SEPTEMBER

SERVICES

Sunday 6th September – The Thirteenth Sunday

after Trinity 10.00 am Shortened Communion Service (CW) at the Parish Church – The Vicar 10.00 am Family Service at the Church Centre

Sunday 13th September – The Fourteenth Sunday

after Trinity 10.00 am Shortened Communion Service (CW) at the Parish Church – The Vicar

10.00 am Family Service at the Church Centre

Sunday 20th September – The Fifteenth Sunday

after Trinity 10.00 am Shortened Communion Service (CW) at the Parish Church – The Vicar 10.00 am Family Service at the Church Centre

Sunday 27th September – The Sixteenth Sunday after

Trinity 10.00 am Short Service of the Word (CW) at the Parish Church 10.00 am Family Service at the Church Centre

DIARY

Monday 7th September 8.00 pm Worship Committee – The Lodge

Monday 14th September 8.00 pm PCC – The Large Hall

Magazine Copy Deadlines

13th September for October 18th October for November

22nd November for December/January 2021 Magazines are placed in the churches on the Sunday on or before the 1st of the month. The time between the deadline and magazine issue is to allow for typing, formatting, compiling the magazine, proofreading, printing, collection and

distribution. These all take time and have to be fitted around the volunteer editorial team’s other commitments. We would therefore be very grateful if you would keep to the deadlines set.

From the Registers

At rest - the sympathy of the Parish is extended to

the family and friends of

Joan Baird

Trevor Hartley Gilbert Joseph Baker Kenneth John Tubb

Daisy Amelia Brewer Valerie Joan Sadler

*** Stop Press ***

My grandson finally arrived on the morning of Sunday 30th August, after a very protracted labour and emergency caesarean and 13 days overdue. His name is Jasper Haydn Bruce. His mother Sally and baby are doing well. Father Andrew is a little tired and emotional! My apologies for the late arrival of this magazine - I've been a bit all over the place. Very relieved

now! Deborah Bruce

From the Vicarage

Dear Friends, Thank you for your continued support, prayers and hard work, especially during this period of increased challenges and uncertainties. It was really great to resume our 10.00am services at both the Parish Church and the Church Centre in July. It has been lovely to see so many of you at these services - and around the village. A very big thank you to all those who made this possible and continue to make it possible for us to meet weekly. Special thanks to Fiona and her team for organising the Choir Camp in such constraining circumstances and for the young people leading the Junior Choir Choral Evensong after the camp. Just a reminder: this service is on our YouTube channel. The new/current guidelines with regards singing in Church is that ‘small groups of professional and non-professional performers’ are ‘permitted’ to sing ‘in a physically distanced and safe way’. ‘Congregations are

not permitted to sing’. The Wardens, Fiona and I are looking at ways of making it possible for the choir to resume singing at our 10:00am services at the Parish Church during September. In ‘official speak’ we are doing a Risk Assessment to see what we need to do/put in place in order to make it possible. I know that I have mentioned before my love for reading the Bible – not because it always makes ‘comfortable reading’ but because I (we) can always gain insight of God’s nature and activity. Of course, there times when, after reading a narrative I sigh to myself ‘TMI’, meaning ‘too much information’. And there are times when after reading a passage I shout out ‘thank you God for all that detail’. A while ago I started reading a book entitled Suffering Well written by Paul Grimmond. This book prompted me to re-read

the book of Job and I also listened to it several times. I was quite struck by the first two chapters. Two things stood out for me. One of them was quite daring but also illuminating. The first one is that God actually behaves like a ‘proud parent’ and boasts or want to be able to boast about us his children. That’s what God did in the case of Job. The second, which I think is quite daring, is that having being so impudent to the

Almighty God, Satan had the effrontery to ’present’ himself to God and even challenge God’s perspective on things. Even as I recall this story, I am quite bowled over by God’s benevolent magnanimity towards Satan – in many ways at the expense of Job who had no clue of what his doting Creator was saying about him or of the length to which God was prepared to go to get Satan to realise that, unlike him, come what may, Job would stay loyal to his Creator. It is daringly amazing that Satan would come to God and astonishingly surprising that God would dialogue with him. Without belittling Job’s suffering that ensued, the dialogue between God and Satan should remind us of God’s open-mindedness - that he is willing to dialogue and even negotiate with someone we regard as ‘the enemy’. I suppose the question that flows from this is ‘how willing are we to dialogue and negotiate with those we consider to be our enemy?’

I wonder what would have been Job’s response to all that he encountered had he known that God had ‘set him up’. Yet, in his ignorance about how his suffering came about and his adamant refusal to accept his friends’ explanation of things, and even though he felt ‘terrified’ by God’s actions he uttered one statement that was quite revealing of his absolute dependence on the ‘God of faithfulness and without injustice’: ‘But he (God) knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I shall come forth as gold’ (Job 23:10). My prayer is that irrespective of what we are currently going through we will be able to continue to trust God in the knowledge that God is actively involved in our lives and interested in our wellbeing, and thereby embrace the outworking of God’s Sprit within us always trusting that God knows all we are going through and will act in our interest, to God’s praise and glory. Amen.

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From the Editorial Team

Gosh! Hasn't the weather changed! After that week of intense heat during August the temperature has taken quite a dive - although my garden is enjoying the downpours we have had in the last few days. Personally I'm typing this feeling a bit chilly and am hoping that reports of a return to warm weather during September prove accurate. I am also a bag of nerves as my first grandchild is proving very reluctant to put in an appearance. Perhaps I will be able to add a postscript before we go live.

There may not have been the Olympic Games to watch this summer, but some sport has returned and provided us with some thrills. Lewis Hamilton continues to dominate formula 1 even when driving on only 3 wheels, and Ronnie "The Rocket" O'Sullivan won the Snooker World Championship at The Crucible, with John Higgins obviously finding lack of audience distraction helpful as he managed a maximum 147 break in the second round. James Anderson helped England to win the Test Match against Pakistan while taking his test wicket tally to a magnificent 600, a feat only bettered by 3 other cricketers, Sri Lankan Muttiah Muralitharan, Australian Shane Warne and Indian Anil Kumble, who tweeted congratulations. I am waiting for the Tour de France to get underway this month, although it won't be the same without Chris Froome,

Geraint Thomas or Mark Cavendish to watch. They have all been excluded from their teams' squads in this strangest of seasons where the 3 Grand Tours are squashed into just 3 months and the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a Espania overlap, making it impossible for riders to compete in both races. Teams are therefore having to spread their resources thinly and Ineos have targeted their 3 previous Tour winners in one Grand Tour each.

The photograph on the cover is of a sculpture of The Last Supper by Peter Barnes currently at Chester Cathedral sent to me by a chum. It is made from fibre glass covered by a mosaic of over 50,000 computer keyboard keys, some used to create features and symbols and some forming a word search. It may not be quite the

right season but I couldn't resist. The intention is for the work to go on pilgrimage around several cathedrals, so hopefully it will come to one near us. Until then, here is some additional detail from the back.

