Sunday

A Clown called Dario - Xtra Special Day





We have various friends throughout the world mostly because we have lived in America and Belgium as well as the UK but also because we have been involved in different Christian Outreach Programs where people from various countries have come to stay with us while they do evangelistic work in association with whichever church we have been attending.







This week there was a solitary visitor to our church all the way from Italy to help with our outreach work during this month.  

He is called Dario and he is a professional clown.







He came to NI to work with children in Lurgan for a week.



Saturday Night we met him as Dario and not "Dario the Clown" while he explained how he came to be a clown and how God was working in his life.








Sunday Morning he came to our morning service at church and centred his actions and words on how God loves us, using imaginary flowers, a multi coloured piece of material, balloons, a suitcase and a young 9 year old boy he picked out of the congregation.








At the end of the service he made balloon animals, swords and hats for the children and they all got their photograph taken with him.








He even made a hat for me especially to match my cardigan.








Then to finish off Fred and I had our photo taken with him too.








Sunday Evening he was with another church who had joined with us to bring Dario over from Italy while we had a special Gospel message more for adults.








Monday Morning & Afternoon he was doing an an assembly and workshops in one of the primary schools followed by our After School Kids Club in another Primary School. 

This time he had an object like a feather duster.

He taught us how to greet a clown sitting down (because it involved lifting your right leg and various other precarious movements and he didn't want anyone to fall over), juggled with 3 balls and then explained how we should pray to God when we cannot do something because God has promised to help us and God had helped him to learn how to juggle with juggling clubs when he had found this very difficult and of course he enlisted the help of several willing volunteers.


Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday were also spent in Schools doing assemblies and workshops with the children



Thursday Evening was a special show in the Town Hall open to any of the children in the town of Lurgan, the hall was full of kids and parents and we had a fun-filled hour together with Dario instructing the children in many things such as how to greet a clown, how to spin plates, walk a tightrope and to know that with Jesus we can do all things.









Of course the balloons made an appearance so that Dario could make hearts for the the leaders of the churches who had hosted him.






Sunday Morning saw Dario at the other church again.



Sunday Evening we were delighted to have Dario with us again where he reminded us all that we are fearfully and wonderfully made by God, using balloons, a wig, a tutu and mime.



Thank you Dario for joining with us and teaching the children more about God.


Thank you God for your love for us, for helping us in all things, for creating us so uniquely and for making Dario such a caring clown.







Have you ever had a clown at your church?

Have you ever met a Christian Clown?

Are you thankful for God's love and for different ways to tell others of His love?





Wednesday

The Waterwheel - A Dose of Encouragement


        Some years ago a friend of ours was going through a very hard time in her life.  


She came to stay with us for a couple of weeks and needed a lot of understanding, sympathy and encouragement to help her see that she was loved.




        
One Sunday morning when we took her to church with us there was a time of prayer and ministry for individuals and my husband Fred asked her to go forward for prayer for God to bless her.  

I stood beside her and prayed that God would use someone there to really pray into her specific situation and that did happen as the Holy Spirit revealed to the people there that she had a great hurt to deal with.  



Then God showed me a picture of a waterwheel turning slowly round 
on the side of an old mill. 



As the wheel turned the sections of the wheel were filled up with water and this turned the wheel round and round.

This waterwheel was moving very slowly and we could think that it was moving so slowly that it would not make any difference to anything.  But something happened as the water was continually flowing through that wheel and turning it - there was energy created.  Even though the water was not very forceful and moving slowly through the wheel, the mill was still receiving power. 







Of course we would think that the mill required either a swift flowing current or a good head of water and with all the sections of the wheel intact the water would then provide the power that was needed.  Also if there were sections of that wheel missing it would be noticeable in the working of the mill. 

However that wheel was gradually going round and round and increasing in speed as it was letting the water do the work it was meant to do.



Sometimes we need to remember the waterwheel



Our friend needed to allow God to keep her in the flow of His love and care and settle in the security of knowing that He has enough love to encourage and keep her going. 

She needed to remember what she had once known but was forgetting to hold on to. She needed to remember that God has promised His Holy Spirit to each of us who have trusted in His Son, who have truly believed that Jesus died in our place, taking our sins on Himself.

When we acknowledge the role The Holy Spirit wants to have in our lives then we will be like the waterwheel gaining strength and power and being used to help others as well as ourselves.

