This morning we awoke to bright sunshine but very frosty temperatures. The plan was to try and make an extra early start in order to catch the 910am bus. Cousin Ron’s call was briefer than usual since he was not feeling well and Wil and I walked very briskly together so I could keep my feet warm thus I was in good time for the bus.
Carrying the eight loaves of Syrian flatbread was a bit tiresome, thank goodness it wasn’t snowing or raining and once down at St. Stephen’s I scurried around setting out bowls and plates for lunch then hurried upstairs to lay out all the pieces for retelling the Easter Story on the felt board. Fortunately Liz arrived early so I could retrieve my soup pot from the office and get the carrot soup on the stove to begin slowly heating up. Soon others began arriving and the morning Gathering was underway.
Although there were only 4 children present we had a good time chatting over snack, then Joan read the passage from the Gospel of John as all the children helped assemble the felt board montage. Then the little ones went off to the other room with Joan and Tanya while the older two created three-dimensional collages of the Empty Tomb. After closing prayers we even had time for a Bible Detective story, since we there had been some technical difficulties in the Worship Room that had caused delays in the sermon.
But soon Paul came upstairs to tell us it was time to re-join the adults so I dashed down to the lay out flatbread, orange hummus and soup. While everyone was eating Liz, Pippa and I held a short Children’s Team meeting in a corner of the worship room as children and adults swarmed around us! It was good to be there after not getting to church last Sunday and the general chaos felt warm and welcoming. As we were meeting I could see out of the corner of my eye people going specially to speak with Ken whose father had died. suddenly this past week. He will be travelling out West tomorrow for the funeral but I’m sure he really felt supported by our community as we took time to share in his grief.I still struggle with the loss of my lifelong, St. Matthew’s, church family but today it was good to be one of this very diverse community and, just for a moment to feel again that sense of family. The feeling carried on as Tanya, Joan and Nico drove me home and came in for a moment to choose a pysanka. Tanya and Joan are Tighe’s other Godparents so we are all “God family” and I specially wanted to give them a pysanka. Nico chose one patterned with chickens and carefully carried it out to the car as they left.
So now, after another Wil walk we are about to have a short CTM board meeting. Time to make more tea and lay out some cookies…another quiet afternoon at the Taylor’s 😊