit
Some of the harvest is too ripe
Hands become stained with the violet of squashed berries
A few are best left to the birds and to inquisitive wasps
Buzzing quietly from branch to branch
Others are not yet ripe and will survive for another day
The aroma of autumn hangs in the air
Time seems to stand still in the golden glow of the afternoon
Baskets are slowly filled
Eventually sufficient bounty has been gathered
Scratched arms carry off their prizes
The hedgerow is left stripped of its finery
Silence returns
A Few Ramblings... 