I do hope you are managing to read the magazine on line via the church website (I am also putting a link from the church Facebook Page). If this is difficult, contact Ginette di Palma in the Church Office and she can either send you a PDF file or print a hard copy - although this will only be in black and white. We will take a decision about when to return to printed magazines from month to month. At the moment it is clear that members of the congregation have not all returned to the services, although the provision of hand sanitizer and distanced seating, wearing of masks and restriction of communion to the host alone means that it feels very safe. The services from the Church are being recorded and uploaded to watch via YouTube. We are very fortunate to have Jennifer and Nic Farman in our congregation, providing musical and technical knowhow to put together the various recordings into a single video of the services and we should be very grateful for the many, many hours that they have spent doing this. I would especially like to endorse Ronnie's reminder to watch the Junior Choir Evensong from 9th August if you have not done so already. This is much more than just an Evensong as it includes the choristers talking about what their experience of lockdown has been like and also shows them enjoying the Choir Camp this August.

If you have anything to contribute to the magazine, please don't hold back. Perhaps you have a great recipe to share or have been reading a good book. How have you coped with the extra time at home? What will you try to continue even when all restrictions are lifted? Articles don't have to be long. Please send them to

magazine@stpaulsrusthall.org.uk by 13th September for inclusion in the October magazine.

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Churchwardens' Notes

Dear Fellow Parishioners

We would both like to apologise profusely for missing one of our warden’s notes deadline.

This is a strange time for all and we hope that you will bear with us when improvised systems for services and movement of parishioners around our various buildings go a little awry.

We expect most of you will know that we can safely seat 76 people (including choir stalls) in our Parish church and between 25-30 seats in our Church Centre. The figures may vary depending

on the number and size of family units attending.

At the time of writing this (12th August) our congregations are within these limits.

In the not too distant future, we shall be looking forward to our Harvest festival and Remembrance Day services. This year we have decided that Harvest festival will be celebrated in both Parish and Church Centre, thus giving us a working figure of 110 people split between the two buildings. Recent attendance in the past has been in excess of 300 people.

Clearly this is a daunting challenge which we have yet to resolve. At the moment we are thinking in terms of having numbered sign up forms in both churches to be in place by Mid-September.

Due to our current situation the Harvest Festival will not include uniformed parades.

If when reading this could you please help us by advising as many people you can think of about the lack of seating. If you can think of better alternatives to those we have set down could you please advise us.

May would like to say that she had a very enjoyable week helping at the Choir camp. It was good to see the children back again, and to hear

them singing for Choral Evensong. They did really well.

Love and Peace

May and Clive

A Musical Note

It was wonderful that Ronnie, May and Clive agreed that choir camp could go ahead this year. Of course it was a very different choir camp experience but we had a great time and it was so lovely to have the children back at church. Usually the highlights of choir camp, for the children at least, are the trips to the beach, to London, generally anywhere out of Rusthall and of course the sleepover in the church, but this year we were not able to do any of these things. Instead we based ourselves at the church and only did activities that were within walking distance.

The focus of the week was to learn and then to record a service of choral evensong which hopefully you have now seen on our YouTube channel. For most of these children the Monday of choir camp was the first time that they had sung at all since March, with almost all of them not feeling confident enough to join in with the weekly recordings of hymn and anthem for inclusion in the Sunday services, so it was always going to be a challenge to get them back singing in a very short space of time. Each child had a designated pew in the church in which they dropped off their belongings on that Monday morning and then sat in awkward silence whilst we waited for everyone to arrive. It was actually slightly eerie and upsetting to see this group of children and young people, who are

usually impossible to keep quiet, not communicating with each other and looking uncomfortable in the church. Our rehearsing was done outside in the graveyard under gazebos or round by the vestry door where we had a tiny keyboard outside for Alex to play and we spaced the children out so that they were not too close to each other. Older children and adult helpers all wore face shields during rehearsals and recordings. I had (as always) set a challenging programme of music for the week, however to ease them in I thought we would start on Monday morning with a nice unison and very well-known hymn, Tell out

my soul. Alex gave us a play over on his keyboard and I brought the children in, except that they were not singing, they were mumbling, mouths barely opening and glancing around at each other, embarrassment written all over their faces. The first forty-five minutes were very tricky and I must have looked worried when we stopped for a break. After break I split the children into four smaller groups so that they could discuss the other part of the service, the lockdown segments. I wanted each child to be able to express their personality within the service and so gave them complete freedom to do anything they wanted in that segment. One group re-wrote the words to The Bare Necessities so that it was all about COVID and the others decided they would focus on what they as individuals had been doing in the months that they had spent apart. But it did work as a strategy because they all started talking to each other, catching up and generally looked much more relaxed. We sang a bit more, had lunch and then went over to the cricket pitch for a game of “Crounders” - choir rounders. This game changes every year depending on the theme of choir camp but usually involves some sort of “death zone” which this year was walking the plank whilst trying to score a rounder and not be hit by cannon balls flying towards you.

On Tuesday, after a bit more rehearsing and getting our first few service items recorded, we

spent the afternoon doing an excellent Rusthall observation quiz which Rosie had prepared. We had to find the answers which were all to do with the village and we covered a lot of ground whilst looking. It was really quite competitive and the teams finished within seconds of each other with very close scores. It was a lot of fun and my thanks to Rosie for putting it together for us. On Wednesday following some very intensive rehearsing as we were losing a couple of the boys at the end of Wednesday and therefore needed to get everything in which they were singing recorded that day, we spent a brilliant afternoon in the

woods racing paper boats. Unfortunately there was not really any wind and so the boats struggled unaided to get from the start with Jennifer in the water to the end with Caroline in the water. Rosie with a long stick was trying to create waves but eventually the boys decided to help out?? And make sure that the boats reached the finish line. On Thursday it was very hot but after a bit of rehearsing we decided to make a music video for Didn’t our Lord deliver Daniel with excellent choreography by Jennifer. It was brilliant fun and the end result is very entertaining. In the afternoon we played continuous cricket but with the added complication (due to the heat) of adults soaking the children with water guns as they tried to amass their runs!

Friday was even hotter and first of all we had to finish the recordings and make sure that everything for the service was completed. We then had a barbecue for lunch but due to COVID restrictions the children had to bring and cook their own food, supervised by Ginette and Lizzie. After lunch we played capture Mr Kissy Fluffy Head Person (our choir mascot) in the graveyard whilst again attacking the children with water guns (just to cool them down of course) and Stella was definitely the winner, managing to capture him twice! We then did some water gun duelling which meant that everyone was thoroughly soaked before

finishing choir camp with a game of French Cricket. Although it was a very different choir camp to normal it was a super week and we had such a great time. My thanks to all of the adults who came to help out and made it possible for the week to happen: Alex, Megan, Ginette, Jennifer, Nic, May, Rosie, Lizzie, Caroline, Tony and Rose and to Alex Robson for his superb accompanying all week. Thank you also to the parents for sending the children and abiding by all of the safety regulations that were in place. Let’s hope that we can have a more normal choir camp next year and

