Blogs & Other Writings

There was nothing wrong with his hearing; that was for sure! He heard the farrier's hammer hit the anvil as he shaped the horseshoe. He heard the market sellers call out their deals of the day. He heard exhausted mothers reprimand their boisterous children, He heard the unpleasant sound of desperate rats scratching the dry, dusty ground, hoping for crumbs or scraps of food that people may drop. He was glad of his other senses t The smell of the fresh bread on the barrow that

I found myself in the back of an ambulance for the second time in the month. The pain was excruciating. As soon as they pushed liquid pain relief through my cannula, it started to ease. The paramedic knew what I needed to make me comfortable. He administered the drugs and sat with me till it started to take effect, then sat quietly. Presence matters. I was wheeled into a part of the A&E that I hadn’t been to before. I lay there so drugged but so aware of so many people millin

The farmer gets up out of bed. He's weary. As he splashes cold water over his face, he thinks to himself, " Who would want to be a farmer nowadays"? He struggles into his overalls; they are stiff with hardened mud. He leaves his wife sleeping, as it's 5.00 am. The weary farmer walks down the stairs and starts the fire to heat the pan of water for a cup of tea. He knows that later, when his morning chores are done, he will come home to a steaming bowl of porridge with fresh ho

On an exceedingly hot summer's day, the United Kingdom was experiencing its third heatwave of the year. We had witnessed record-breaking temperatures of 37°. It also happened to be Wimbledon tennis fortnight and the World Cup. The England men’s football team had only days earlier managed to secure a place in the quarter-finals. I wasn’t interested in either. The country was basking in its glory and in high temperatures. I was currently in the process of receiving chemoth

Dear child, When people speak against you. When they slander your character. Do not retaliate. Love them anyway. This is what it means to love your enemies. The person who is unkind to you, is letting the enemy infiltrate their life. They are not living in step with me. So don’t react to the person. Instead, pray for them. Ask me to work on their heart and character. When you pray for someone who is unkind to you. Your heart softens towards them. You will start to see the per

I sat, waiting with an expectant heart, wondering what kind of tray Jesus would present to me. He came quietly into my space and stretched out his arms. In his hands was a marble tray. He set it on a little table in front of me. I tried hard to hide my disappointment. I thought my tray would be a handcrafted wooden one. Why marble, I thought? As I looked down at the white marble, I noticed streaks of gold running through it. The marble was cold to the touch. I chuckled, think