The New Year

The New Year took me by surprise, turning up on the 1st of January like that.   I realised that I hadn't ordered a new diary - or a new "Examining the Scriptures Daily" (though I can read that online). The Captain galloped to my rescue and ordered me a Van Gogh Diary for 2015, which has now arrived.

But 2015!   Someone is shortening these millenniums...

We went for a walk along the beach on Wednesday afternoon. It was cold, with waves - and the river was high. We watched river and sea struggling together by the Pier.  I got email, letter and card posted to Jen, Kathryn and Bea.

And last night I reunited with my congregation family.  And hope to be back in the field service, starting tomorrow.

Encouraging point from last night. We are learning a new song - to celebrate the incoming Kingdom of God - and the Speaker started by playing us two songs.  One was from the Songthrush, the other from the Carrion Crow.   He pointed out that Jehovah made both those voices and loves to hear them sing - so please can we all sing out, even those of us who are at the Crow end of the spectrum (such as myself). And when discussing it, another brother pointed out that when all the birds blend their voices in the dawn chorus, it is wonderful. As indeed it is.   The early dawn is one of those times that it is so easy to see the holiness of the world.

I started a new short story while I was away, as Nute, Pen and I had a writing day together. They both have excellent thrillers in the pipeline (both being published authors) and my young publisher is apparently considering publishing my long short story as a novella.   If and when he does, my blog will hear about it!

My hero and heroine have arrived at a holiday cottage in the remote Northumbrian countryside in late September.., but what is going to happen next hasn't come to me yet.