if you haven’t seen the video yet then please watch, the children really are amazing. Sadly we heard this week that Michael Barlow, a member of the Oriana Singers who wrote the Preces and Responses that we sang at choir camp has died. He also arranged these responses for SATB voices so as a tribute to him we will definitely sing his responses when we are able to get back and have choral evensong again. Some of our choir members have been affected by the decision not to hold GCSE and A level examinations this year and the subsequent kerfuffle over award of grades, which has made this difficult time even more complicated for them. Grades awarded by teachers were first adjusted by an algorithm and then, when this was found to be faulty, returned to teacher assessments. This has meant that some university places thought lost may now be available again. However, at the moment we must give our congratulations to Alex Aitken who is going to study music at Cardiff University and to Megan Biggerstaff who is going to the University of York to study History and Philosophy. We will miss them both very much but hope to see them back in the holidays. We also say thank you to our Year 8’s, Charlie, Maddie and Romola who will be moving from the junior choir into the adult choir. Charlie and Romola are both going to King’s Canterbury where they will be boarding so we will hope to see them back singing with us in the school holidays. Romola has been an outstanding Head Chorister this year although her time in charge was cut rather short by COVID she really did lead brilliantly well by example and the other children in the choir adore her. Her singing and general musicianship is outstanding and she is going to King's as a music scholar and deservedly so.

Fiona Johnson

Saturday 12th September 2020

This annual event run by Friends of Kent Churches

(www.friendsofkentchurches.co.uk) will take place this year on Saturday 12th

September.

For those of you who have not come across it before, the idea is to get sponsorship to

visit as many churches in Kent as possible, either by walking or cycling, between

10am and 6pm. The money raised goes towards paying for repairs and renovations of

churches in Kent. Sponsorship money is split equally between the Diocese (to go

towards larger projects) and St Pauls, Rusthall.

We will also need volunteers to sit for an hour at a time at both Church and Church

Centre recording the walkers and cyclists as they come through and providing simple

refreshments. There is a sign up board at the back of the Church and at the Church

Centre for those who are able to help with this - there are still many blank slots.

There will be a group cycling around the Romney Marsh churches where it is very flat

and the roads are less busy. We will be meeting at Appledore village hall car park at

9.45 am. If you would like to join us you would be very welcome. There is a good

route available for anyone who prefers to stay more local and has not tried the event

before.

If you would like to volunteer as a walker or cyclist or to sit in church please contact

Jane Goldsworthy on 07846 266085 or jane_goldsworthy@yahoo.co.uk

Lockdown

and the Church Of England

I would wish to take this opportunity to thank all those who have been so welcoming to me – both from the time I took my first service in Rusthall in early May last year, and since Ronnie`s warm welcome on the Feast of the Conversion of St Paul in January of this year. I remain saddened that my cancer diagnosis may, in time, reduce what I am able to do, but please be assured I try to keep at the forefront of my mind one of many of my Grand Mother`s sayings “being diligent at work never

killed anyone”!

Someone asked me during the period of “lockdown” – what do you think Vicar`s are doing at this time? I tried to explain that from my observations, most clergy were working harder than ever to really try to ensure they fulfilled the House of Bishops` guidelines that people did not get “left behind”, or “left out”. However, in the real world, I equally felt sure that when (or if) the Covid 19 pandemic ever draws to a close, there may probably not be a single Parish in the land where someone has not been lost to their church, whatever the provisions made. And this led my

mind back to a clergy meeting soon after the fiftieth anniversary of my ordination, when the question asked of me was:- “what is the main difference between the life of a Priest fifty years ago, compared with now?”. My answer tried to be honest in saying that fifty years ago I believe we lived in a very much kinder society, and this was reflected by many people being more kind, more caring and more tolerant of the clergy (who have failings alongside everyone) than is sometimes the case today.

Has (hopefully) “lockdown” managed to make moves towards our becoming a kinder society, and are those who take on positions of lay leadership in the church, kinder to their Vicar? That is perhaps something for us all to reflect on, with hopefully a positive response.

However, my efforts of trying to do some diligent work down the years, of supporting clergy in difficulties, but also most memorably, a victim of clergy abuse, led to two rewards. I was overjoyed that in the last year I have been invited to play a part in two major reports being produced for the Church of England. The first resulted from

Archbishop Justin`s decision that the Clergy Discipline Measure was - to use his words, “unfit for purpose”- due to many cases under the Measure bringing little that was positive for either the errant Priest or the complainant. And to rub salt in a difficult wound, the pastoral care of both

on many occasions was not acceptable (giving the BBC the opportunity to produce the program “Exposed – the Church of England`s darkest

secret” towards the end of last year).

It was decided that the Sheldon Community in Devon, and Aston University in Birmingham, would be independent bodies well able to prepare proposals to amend or replace the Clergy Discipline Measure. Many of those of us who were interviewed to speak of our experiences began from a position of great doubt that the House of Bishops would ever accept the concept of replacement – but they have. Secondly, and more locally, Julia Burton Jones (Bishop Simon`s wife) in her capacity of being the lead person in the

Dioceses of Canterbury and Rochester on dementia issues, and responsible for the sterling work of the Anna Chaplaincy movement, has produced a report on caring for clergy in early stage dementia. After the answering of many questions “on-line” I was one of some forty clergy in the two Dioceses who was interviewed (and as Julia timed the interviews, I realise mine was the longest). But the reward for me was that for the many hours work we put in, many of us really felt we were listened to, and real note was made of our views. Having done sixteen years as an Industrial Chaplain, I was alongside people who were

working for really caring companies, but also those who treated their staff disgracefully. I really struggled with my conscience, but finally succeeded in making the point that from my experience, the Church of England has a long way to go, and much hard work to accomplish, to move itself from where it has been in years past, to come anywhere near entering into the true spirit of the “Investors in People” motto – our staff are our most important asset.

It has been a great to take a really active part in these two important developments in leading the

Church of England forward. It remains my hope and my prayer that serving parochial clergy will begin to feel what they are about is of true value, and that many will treat them as Jesus treated the ordinary people with whom he rubbed shoulders throughout his ministry. And if anyone cared to email me on michaelcadent@tiscali.co.uk, I could happily forward the latest reports as I have received them.

Every blessing,

Michael Dent

[Michael has had a further setback in his health since writing this, so please hold him, and his wife Christine, in your prayers. Ed]

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Income from magazine sales is important to us at St Paul’s. If everyone paid the £1 cover charge

we would raise over £1500 a year, which would not only cover the cost

of producing the magazine but also contribute to other costs such as

leasing the photocopier. If you often find yourself fumbling

for the right change, perhaps you might like to pay in advance for a

year’s “subscription”, 10 issues for

the sum of £10, (you might even feel

tempted to be more generous!) Your contributions are much appreciated.

Please make cheques payable to

St Paul’s Church, Rusthall and send them to the Parish Office

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School Report

As schools prepare at long last for everyone to return to school in September, all teachers and Headteachers must be applauded and thanked for the amazing, committed and successful way in which they have approached and tackled the unprecedented challenge of on-line teaching and learning and for the resilient, creative and open minded initiatives they found to cope with the forever changing recommendations.