For our friend the hurts might have seemed like they were almost immobilising her and she might have thought she could not cope but with God she could count on the fact that all He did by the work of His Holy spirit would matter and He would help her cope with it all no matter how long it would take.

Sometimes I can feel the same way and need to remember that waterwheel myself.









Monday

#Bigblackwedding - Xtra Special Day


Monday 28th October 2013  was the wedding of our son Daniel.






So what is this #Bigblackwedding all about?


Well our surname is Black and our new daughter-in-law Suzie was so looking forward to becoming Mrs Black that she referred to the wedding as the big black wedding and then they decided to hashtag it and all their friends could use this to post pictures of the event on twitter, facebook, instagram and pinterest.





Suzie also got the cake topping specially made and it was simply the words  

Mr & Mrs Black.


It was obvious to us for quite some time that the two of them were really looking forward to getting married and this was also obvious to everyone throughout the church ceremony and the rest of the day as they were so relaxed and happy together.
(It was also very clear to all of us who had to listen to Daniel when he woke up on Monday morning and came dancing and singing into the kitchen)

It was very special for Fred & I to see our son so happy and to be adding a new daughter to our family.

Our other son Jonathan preached the sermon at the wedding (mostly based on Song of Song 8 v 6).

Our daughter Linda read Psalm 121

Our nephew Glen was best man (he and Daniel have been best friends forever - well since Daniel was 7 months old and Glen was born).


Everything else was done by other family & friends with Suzie's brother praying the final prayer of blessing over them, so it was very much a family and friends affair.


Later Linda caught the bouquet but has since returned to South Korea and had to leave it with me so our lounge is well decorated from flowers etc. from the wedding.






Now Mr & Mrs Daniel Black are off on their honeymoon and Mr & Mrs Fred Black are still trying to sort out their house from the whirlwind of recent events but what is a bit of a mess in your home compared to the happiness and joy in your family.


We are very grateful to God who has been at the centre of our marriage for 36 years 
and who we pray will be always at the centre of this new marriage between 
Daniel & Suzie.





Little Joe - Book Review



I was privileged to get an ebook copy of this book from the publishers and read it during the past week.


Little Joe





Synopsis


When Little Joe Stout survives the car accident that took his parents’ lives, he is sent to live with his maternal grandparents in the small town of Round Rock, Tennessee. Orphaned and missing his Texas home, Little Joe is reluctant to adapt. But his grandparents, especially his grandmother, are up to the challenge of raising him despite their own struggles. Soon, childhood friendships are forged in the oddball duo of Sugar and Bobby, and—with the help of a new canine companion—Little Joe begins to see that his new home offers the comfort and love he thought was lost forever.


Set against the drama of World War II and the first sparks of the civil rights movement, Little Joe’s new home is a microcosm of America in the 1940s. A frightening incident with a Chinese motorist traveling on the wrong side of town, the migration of troops across the countryside, and a frank discussion of Jim Crow laws are just a few of the local events mirroring the radio broadcasts that bring the news of the day into his grandmother’s kitchen.


Little Joe begins a four-part series from Michael E. Glasscock III that explores the intricate social cloth of Round Rock, Tennessee.








My Thoughts


Well the first thing I need to say is that to start with I thought this was not really my type of book but wanted to read something a bit different from usual and so I was prepared to read this over a longer period of time than normal and probably read another book at the same time but boy did I get a surprise.

                I was hooked from the first few pages.

This was so well written and descriptive that I was in that farm alongside them, loving the characters and laughing at the events that took place. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone.

The book brought real life to life, not skipping over the sad areas of life and not making everything work out perfectly but showing the true love of family for each other and care and responsibility towards friends and neighbours.

I read it in just 3 days, and would have finished it all in one day except I did have other things that needed my time.

I am already looking forward to the next book in the series and will review that later too.

Go on and try it, its a relaxing and enjoyable read but at the same time will make you think about life today.










Little Joe  by  Michael E. Glasscock  III     http://www.michaeleglasscockiii.com/

Book 1 in the Round Rock Series

Published by Greenleaf Book Group Press    

Released in June 2013








Wednesday

A VERY IMPORTANT POST-IT! - Coffee & Conversation



I have a small post-it sticking to the bottom left hand corner of the second computer screen in my study.


Just as a reminder any time I feel like a snack.







You see little snacks like an aero biscuit, small fudge bar, breakaway etc. are all around 100 calories and if I succumb to one of these then it would take me 2,000 steps to burn it off.


