T Minus 2 Weeks . . .

           . . . Until the Christmas play. It’s taking up a lot of my time lately, working with the Sunday School children, putting the drama team through their paces, organising props and costumes and starting to think about the set. I’m confident it will come together in the end, but there’s still quite a bit to be done.

            In preparation for the madness before Christmas, I took a few days off this week to visit two close friends who are studying for a term in Oxford. I was there for three days, wandering through the streets and gawking at architecture. We climbed the oldest tower in the City ofDreaming Spires, a Saxon stronghold built in the 1060s. We ate at the Eagle and Child pub, favourite meeting-place of CS Lewis, JRR Tolkien, and friends. We talked about philosophy and literature and culture as you only can in Oxford. And generally had fun. I include a few pictures at the end of this post, mostly just because it was so beautiful that I can’t help but share.

            The other major news this week is that one of the older ladies in my church here was hit by a car on Monday afternoon and is in hospital. Ruth was crossing the street when a car ran the red light and knocked her down. She suffered several broken ribs, a leg broken in two places, and minor injuries on the rest of her body. She will have an operation on her leg soon, and will remain in hospital for some time. Please pray for her speedy recovery, and also for her family, as she’s one of the primary caregivers.

 

Word of the Week: Rucksack. It’s their word for “backpack,” which is what I lived out of for 3 days in Oxford. Personally, I like “rucksack” better – it might not be as literally descriptive, but it’s a lot more fun to say.