We are so lucky to have our village school, Rusthall St Paul's, at the heart of our community. Ronnie, quite by chance, whilst happening to be in area where achievement, motivation and encouragement given by parents is sparse, came across a 7year old singing the praises of Miss Powell in helping him/her to do better. 'To hear and to share this conversation and to listen to the child rave about learning,' says Ronnie, 'was particularly moving and encouraging, indeed inspirational.'

As Miss Powell and her wonderfully committed team prepare to welcome the children back to school, for many after a long break of six months and to start the new Reception Infant children with a positive and happy environment to their educational journey, we send them all, staff, parents and particularly children, our very best wishes. There will, we know, be much joy and excitement as the school community comes together again and we look forward to learning about and sharing all their upcoming adventures and successes.

Angela Culley

Foundation Governor

Help keep the school Covid-Secure

The school has not yet received any of the additional funding promised to help keep the school "Covid-Secure". If you are able to help with a gift of hand sanitizer or anti-bacterial cleaner, or a donation to the school so that they can purchase these supplies, the school would be very grateful. Cheques should be made payable to Rusthall St Paul's School.

Many thanks.

I remember asking my teachers when I would

ever need the maths they were teaching me.

Not a single one of them ever said that I would

need it to teach to my son during a pandemic!

An upside-down world

If we look back on our early lives, I expect we’d all have a similar view. That Christianity is about being good so we can go to heaven when we die. It’s a good hope, but it’s not the only one. And it isn’t even the main hope.

Jim Wallis, in his book “On God’s Side”, reminds us that if we focus on heavenly things alone, we become no earthly good! Jim’s focus is Matthew’s gospel chapters 5, 6 and 7: the so-called “Sermon on the Mount”. Here, Jesus is talking about the Kingdom of God - as opposed to the Kingdom of Caesar. (We can substitute for Rome in Jesus’ time with any tyrannical rule today.)

As Richard Rohr puts it boldly, our lives are not about ourselves! We are here on this earth for the sake of others. One way in which we have

powerfully demonstrated this lately, is in the way we are responding to the restrictions of the COVID 19 virus. We care first for those in need.

Jesus put it this way, those who follow Jesus will become the “Salt of the Earth” and “the light of the world”. Jesus came not to abolish the law and the prophets who came before him, but to “Fulfil” them. Over and over, we hear Jesus say to his hearers, “You have heard it said……but I say unto you……”. Jesus took everything that he had been taught and turned it upside own, so that

"Following “ meant not only believing something but doing something about it, so that a Jesus focussed life becomes second nature. Jesus put his money where his mouth was! Jim Wallis gives a number of examples of this, but here is one. Jesus’ instructions about retaliation call for the revolutionary tactics of non-violent resistance. Indeed, Jesus said. “Love your enemies’.

Just when we are getting bit fired up about following Jesus, Matthew chapter 6 has a lot to say about Prayer (and Giving) that they should be done quietly. There are also verses on "not

worrying” about what you wear, eat and drink. We can transfer that message into our own situation by ignoring the demands of modern advertising. But perhaps the hardest part of Jesus’ sermon is in Chapter 6 verse 24. “You cannot serve God and Mammon (Wealth)”

Our whole society is based on a growth economy. So how do we follow Jesus in this area? Or do we quietly ignore it and follow a more agreeable verse! Jesus is not saying, don’t earn money, he is saying use it for God’s sake. This is why we at St Paul's

take part in Stewardship, support Traidcraft, the Fair Trade Cafe, Christian Aid, USPG and various individual charities. I know some people who work how much of their income is needed for food, heating and living expenses. Then they work out 10 pr cent of what’s left and give that.

So my fellow Christians, how are we going to follow Jesus? How will we respond to Jesus’ call to turn the world of Caesar "upside-down”. Perhaps some of you could write for this magazine about what you are doing and tell us - but do it quietly!

Tony Rutherford

Poems for September

The presence of children in our lives, whether our own or other people’s, may evoke memories from the past as well as a sense of hope and new life. This can be especially strongly felt in September, the start of the academic year. These poems mark the passage of time, which seems to speed up when measured out in school terms!

Susan Barber

Outgrown

It is both sad and a relief to fold so carefully

her outgrown clothes and line up the little worn shoes of childhood, so prudent, scuffed and particular. It is both happy and horrible to send them galloping back tappity-tap along the mist chill path into the past. It is both a freedom and a prison, to be outgrown by her as she towers over me as thin as a sequin in her doc martens and her pretty skirt because just as I work out how to be a mother she stops being a child. Penelope Shuttle

A Short Piece of Choral Music

It’s an evening in late March and in the kitchen I’m listening to a short piece of choral music, when my son comes in to fetch himself a bowl of breakfast cereal which, he tells me, helps with his revision. And another thing, he goes on, I shouldn’t worry about him because he’s going to be fine: exams, work, life, everything, is going

to be fine. That’s a relief, I say to myself, thanks, now I can listen to this music, which turns out to be just some fancy noise, nothing compared with a boy’s cheerfulness. Jonathan Davidson

Huge Blue (For Jack)

You were three when we moved north, near the sea. That first time you took one look, twisted off your clothes till, bare as the day you were born, you made off: I had to sprint, scoop you up just as you threw the whole of you into its huge blue – or you might be swimming still, half way to Murmansk, that port you always dreamed of seeing.

I once flew, about your age: strong arms held me hard, hauled me down so my salted eyelashes stuck together, sucked blue dark: I didn’t know how to remember until you opened your arms that day, sure that the world would hold you and it did: grown now, and half a world away, I hope your huge blue is beautiful with stars as you leap, eyes wide open, no ghost of me on your back. Pippa Little

Short Story

Soupe à l’oignon

Annie’s got Elizabeth David Classics on the work

surface, a mug holding the pages open because it wants to keep closing and this recipe is near the back of the book. .

For 4 people, slice 6 onions very thinly; on this depends the success of your soup!

She’s thinking as she chops, the knife rhythmically rolling back and forth on the board just as she was taught in Lyon all those years ago. She tucks a strand of not so grey hair back behind her ear, and

mops at the tears with a clean tea towel. With the side of her hand she pushes the letter out of the way.

Her thoughts don’t take her too far, just a couple of miles to where her mother lies in her bed in the Hospice. This is the last stage of an uneventful eighty-six years for Jean, spent caring for her two children and the husband who died three years ago. She knows her mother is not fighting, she just wants to get it over with. Annie suspects that the old lady has stopped eating to hasten things along but she isn’t there all the time, so she can’t be sure.

She throws the diced vegetable into the hot oil, releasing into her kitchen the wonderful, essential smell of cooking onions. Before she started she opened the balcony doors and her bedroom window. A sharp spring breeze whisks some of the aromas away and outside to tease the passers-by.

In your casserole melt two tablespoons of beef dripping; cook the onions, stirring fairly often so that they turn gently brown without getting crisp, and finally form an almost amalgamated mass …

Who uses beef dripping today? She’s using olive oil instead. Good olive oil, but not extra virgin - that shouldn’t be used for cooking, or so she was told most emphatically by Rafaello, whose olive groves produce a peppery green unction to be drizzled in benediction over artichokes and lettuces and big red tomatoes, and whose dazzling smile she has no difficulty in picturing. And no-one she knows has a stockpot on the go in their kitchen these days, but she has made a vegetable stock from scratch as a concession to doing things properly.