This little Post-it reminds me of how many steps it will take to burn off 100 calories.






Even little tubs of ice-cream and mousses from Weight Watchers are around the same amount of calories so again I would need to walk 2,000 steps to burn those off.


This little Post-it keeps me motivated.


I like to read & at the same time walk around my kitchen which I'm very thankful is long enough to do this and not be going round in circles and getting dizzy 
(which can happen to me easily and then set off my vertigo).  


So one day I thought I should just work out how long it takes to walk 2,000 steps to burn off my 100 calories.

This is what I found

100 steps takes 1 min
so
200 steps would take 2 mins
so
2000 steps would take 2 x 10 = 20 mins


provided I don't get interrupted or get tired of walking or come to the end of a chapter (when I often think I should now go do some housework  -  this doesn't actually make me stop too often) .


So just think  20 mins of walking to get rid of those calories you ate in that little snack.







Of course you could do it in 15 mins if you walk very briskly but I don't want to do that while I'm reading.


I am always hearing/seeing/reading that we should walk 10,000 steps per day just to keep at our present weight.


So for me

That would be 20 x 5 = 100 mins of walking every day


I'm trying to do 12,000 steps a day plus some exercise because I want to continue to gradually lose weight.


So every day I would need to spend 20 x 6 = 120 mins walking


That is 2 whole hours taken up walking every day



This little Post-it keeps me motivated.


The Big Question then is   -   Is it Worth it?


You see I use this time each day to read my bible and other Christian novels and uplifting books.

SO

I say YES!


And a very cheap form of exercise too!

    

Would you say YES?


Maybe you would like to start walking too?  and reading?


Or maybe you have a very important post-it too?






Tuesday

Misery Loves Company - Book Review

I was privileged to get an ebook reader copy of this book from the publishers and read it during the past week.




Synopsis:


        Don’t tell me it’s terrifying. Terrify me.

Filled with grief, Jules Belleno rarely leaves the house since her husband’s death while on duty as a police officer. Other than the reviews Jules writes on her blog, she has little contact with the outside world.

But one day when she ventures out to the local grocery store, Jules bumps into a fellow customer . . . and recognizes him as her favorite author, Patrick Reagan. Jules gushes and thoroughly embarrasses herself before Regan graciously talks with her.

And that’s the last thing she remembers—until she wakes up in a strange room with a splitting headache. She’s been kidnapped. And what she discovers will change everything she believed about her husband’s death . . . her career . . . and her faith. 





While I was reading this book I thought I couldn't relate the title of the book to the story I was reading but as at other times I know that I may have to wait until I finish the book and then I get it!

       And yes I got it!

Not having read anything by this author before, I knew I would not be expecting a certain type of writing style or plot formula and it was nice to just read and enjoy the story as it developed in the way the author had intended it to and not the way I would be expecting.

Some of the characters were a little typical but not one-dimensional and the development of the storyline in the two separate ways within the story worked quite well.

Twice I thought I knew what was going to happen and I was wrong so definitely not a predictable storyline.  I enjoyed the book as a relaxing read but also in parts of it I found I was drawn in to consider how I would react if I had to face some of the issues presented.

Taking into consideration the fact that this was written by a woman and the main character is a woman I needed to decide if this was going to be a book that would only be categorised as a women's book.  It is not action packed but action and suspense are there and the fact that the rest of the main characters are male I have to say that I would not categorize it as such.

Within the storyline the subject of happy endings or real life, possibly unhappy endings came up but I will not give spoil it by telling you what type of ending this resulted in, just read it and see for yourself.






Misery Loves Company  by  Rene Gutteridge  www.renegutteridge.com 

Published by Tyndale  www.tyndale.com 

Released in August 2013









Friday

WHAT WILL I WEAR????? - Coffee & Conversation


Our son's wedding was a few months away, so for me the big question was



What will I wear?





Having already been through (for our kids alone)

4 graduations

3 baptisms

1 ordination as a pastor

1 ordination as a teacher in the church


 -  I have learned that there are important things that have to be dealt with so that your children approve of your outfit.



Short or long?

Hat or no hat?
(Definitely YES to a Cambridge Graduation!)

Hat or Fascinator?

Can I wear Trousers?
(Definitely NO to a Cambridge Graduation!)

Do I have to wear high heels?

What colour?

Who not to clash with?

Who to tone in with?

