It’s been a bit of an up and down week for me. The highpoint was spending time up at Hanmer last weekend for the Men’s retreat. It was a slightly smaller group this year (probably because of the timing in relation to school holidays) but there were plenty of quality conversations as well as the usual mountain biking expeditions and cricket etc. These weekend retreats are so valuable and seem to be locked into the annual Ilam calendar (although it was a shame that the women’s retreat this year coincided with a lockdown transition and so had to be downgraded to a single day). If you haven’t attended one before, plan to next year!
The low point was learning of my brother’s death in London on Sunday night (UK time). He had been in poor health for a couple of years – and had been in the end stages of heart failure for a few months, so it was not unexpected – just very sudden in the end. He was my only sibling, older than me, and had never married, so has been on his own through all his recent health problems. It’s hard, I’m finding, not to be able to be there to help sort out funerals and other stuff – which would be my normal way of coping! I’m having to learn to grieve a little more passively! Carol and I last saw him when we visited him in London in 2019 – our older son, Tim, was with us, so we have some family memories to share together.
This Sunday, as you will be aware, we are trying a service back at the school, hoping that the weather will enable us to be outside. The downside is that we are limited to a maximum of 100 attendees, plus those organising the service. Follow Andrea’s link to the sign-up sheet. If necessary, we have a Plan B for a supplementary location to take the overflow. The focus is on gathering – no singing or sermon, but there will be some prayer, and “zone” activities based around Daniel Chapter 6.
Sunday 31 October is, of course, our AGM. We will be experimenting with yet another format for this service – so watch for instructions. Basically, we’ll meet in home-based groups, but the formal meeting component will be via Zoom, linking everybody for a run through the business stuff. It will be novel! And – changing formats – keeps us on our toes. Never let it be said that Ilam is in a rut!
For now, though, I hope that you have a safe and enjoyable Labour Weekend.