Her mother always used this book, but Annie sometimes finds it frustrating. Ingredients are often given in imprecise amounts and don’t take into account the restrictions of a limited income. But she perseveres with it, loving the way it can conjure up memories of interminable lunches on

sun-drenched terraces, overhung with vines and mimosa. Or suppers in tiny candlelit city restaurants with too many tables squeezed into the

space and where the patron and the chef are one

and the same. She smiles now, thinking of her favourite place on the Île St Louis in Paris, where the cast iron steps down to the loo are circular and vertiginous, and not to be attempted after the third glass of wine (when the descent might be most needed).

Mostly when she’s in Paris she‘s working, in Geneva and Hamburg and New York and so many other places, often shut into a little soundproofed booth, headphones clamped to her head, translating the words of politicians, experts,

journalists, people who want to be heard. She is listened to, not heard. She is merely an impersonal mouthpiece, a disembodied conduit. They’ll do away with translators eventually, she thinks, when they’ve got the software sorted so that it copes with nuance and colloquialisms. So that it doesn’t start armed conflict with an unintended phrase or sentence.

… season with salt and pepper, and pour over heated stock, adding water if there is not quite enough.

She does like to do things properly even though it takes time and effort. Her mother was the same,

insisting that Annie learn to do the basics in the kitchen when she was old enough to hold a saucepan and to understand what was hot and what wasn’t and why that was important. There is still a little scar on her left arm, evidence of a very hot pan too close to the edge.

Annie always visits Jean when she gets home from a long stint at conferences and other events. There are usually tales to tell, of Annie’s search for a laundrette in strange cities as she moves from one job to the next without going home, or of eating solitary meals in cheap cafes. She’s a great people

watcher and holds the pictures of those she’s seen in her head. Like photograph albums, the pictures seem to stay with her forever. It is curious, therefore, that she never seems to be able to see her mother in her mind when she‘s away from home.

In earlier days, Jean would sit and listen to each tale, and then urge her daughter to take another spoonful of poule au pot, or a slice of summer

pudding. Jean was grateful to have someone to cook for. Her daughter understands that it’s such a bore, cooking for one.

‘Sleep on it,’ was often Jean’s advice when Annie shared some problem that was worrying at her, ‘it’ll be clearer in the morning.’ Annie’s not sure it works, but she will try it again. It is going to be a big decision, perhaps the biggest she’s ever made.

Could she do it? Can she do it. Yes, of course she could/can, but will she?

Cook for another 10 or 15 minutes; always supposing there is no oven or grill with which to gratiner the soup, …..

The phone is ringing. She’s been waiting for the call, knowing it’s going to happen eventually. She puts a lid on the saucepan and turns off the gas.

‘Hello,’ she says.

‘Is that Annie Robson?’ an unfamiliar voice asks.

‘Yes.’

‘This is..’ Annie takes a deep breath. Is this woman going to say what she is expecting to hear? What is unavoidable now? How will she feel? She knows how she felt when her father died. It was three years ago and she is still raw, abandoned, bereft. Things are different with her mother, though, as it often is between mothers and daughters. But she doesn’t see anything of her brother these days, so her mother is really all that is left of her family.

‘…. Natwest. We’re calling to tell you that we think someone may have cloned your credit card. Can we just ask you a few questions?’

Annie lets out the breath she didn’t know she was holding in.

‘Yes, of course.’ She feels for the chair behind her and sits down heavily. The woman must have sensed something, and she asks whether Annie is all right before she continues with her litany of enquiry.

‘Do you have your card with you or could someone else have used it?

Annie pulls her purse out of her bag.

‘Yes, I have it here.’

‘Thank you,’ the woman goes on,’ I’d like to go through some security questions with you. If you have any concerns about this call, you can find our Security Department’s contact details on the Natwest website and you should call them direct.’

When Annie puts the phone down, she sits there for a while. She’s not going to worry about the card, the bank will look after the problem. She cannot worry about her mother, it will all happen when it happens. She pulls the letter from the work surface onto the table and looks at it once more. It has taken a while to get her because it has the wrong postcode on it, and there’s another

Courtney Road not very far away. She runs her thumb over the colourful Italian stamps. ‘Dearest Annie,’ it starts, ‘will you …’ and then she

remembers the soup.

Prepare a thick slice of toast for each person, lightly buttered and spread with grated cheese

She clears the debris off the table and sets her place. She knows she has made far too much soup for one person, but it will keep and she can heat it up for tomorrow’s lunch. She pops the slice of bread into the toaster. She finds a napkin, salt and

pepper. She looks at the ‘phone, and wonders if it will ring again today. Often there are no calls at all. Nobody expects her to be home, her friends always ring the mobile. She goes through some days without speaking to anyone, she for whom words are her livelihood. Not that she is without occupation. She is working as a translator with a publisher for the time being, but the work comes in and goes out on computer, not via a real person. It means that she doesn’t have to travel, that she can be here for her mother.

Place each one in a soup plate and ladle the onion soup over it.

Her slice of toast is done so she butters it and covers it in cheese. Pouring the hot soup over the top causes the bread to rise to the surface and some of the cheese to float as it melts. The smell is wonderful, comforting and rich. They put wine or brandy in it in some places, but this version doesn’t require either, and she has made up her mind to do it properly, just as she has made up her mind about the decision that has been hanging over her for so long. She is sitting down at the table just as the doorbell rings.

Annie opens the door and sees a man standing there, his face obscured by a huge bouquet of flowers.

‘Ciao, cara,’ Rafaello says. ‘I’ve spent so long waiting for you and your decision that I decided to

come and wait with you.’

Joanna Mace

July 2020

R. E. This popped up on my friend's Facebook page. Goodness knows if it's genuine but it made me chuckle so I thought I would share it. Deborah

Pay special attention to the wording and spelling. Children were asked questions about the old and new testaments. The following 25 statements about the bible were written by children. They have not been retouched or corrected. Incorrect spelling has been left in. 1. In the first book of the bible, Guinness. god got tired of creating the world so he took the sabbath

off. 2. Adam and eve were created from an apple tree. Noah's wife was Joan of ark. Noah built and ark and the animals came on in pears. 3. Lots wife was a pillar of salt during the day, but a ball of fire during the night. 4. The jews were a proud people and throughout history they had trouble with unsympathetic genitals.

5. Sampson was a strongman who let himself be led astray by a Jezebel like Delilah. 6. Samson slayed the philistines with the axe of the apostles. 7. Moses led the jews to the red sea where they made unleavened bread, which is bread without any ingredients. 8. The egyptians were all drowned in the dessert. Afterwards, Moses went up to mount cyanide to get the ten commandments. 9. The first commandment was when Eve told Adam to eat the apple. 10. The seventh commandment is thou shalt not admit adultery. 11. Moses died before he ever reached canada then Joshua led the hebrews in the battle of geritol. 12. The greatest miricle in the bible is when Joshua told his son to stand still and he obeyed him.

13. David was a hebrew king who was skilled at playing the liar. He fought the Finkelsteins, a race of people who lived in biblical times.

