The Path in the Sea Dear friends If you go to Southend on Sea, in Essex, and keep going until the railway runs out, you will reach Shoeburyness on the east coast. Although the railway goes a little further as a single track, but only for MOD use, heading north east towards their depot outside the village of Wakering. You can cycle…

Looking over the wreckage Dear friends “If you want to make God laugh,” said Woody Allen, “Tell him your plans.” This is true for institutions as well as individuals. Lanercost Priory in north Cumbria was one of the smaller religious houses, and thus one of the first plundered (or, reformed, if you are an ardent monarchist) by the agents of Henry VIII,…

Light and darkness Dear friends This rather bleak and storm swept week in January holds two rather different commemorations. Thursday (25th) is the feast of the conversion of St Paul, knocked to the ground by a divine revelation on the road to Damascus, whilst about the business of destroying early Christian communities, who at that time were worshipping as either house-churches or…

Life on Fire Dear friends, Spare a thought for the people of the Reykjanes peninsular in Iceland, as the anticipated eruption has finally come to pass. You may be wondering why some volcanos are cone shaped, some explode, some have loads of gas, and some, like in this part of Iceland, just seem to crack open the earth in great fissures. The…

High Water Dear friends, The level of the Thames begins to fall, as a vast volume of storm water moves through and away from our area. Some recording stations have monitored levels almost a metre above the normal peak. Flood plain fields are awash, and riverside properties in Wallingford have flooded. Only the bird life rejoices, as their aquatic habitat is suddenly…

Happy New Year Dear friends, Whether you celebrate much on New Year’s Eve, or go to bed early with a good book and a cup of cocoa, there remains, always, the feeling of a corner being turned, at least for a while. The old diary is put away, sometimes with a look through, and the realisation that, despite everything that has happened,…

Coffee, Carols, and the Christmas List Dear friends, Checkendon church is hosting a community coffee (and mince pie) morning this coming Saturday from 10.30am in Checkendon Village Hall. Do pop in for a free coffee and mince pie. Its a great chance to catch up with your neighbours, and take a few moments in the maelstrom. There’ll be a model railway, a…

Not far to the North…. Dear friends I am constantly impressed by how Iceland handles the fact it is living on top of a volcano. Or, rather, a whole heap of volcanoes. They have a vast web of detectors and instruments, measuring things like earthquakes, and crustal deformation. Satellites, lasers and many teams of scientists are keeping an eye on all the…

Wholly War Dear friends, At the other end of the village two neighbours hate each other. One has grown a high hedge, and lives comfortably. He manages his resources and businesses well, and turns a good profit from his farm and small enterprises. The other neighbour has little money and his house is too small for his very large family, which he…

Hey Alexa ! Dear friends Whether we like it or not, AI (“Artificial Intelligence”) is already all around us and here to stay. It is on your phone, making suggestions for the next word you might need as you type a text or message. It is on your computer, underneath the “voice to text” function that learns not only how you speak…