Category Archives: Flora and Fauna

It’s A Question of Taboos

24 Thursday May 2012

Posted by in Bible, Death, Flora and Fauna

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As for mortals, their days are like grass;
they flourish like a flower of the field;
for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
and its place knows it no more.

Psalm 130:15-16

I was telling someone recently that these verses of Psalm 130 were among my favorite, they had two comments.

Firstly they said I over use that phrase when it comes to the Bible.  Apparently I hardly go past a single reading or quote without saying that it contains some of my favorite verses.  I understood what she was saying I have lots of favourite bits in the Bible, but it did get me to thinking, is it right to have favorite bits of the Bible?  After all I have always been quick to defend the lectionary as it challenges us with bits of the Bible which we might be tempted to skip over.

Her second observation was that I seem to have a tendency to talk about death a lot.  Now this I wasn’t aware of and in fact I defended quite vigorously, including by pointing out that we spend more time dead than alive.  However I ended up by having to concede that I probably talk about it far more than the average Jo or Jane in the street and were others might shy away from such conversations I will happily engage in them because I think they are important conversations to have.  It is curious to me that the last time this country was celebrating their queen’s diamond jubilee such conversations wouldn’t have seemed out of the ordinary – as indeed speaking about faith or the Bible wouldn’t have been – while we are far more open about discussing all manner of things than our Victorian ancestors would have needed the smelling salts out at the first mention of.  The later doesn’t really surprise me, it is the former that I find curious.

What causes things that weren’t taboo to become such?

Reaching Out

22 Tuesday May 2012

Posted by in Diocesan Growth Strategy, Flora and Fauna, Wester Ross

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This seashore grass has red roots which reach out beyond its green boundary.  It looks almost like this bit of nature is going through a church mapping process and it got me to thinking.

All too often when such processes are gone through the talk is about people coming to the centre from the outskirts to receive sustenance for when they travel back away from the hub, and that is true.  However this plant shows that it is a two-way thing for the roots also bring sustenance to the grass.  But I also think there is something far more fundamental that struck me as I pondered on those roots.  Yes there is a  community where the church building is actually placed, but the church is more than one building of stone, brick or wood it is the flesh building of each of its members.  As individual roots we are called to serve the locality of were we live – and for most of us that is not in the immediate community around the church – we are sent out to love and serve the Lord, not just until we leave the church grounds or its immediate community but right back to the end of our root, however near or far that might be.  What is more we are called to be the link, the root between the two being refreshed and fed by the centre, yes, but also bringing back to the center the concerns and joys and bounty from were we have been.  Which leaves me with something to ponder before we get too far into Growth Strategy, where is the community any given church serves?  Surely it can’t just be the one community were the bricks and mortar are situated, is it not more like a network of communities that the flesh and blood of the church lives and works in?

Birthday Roses

09 Thursday Feb 2012

Posted by in Birthdays, Flora and Fauna

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You know what it is like, you buy or are given, in this case for my birthday I was given, roses and they fail to come out.  Their heads droop and they stay bud or maybe they do open slightly only for the outside petals to go brown and slimy.  Well this time that most definitely wasn’t the case they are simply glorious.

Ayrshire Gem

14 Friday Jul 2006

Posted by in Ayrshire, Flora and Fauna

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The sun was shining the sky was blue, it was my day off.

Apart from someone having to collect my brother from the airport this evening there wasn’t anything I needed to do. So we packed up the car with a nice picnic lunch and set off for Culzean Castle (for those of you who don’t know the place it is pronounced Culain). The Castle sits on the Aryshire coast looking out towards Arran and you can see along the coast either way – there are pictures of the Castle elsewhere. It has wonderful grounds and beautiful gardens, which was were we ate our picnic. While we were eating a plant caught my eye and after wards we went to have a closer look, it was one that I don’t know, if anyone out there in blogland knows what it is I would be most grateful.

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The hot house had several passion flowers including an all white one, which I have never seen before.

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The Passion Flower gets its name from the Passion of Christ on the cross. The 72 radial filaments represent the Crown of Thorns. The ten petals represent the ten faithful apostles. The 3 stigma represent the 3 nails (one nail for both feet) and the lower 5 anthers represent the 5 wounds (two hands, two feet and his side).

If you are ever in Ayrshire, Culzean is well worth a visit, both young and old enjoy it. I have many happy memories of days spent there with the students when they were toddlers and my mother. Eldest student used to love clambering all over the cannons, and the youngest gazing out to sea through the windows of the oval room. I was glad that Hubby and I have now had the first of what will be many more visits there together