14. Solomon, one of Davids sons, had 300 wives and 700 porcupines.

15. When Mary heard she was the mother of Jesus, she sang the magna carta. 16. When the three wise guys from the east side arrived they found Jesus in the manager. 17. Jesus was born because Mary had an immaculate contraption. 18. St. John the blacksmith dumped water on his head.

19. Jesus enunciated the golden rule, which says to do unto others before they do one to you. He also explained a man doth not live by sweat alone. 20. It was a miricle when Jesus rose from the dead and managed to get the tombstone off the entrance. 21. The people who followed the lord were called the 12 decibels. 22. The epistels were the wives of the apostles.

23. One of the oppossums was St. Matthew who was also a taximan. 24. St. Paul cavorted to christianity, he preached holy acrimony, which is another name for marraige. 25. Christians have only one spouse. This is called monotony.

Behind the Scenes there were human

beings - Part 4

There were two main crops of corn grown in Palestine in Biblical Times - wheat and barley. The seeds for both crops were sown at the same time of the year – in November or December – but the barley ripened earlier than the wheat- in March or April. It was cheaper to grow and cheaper to buy. The best bread was baked from wheat flour, but the poorer people had to rely on barley, or barley mixed with wheat for grinding into to flour. Barley was also used as cattle food.

Wheat (L) and Barley (R) on a bed of wheat grain

Sowing seed was a skilful task. A man carrying a basket of seed in one hand, resting it on his hip would walk up and down the field scattering the seed as evenly as possible and as carefully as he

could. After being harvested the ears of corn were spread on the threshing floor, which was a circle of hard, beaten earth. A ‘threshing-sledge’, which was a heavy spiked log or platform, was dragged over the threshing-floor by oxen, urged on by the driver. This weight pulled over the ears of corn, separated the grain from the husks.

Sometimes a flail was used to beat out the grains of corn, but the process took a long time and was only useful if a small quantity needed threshing. A flail was made from two sticks joined together. When all the corn had been threshed the next job

was to extract the grain from the chaff and straw. This process was called winnowing, and was best done on a day when a light breeze was blowing. Using a flat wooden fork rather like a garden fork, but called a fan, the mixture was tossed in the air. The wind blew away the chaff, straw and dust, allowing the heavy grain to fall in a heap on the ground.

The grain was sieved to remove any small pieces of earth and chaff which remained. The clean grain was then tipped out onto a cloth. Finally it was placed in large storage jars. The women baked bread every day because it did not keep long. The grain when it was needed, was taken from the storage jars. The grinding stone, made from two flat stones, one on top of the other, was put on a large clean cloth. The top stone had a hole in the centre which fitted over a peg in the

bottom stone. On the outside edge of the top stone was a wooden handle, by which the stone was turned. A handful of corn was placed in the

hole and the stone was turned round and round. The grain was crushed between the stones and fell on the cloth as flour. This was hard work and often two women, or a mother and her daughter turned the handle together.

The flour was placed in a bowl and mixed with salt and water to a dough. Added to this was a small piece of dough made from the day before and kept specially. This was know as leaven, and it helped the new dough to rise. Placed in a warm spot in the sun the dough slowly began to grow in size. When large enough it was moulded into flat,

round loaves and placed on stones by the fire, or on an earthenware plate placed upside down over the fire. Unleavened bread was quickly-made bread not using yeast or a rising agent.

Fig trees were common in Palestine. They grew to a great age. They could live well in a hot dry climate, and did not mind dry stony soil. The leaves were thick and spread widely and people used to shelter from the midday sun under the trees. The figs, full of tiny seeds, ripened early in the year, having been on the tree for most of the winter. They were eaten fresh, or dried and used in making cakes. They were also believed to have a medicinal value in Bible times.

All over Palestine vast crops of grapes were grown. As early as June the first green grapes were picked

and eaten raw, but the main harvest was in August or September. Most vineyards belonged to wealthy men who hired labourers to work In them. Besides being eaten raw or made into wine, a lot of grapes were spread out on mats on the roof tops to dry in the sun and become raisins. Most of the grapes were grown to make wine which was a natural everyday day drink since water could be scare and was not always completely pure.

At harvest time the grapes were poured into stone troughs with a hole at one end. The labourers trod the grapes with their bare feet until all the juice trickled through the hole into a smaller trough. It was then transferred to huge jars and left to ferment until it was ready for drinking, usually around 40 days.

Daphne Pilcher

Activity Pages

Link the item to the nationality In each case the nationality goes in front of the item and no nationality is repeated. 1. Stew 2. Rarebit 3. Delight 4. Oven 5. Corn 6. Carpet 7. Lantern 8. Bean 9. Broth 10. Leather 11. Measles 12. Cat 13. Handwriting 14. Fire 15. ‘Man of War’ Jellyfish 16. Roll 17. Heel 18. Main 19. Channel 20. Nights English Portuguese Scotch Indian Welsh Persian Siamese Arabian Irish Turkish French Swiss Spanish Moroccan Cuban Dutch Greek Chinese German Italian

How well do you know Nursery Rhymes? You have been given the initial letter of each word of the first line - What is the Rhyme? 1. L J H S I A C 2. J A J W U T H 3. O K C W A M O S 4. H D D T C A T F 5. L M M S O A T 6. O M H W T T C 7. L B P H L H S 8. H D S O A W

9. D D B P I T W 10. M M Q C H D Y G G

11. T T T P S S A P A A H R 12. H D D T M R U T C 13. L P F S A T C 14. P P T K O 15. M H A L L 16. J S C E N F 17. H A B B O T T T 18. O A L S T B O S C

19. B B B S H Y A W 20. R A C H T B C

Find the Proverbs in the Book of Proverbs. The Good News version of the Bible has been used. You are given the chapter – all you need to do is to find the verse 1. Ch 6 Lazy people should a lesson from the way ants live 2. Ch 22 Sensible people will see trouble coming and avoid it 3. Ch 13 Intelligence wins respect 4. Ch 10 Sensible people accept good advice

5. Ch 1 Stupid people are destroyed by their own lack of concern 6. Ch 20 If you spend your time sleeping, you will be poor 7. Ch 24 Homes are built on the foundation of wisdom and understanding 8. Ch 12 The righteous man is a guide to his friend 9. Ch 18 No one is respected unless he is humble 10. Ch 28 Better be poor and honest than rich and dishonest

Word Search on the Stars and Planets The words are written forward, back, diagonally and vertically. At the end you should be left with 14 unused letters. These will make up two words which is sometimes used to describe something seen in the sky in certain parts of Britain.