What jewellery with the outfit?




Oh I'm tired already just thinking about it before I start to talk about it, 


I'm not a fashion conscious person really!


My main problem is I am petite.   See a Previous Post HERE


Most places either
  • do not do petite 
  • have a very small selection 
  • only have more old fashioned outfits in petites
  • think that all petite people have to be thin 

so I hate having to look for something for particular events.



Also as Mother of the Groom:

First thing you know is you don't wear white, ivory or cream;  that is just too close to what your future daughter-in-law will be wearing and it is her big day so she should stand out.

Secondly once you know the colour of the bridesmaids you need to avoid colours too similar and other colours that would clash with it.

Third thing is you don't go strapless;  unless you have a jacket to go on top.
It is one thing having a young bride with bare shoulders but another thing completely to have an older mother-in-law with bare shoulders.


So after you have dealt with those 3 priorities there is then the wait to hear that the bride's mother has got her outfit and find out the colour so that you don't pick the same colour or something that will clash with it also.


Okay so all of that has probably involved numerous cups of coffee and that hasn't helped the effort to lose that weight you had been trying to lose from even before they got engaged but are still having to work hard on.








Then you start looking seriously for your outfit and you want to have it well in advance in case you need to have any alterations made once you lose all that weight you are working on.

Then

You see something you think you like but immediately you start thinking -

 will it please everyone else as well???...



My first reaction was  "Oh I think that is just me!"

However I know that sometimes I like things that are a bit different to the norm but that doesn't mean that I wear really different or strange things, at least I don't think so anyway.

So I decided to send a picture of the outfit to Linda in South Korea, thank goodness for ipads with their screenshots and email and messaging and facetime.  (Sounding too tech savvy here and I really am not like that.)

Well she liked it and what did she say?  

Did you guess it?

She said "Oh mum that is just you!"


Did I run out and buy it?   No.


I kept looking online for a few weeks and then finally I showed the picture to Fred and he thought it was nice so he said "That's nice, do you like it?"

I wonder why I was talking about an outfit for the wedding and showing this to him and he had to ask me if I liked it?   

 

Are all men like this?


"Well do you want to get it?"  he asks then when he realises by the look on my face that I obviously do like it.

My answer "I don't know."

So he was probably thinking

Why is she making such a point of showing me this if she doesn't know if she wants to get it, I thought she liked it, was I wrong?

So another few days go past and then I start hinting that I want to go to a certain shopping centre.
Finally I just have to say to him that I want to go and see if I can see the outfit "in real life" in the shopping centre and not just online because I need to actually see exactly what it is like and then I need to try it on because I'm not sure of the size I would have to get but I want him to go too as he needs to see it too.

So off we go and when we get there he thinks that he's just going to go into the shop with me I will try it on and that's that.
No, no, no,  I direct him to a "Bose" shop and I go in to look around and hope that it is there.

I enter the shop and the first thing I see is the outfit. 
So I try it on and the 3 ladies working in the shop all think it is lovely on me, 
so
     they bring me the shoes to match,
           bag to match,
                 hat to match,
                     take hat away
 (hats at that moment were very large and I think definitely too large for me)

                           bring fascinator to match,
                                  take fascinator away 
(even the fascinator is large)

                                         and bring smaller fascinator to match.








And I liked it!
 
 I phoned Fred, he came and the ladies ushered him into the changing room.
          He liked it too.

               "So are you getting it now?"  he asked.

"Do you think the kids will like it?" I ask.



"Of course they will"  he replied.
         
        "How do you know?"  is my next question.
                    
                 "They are bound to like it, it's lovely"  he said.

The solution?

                          TAKE A PICTURE!

            
and that's what we do, thank goodness for iPads and coffee shops with Wifi.




Fred took a picture of me standing in the changing room and we headed over to a nearby Costa Coffee (having taken the outfit off and left it behind the sales desk with a very understanding set of shop assistants).

Now you might wonder why I deliberately mention that we went to Costa Coffee.
The answer is because I am not fond of Starbucks and also Costa Coffee have the greatest lemon and poppy seed muffin which I just adore but have been missing out on since trying to lose weight. One of those muffins has as many calories as my full dinner would have.





So we get the coffee (and tea for Fred) and a muffin which Fred says we have to share so that it isn't too many calories for me - isn't he so considerate?  No really, I'm not being sarcastic here because Fred will tell you himself that he is not a muffin eater.