ARIES CANISMAJOR CASSIOPEIA COMET EARTH GALAXY JUPITER LEO LYRA MARS MERCURY MILKYWAY MOON NEPTUNE ORION PEGASUS PLEIADES PLOUGH PLUTO POLESTAR SATURN SUN TAURUS URANUS VENUS

V N R O J A M S I N A C

E U R A N U S O R S T H

N P R E T I P U J R R E

U E N P O L E S T A R L

S G P N U A H S E M Y Y

E A U T R Y T U M L X A

D S O I U H R R O Y A W

A U E I G N A U C R L Y

I S G U H O E A C A A K

E N O O M I T T S R G L

L L E O N R U T A S E I

P A I E P O I S S A C M

The stars and planets have played an important part in our world throughout history. Astronomy is the oldest of the Natural Sciences and Astronomy and Religion have always been closely linked. Even today the date of Easter Sunday is fixed for the Sunday following the Paschal full moon. The paschal full moon is the ecclesiastical full moon date which falls on or after 21st March. Early in the story of creation we are told that God made the sun, moon and stars and throughout the years they have been used as a reliable source of navigation. We all need to be both led and be able to lead others in the right direction. In the Bible we are told of various people who lead others or who were led themselves. Can you work out who they were from the clues? 1. Who lead the Children of Israel out of Egypt __ __ S __ __

2. Jesus led who up into a high mountain __ __ __ __ R, __ A __ __ __, __ __ H __ 3. He led his people in a fight against the Philistines by killing Goliath __ __ __ I __ 4. Who were led by a star to the baby Jesus __ __ __ __ M __ __ 5. Who lead animals and people into the Ark __ O __ __ 6. Who had to be led into Damascus because a vision had left him temporarily blind P __ __ __ 7. Who led the Children of Israel into the Promised Lane __ __ __ H __ __ 8. Whom did Naomi lead back with her to her homeland __ U __ __ 9. He became a leader in Egypt despite being sold to traders by his jealous brother __ __ __ __ P __ 10. Who led his whole family to be baptised by Paul and Silas after an earthquake J __ __ __ __ __ If you found the Stars and Planets Word search too easy have a go with this one on Buildings. In the word search there are 25 different buildings mentioned - they may be buildings for people, for things or for animals. You will need to think of the past as well as the present and you will need to think both

British and further afield. The words have been written downwards, upwards, backwards, forwards and diagonally. All the letters have been used once and in some cases more than once.

T N A R U A T S E R

E H R B Y R E R N C

M E E E B A R N O A

P R G A V E I O I F

L O A R T A Y S T E

E N T F O R T I A G

S A T U H F E R T A

U M O T A L F P S R

O E C A L A P E N A

H O T E L T S A C G

Patience is something that a lot of us are not very good at and it is something which we perhaps need a lot of at the present time. A young man presented himself to the local expert on gems and said he wanted to become a gemologist. The expert brushed him off because he feared that the youth would not have the

patience to learn. The young man pleaded for a chance. Finally the expert consented and told the youth – Be here tomorrow. The next morning the expert put a jade stone in the boy’s hand and told him to hold it The expert then went about his work, cutting, weighing and setting gems. The boy sat quietly and waited. The following morning the expert again placed the jade stone in the youth’s hand and told him to hold it. On the third, fourth and fifth day the expert repeated the exercise and the instructions. On the sixth day the youth held the stone but could no longer stand the silence. Master, he asked, when am I going to learn something? You’ll learn, the expert replied and went about his business. Several more days went by and the youth’s frustration mounted. One morning as the expert approached and

beckoned for him to hold out his hand, he was about to blurt out that he could go on no longer. But as the master placed the stone in the youth’s hand, the young man exclaimed without looking at his hand – This is not the same jade stone. You have begun to learn, said the master. Patience takes time, but if we are prepared to take the time we will be rewarded. ANSWERS:- Linking the Nationality to the item

1 Irish Stew 2 Welsh Rarebit 3. Turkish Delight 4. Dutch Oven 5. Indian Corn 6. Persian Carpet 7. Chinese Lantern 8. French Bean 9. Scotch Broth 10. Moroccan Leather 11. German Measles 12. Siamese Cat 13. Italian Handwriting 14. Greek Fire 15. Portuguese ‘Man of War, Jellyfish

16. Swiss Roll 17. Cuban Heel 18. Spanish Main 19 English Channel 20. Arabian Nights Nursery Rhymes

1. Little Jack Horner sat in a corner 2. Jack and Jill went up the hill 3. Old King Cole was a merry old soul 4. Hey diddle diddle the cat and the fiddle 5. Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet. 6. Old Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard 7. Little Bo-Peep has lost her sheep 8. Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. 9. Ding dong bell pussy’s in the well 10. Mary, Mary quite contrary how does your

garden grow.

11. Tom, Tom, the piper’s son stole a pig and away he ran. 12. Hickory, dickory dock, the mouse ran up the clock 13 Little Polly Flinders sat among the cinders 14. Polly put the kettle on 15. Mary had a little lamb 16. Jack Sprat could eat no fat 17. Hush a bye baby on the tree tops 18. Oranges and lemons said the bells of St.

Clement’s 19. Baa, baa black sheep have you any wool 20. Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross

Proverbs in the Book of Proverbs

1. Ch 6 v 6 2. Ch 22 v 3 3. Ch 13 v 15 4. Ch 10 v8 5. Ch 1 v32 6. Ch 20 v13 7. Ch 24 v3 8. Ch 12 v 26 9. Ch 18 v 12 10. Ch 28 v 6

Stars and Planets Word Search

Northern Lights People who led or were led

1. Moses 2. Peter, James, John 3. David 4. Wise Men 5. Noah 6. Paul 7. Joshua 8. Ruth 9. Joseph 10. Jailor Spot the Buildings Crossword

Abbey barn byre café castle cottage farm flat forge fort garage hall hotel house hut inn manor palace pen prison restaurant station tavern temple theatre

Every month of the year has traditions and customs and Michaelmas Day, the 29th of September had its fair share. It was, as it is still, one of the four quarter days, when it was customary for tenants to pay their rents,

and very strange rites were sometimes in force during the paying of them. The tenants of the Manor of Rochford as late as 1768 had to gather at a certain spot on the Wednesday nearest to the 29th. When the cocks crew to announce the rising of the sun, everyone had to kneel in homage to their landlord, the Lord of the Manor. After this mark of respect had been paid, the Steward proceeded to collect the rents. While he was doing this no word was permitted to be spoken aloud, any necessary conversation had to be made in a whisper. Nor might receipts for the money be written in pen and ink – they had to be scrawled with a piece of coal or charcoal. If any tenant was late at the meeting place the landlord claimed the right to double the rent for each hour of his absence, while if he failed to appear at all, he might, at the lord’s pleasure, be deprived of his holding without further notice. This strange affair was known as ‘The Lawless Court’ because of the hour at which it was held. Tradition

says that this method of rent-paying was at first imposed on account of a riotous gathering at which the tenants got out of hand and did much damage to the Manor property. It was continued because of the English man’s love of ritual and ceremony.

The Battle of Britain

On Sunday 13th September we shall be marking the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. This was a period of intense air combat between mid-July and the end of October 1940, with the Royal Air Force attempting to defend the United Kingdom against large scale attacks by Germany's air force, the Luftwaffe. German forces had swept into France during May 1940 and the British Army had been forced to withdraw at the end of May and beginning of June, supported by the fleet of little ships, many of them crewed by civilians, which went across the Channel to rescue them from the beaches of Dunkirk. Having taken control of France, Germany turned its attention to the United Kingdom and air raids were intended to get control of the air space prior to invasion later in the year. However, galvanized into action by the stirring speeches of new Prime Minister Winston Churchill, the RAF had quickly taken the opportunity to increase pilot training, including recruiting pilots from across the empire, and increase the production of aircraft and ammunition, including the excellent Hurricane and Spitfire fighters. Strategically they were very well led by Air Chief Marshall Sir Hugh Dowding. The RAF was divided into Fighter Command, whose responsibility was home defence, Bomber Command, who let offensive action in Europe, and Coastal Command, which protected convoys bringing vital supplies to the UK by sea. An Observer Corps using volunteer observers was set up along the coast and reported sightings and the chain of radar stations gave early warning of enemy raids. However, all three commands reported to RAF headquarters in north London so that Dowding always had an overview of the situation and could divert

resources to counter threats very quickly. Germany first attacked the convoys, and then turned its attention to RAF bases in southern England. On one of these night time raids bombs were dropped on south London. The RAF retaliated with raids on Berlin and an incensed Hitler ordered sustained bombing of London and other cities - The Blitz. On 15th September, with the Luftwaffe believing that the RAF was down to 200 aircraft, they mounted a major raid which was intended to finish the RAF utterly. However, Britain had managed to increase aeroplane construction so dramatically that there were more planes available then than at the beginning of the battle. They shot down 56 German planes and the Luftwaffe High Command was forced to admit that they were not able to gain control of British skies. Hitler postponed the plans to invade Britain, turning the fight towards Russia instead, and this change of plans gave Britain the breathing space in which to make plans of its own and take the action that would eventually win the war. The 15th September was declared Battle of Britain day and has been commemorated ever since, including in Tunbridge Wells, where Air Chief Marshall Hugh Dowding, 1st Baron Dowding, chose to live out his retirement until his death in 1970.

"Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few."

Winston Churchill, 16th August 1940

We offer social and therapeutic horticulture to members of the local

community with learning difficulties and/or mental health issues

Spring into Summer Update from the Walled Garden

Hallo. We hope you are all OK?

Stone Ness Walled Gardeners returned enthusiastically in the first week of March. We welcomed back many

people who have been coming here for years, missed a few who have moved away, and met for the first time

several newcomers. The 2020 season was promising to be good.

After weeding and raking we moved on to sowing onions, potatoes, and broad beans – and then, on March 17th, oh

dear, that was that!

However, friends of the Walled Garden will be relieved to hear that we

are NOT by now buried beneath a jungle of nettle, bramble, docks and

dandelions. Come the harvest we will not be fruitless, veg-less or

despondent. No way.

Thanks to the gallant efforts of Scary our scarecrow (whose articles

some of you will have been following in Potting Shed News) - assisted by

me, things are more or less at the stage they should/would/could have

been in a more peopled situation. Admittedly, there are a few thousand

extra weeds dotted about the place – but let's call them “wild flowers”.

There will be NO Open Day, I'm sorry to say, this July.

BUT, we are planning a day of fun, games and BBQ food for our walled

gardeners, and we will abide by whatever rules, regs, and guidance is in

place at that time. It may be that they will come in small groups at

different times from each 'household'. I do hope this will happen.

Finally, it seems an age away, but we have scheduled our Christmas Tree Choosing Day for Saturday 28th

November, so put that date in your diaries, because our trees are growing, in spite of everything else that is going

on. Do please ‘phone me if you would like to find out more about Stone Ness Walled Garden, or visit our website –

www.stonenesswalledgarden.org.

With best wishes.

Jean Burgess

Tel: 01892 740305 (before 8 pm please)

General Information

Vicar Rev Ronnie Williams, 521357

The Vicarage, Bretland Road, Rusthall

Readers

Mr Tim Cripps, 10 Muskerry Court 543355

Miss Daphne Pilcher, 37 Stephens Road 521691

Churchwardens

Mr Clive McAllister, 7 Rustwick 532817

Miss May Graves, 21 Hill View Road 680274

Deputy Churchwardens

Mr Graeme Anderson, 51 Westwood Road 532922 Mrs Mione Palmer 667951

Mrs Susan Powley 545067

Mrs Margaret Brown 680455

Parochial Church Council Secretary Mrs Pat Churchill, 4 Rusthall Road 531541

Treasurer and Planned Giving Mrs Pat Cripps

c/o Parish Office 521447

Child Protection Officer c/o May Graves 680274

DBS Officer Clive Brown c/o the Parish Office 521447

Bible Reading Fellowship Secretary Vivienne Sharp 543263

Choir Leader Miss Fiona Johnson 07540273302

Magazine Editors Deborah Bruce, Sue Hare and Mione Palmer

c/o the Parish Office

email – magazine@stpaulsrusthall.org.uk

Flower Arrangers Mrs Daphne Hodges 533492

Parish Hall Bookings Enquiries to Parish Office 521447

Rusthall St Paul’s Primary School Headteacher - Miss Caroline Powell 520582

Churchyards Enquiries to the Parish Office

CHURCH ELECTORAL ROLL

All worshippers who are baptised members of the Church of England,

and aged over 16, should have their names entered on the Electoral Roll.

This entitles them to attend and vote at the Annual Parochial Meeting.

Forms for enrolment will be found in the Parish Church or the Parish

Office and should be sent to the Vicar.

Organisations

Julian Group

Mrs Pat Stevens 529187

St Paul’s Parish Fellowship

Mrs Zillah Witt (Chair) 523028

Mrs Muriel Reeves (Secretary) 520468

Group Scout Secretary

Mr K Powley 545067

Scout Membership Secretary

Merissa Patrick

Email – rusthallscoutwaitinglist@yahoo.co.uk

Beavers: beaversrusthall@gmail.com

Cubs: rustahllcubs@hotmail.co.uk

Scouts: rusthallscouts@gmail.com

Guide Senior Section

Helen Deller 07720 252481

Guide Guiders

Ms Tina Francis 545877

Brownie Guiders

Mrs Wendy Anderson (Thurs) 532922

Ms Tina Francis (Mon) 545877

Rainbows

Mrs Mary Saunders 543572

Email – saundi@aol.com

Mothers and Toddlers

Mrs Annie Softley, 21 Woodside Road 548366

Rusthall Local History Group

Dennis Penfold, 18 Meadow Road 537939

Rusthall Lunch Club

Mrs Ros Rodwell 862652

Rusthall Community & Youth Project

Barry Edwards 680296

Rusthall Village Association

Alex Britcher 07967 011467

Rusthall Parish Council

Council Clerk 07805 475397

Rusthall Bonfire and Fete Committee

Annie Sofley 548366

Friends of TW and Rusthall Common

Clive Evans 534040

The Parish Office

Parish Administrator - Mrs Ginette di Palma

St Paul's Parish Office, Church Centre, Rusthall Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN4 8RE

Telephone (01892) 521447

Office email: office@stpaulsrusthall.org.uk

Magazine email: magazine@stpaulsrusthall.org.uk

Website: www.stpaulsrusthall.org.uk

The Office is currently closed to visitors.

However, it is attended regularly and emails and telephone messages left

are being screened and responded to.