Then connected to Wifi we email the picture to both Linda (South Korea) and Jonathan (Leeds) and start messaging them to make sure they look at their email.

During the time it took to eat the muffin we had a group message conversation with both kids and they encouraged me to go back and buy the outfit.








            But  

"Do you think Daniel & Suzie will like it too?"  I ask

                                  "YES!" is the joint reply

So we head back and buy the outfit.


A few days later we are with Daniel getting the suits for the guys for the wedding and I show him the outfit, he likes it.  Later that evening I see Suzie and show her the picture and she likes it so all is well.

Or rather would be well when I would go to the seamstress and get that little alteration done because (back to where we started) 

I am petite 

and the dress is regular fitting so I needed the straps shortened.


So I had my outfit, and it wouldn't clash with the bridesmaids.

And the wedding was 4 weeks exactly from that day!


  It wasn't such a hard task after all, sure it wasn't?







Tuesday

The Mysterious Affair at Styles - Book Review




Synopsis
Injured and sent back to England from the First World War, Lieutenant Hastings finds himself in a convalescent home very much to his disliking.  Thankfully his old friend John Cavendish invites him to spend the rest of his sick leave at the beautiful Styles Court.  Here, Hastings meets John’s step-mother, Mrs Inglethorpe, and her new husband Alfred.  Despite the tranquil surroundings Hastings begins to realise that all is not right.  When Mrs Inglethorpe is found poisoned, suspicion falls on the family, and who better to investigate than Belgian war refugee Hercule Poirot, another old friend and a retired police detective.






This was the first Agatha Christie novel and apparently publishers were not interested in publishing it. 
         Why?

Of course once one publisher did decide to give it a go then Mrs Christie had lots of interest from many publishers due no doubt to the great interest everyone had in reading and buying this book.

 The following and other great reviews of the time will also have helped.


                       "Though this may be the first published book of Miss Agatha Christie,
                                            she betrays the cunning of an old hand..."
                                                                    The New York Times Book Review, 1920









My View
I had read it years ago and I did remember who the murderer was but did not remember all the fine details so perhaps because of this I have realized now just how good this book is and especially just how good it was for a first book.  All the clues were there, so those who say that she hides some clues are mistaken here. We really just have to read the books carefully to see it all.  

I was even taken with the structure of some of the sentences, very carefully done so that things are not given away immediately but written so that it can get us thinking.  I normally refer to Agatha Christie novels as light reading but if we take it too lightly we will miss the clues, the background info which can often be very important and of course the subtlety in Poirot's musings. 

Written so well in the voice of Hastings, it was no wonder she kept him in many of the Poirot novels and if I had to give my view she should have kept him even later too.


You will find many other BOOK REVIEWS on Sandra's Ark



Book Review - The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie


You can find this book on Amazon just click on the pic below.





Here is a link to a list of other novels by Agatha Christie on Amazon
Books by Agatha Christie



If thinking of reading this book in the future why not pin this pic to go back to later.





      










Monday

My Friends Laughed at Me! - Coffee & Conversation




Yes they laughed at me!


My husband rolled his eyes at me!


My kids laughed and said that was just like mum!


Well I do like labels.  

 

And then they all asked why I had done it?






Am I really strange?

All I had done was show them the labels I had put on three baskets in our cloakroom cupboard.

Well when you have a husband who asks the same question each time he goes to the cupboard to get a hat or scarf or gloves - then this is a very sensible thing to do, or so I thought.


Do you label your baskets?

 I mean the ones you are using for storing things or keeping things neat in a cupboard, not the ones you use to go shopping. 






Later when it was pointed out to me by someone else that I had written "snoops" instead of "snoods" on my basket label I had to laugh as well.

 Please tell me I am not the only person who labels their baskets. 


Anyway this is not the only place I have labelled baskets and I get a sort of satisfaction out of using the same labels and trying to write neatly (usually without spelling mistakes).

You also might enjoy my labelling in my
Organised Storage Closet 







But to be honest I have to admit it is not just because of my husband that I label things - Yes I need to do it because I forget as well as him.    Or maybe I just get a bit mixed up and not completely forget that I have put something away somewhere but which basket is each thing in is often my problem.



The thing is trying to do all the 
 Organising of the House and using nice containers and labelling them (exactly right Ha Ha) can be more time consuming than it should be.






Oh to have a perfect memory and all the energy to keep a perfect home!



Here's some more posts about