What are your thoughts on the concept of living a very long life?

I haven’t commuted in a long time but I can remember sitting in a crowded train carriage on murky grey mornings with other sleepy commuters absorbed by their phones. The train would weave its way passed countless flats and sub-divided maisonettes as it pulled into one of the busiest train stations in London. And as it did so, I remember the unmistakeably delicious smell of toasting bread. People were making breakfast.

London is grey. The sky is grey. The concrete beneath our shoes is grey. The trains creak and the bridges are grimy. Sometimes for all our busyness it feels like colour and life is being squeezed out and mixed into murky dull tones in the puddles on the street.

And then there is that smell of toast.

People say that if you don’t believe in God, how do you explain bacon sandwiches?

Despite all our technological advances, we cannot create life. We know the depth of it, but we at times take it for granted. We know the pain of loneliness, how growing old is hard. We know how fragile it is. Something tells us this was not how it was supposed to be. We enjoy simple comforts – the richness and joy and delight of it. We do know that despite everything, life is precious.

One of the very first commandments given was to preserve life “…for on the day you eat of [one particular tree in Eden], you will certainly die.” That command wasn’t followed and since then there has been that squeeze, that downward pull of grey. Yet even though that command was broken, God wants things to go well for us and for us to have a long life.

There are certainly things worth dying for. After all, the man who affected the greatest change in history lived a relatively short life. Now wherever we go in the world, if we see a cross we are reminded of that.

But we are also reminded that the purpose of that death was life. He loved us so much that he himself came, and by living his beautifully good life, then dying and rising again, brought the life we lost so long ago, the life of colour, the life without that downward pull.

Life that overcomes death.

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live.”

John 11:25

Genesis 2:17, Ephesians 6:3

#bloganuary

What could you do differently?

There are loads of things that I could do differently.

Literally loads. It comes in loads.

It chugs along from laundry bag to washer to dryer to hanging line to folding bag and back to the cupboard only to make space for the next load that follows it each step of the way.

But instead I could totally be on top of it.

There could be moments, perhaps even minutes when the laundry bag is empty, and when the drying line is folded away as there is nothing on it.

And then I could break into song.

If you had a freeway billboard, what would it say?

I’m more for beautiful, soul-lifting pictures than words. So mine would say:

Slow down. Listen to the silence. Look for the miracles.

With a very beautiful picture. Like this one:

What is the greatest gift someone could give you?

You are welcome.

I am listening.

Your feelings are ok.

I will sit with you.

I will include you.

I accept you as you are.

I will help you.

I will never abandon you.

This is a very great gift. It’s rare but it’s there.

The apostle Paul felt this very keenly and wrote this to the church in Rome:

But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8 CSB

The best day of my life was when I realised that Jesus accepted me because he loved me.

#bloganuary

What colleges have you attended?

I went to two and a half.

I worked hard at high school, did extremely well, and finished burnt out and not knowing where I was.

I wanted a year off to work in the church, but like many good girls, I did what was expected of me and went to university. I’d got a merit scholarship to attend the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg. A mouthful if ever I heard one.

Sorry – no photo.

I didn’t have a camera at the time and the media library is at a loss when I type that in.

I got great results in both art and maths, but science seemed to offer a more viable career of the two, so I chose a broad science first year. With no heart for it.

I met someone from Cape Town whose stories of church life and Bible colleges inspired me to go there. I secretly applied to the university and got awarded a bigger scholarship there, so I packed my bags and went to continue my degree at the university of Cape Town.

There are of course lots of photos of Cape Town in the media library.

I don’t know who this is but that could totally have been me: mesmerised by mountains and sea.

There I delved into church life at every level, sensing it was my calling, but my school years had taken their toll and my brain just wouldn’t grapple with the dull, meaningless maths and physics courses I was doing. I finally crashed after a leader in the church let me down rather badly.

So after my second year, it seemed things in my brain had simply shut down. So all funding for my studies and food and shelter was withdrawn.

Two years later I had completed my degree while working full-time. At times work demanded 60 hours a week, and I studied for exams and tests after work and on Saturdays. I insisted on taking rest on Sundays.

So I got that piece of paper that says Bachelor of Science. It’s in a cupboard somewhere.

20+ years on and I haven’t had much of a career, but I’m warm, comfortable, a kitten plays at my feet, my loving husband has a good job and my children are happy. I don’t take that for granted.

I honestly give all credit to God who is faithful. I can see no other explanation.

#bloganuary

Do you play in your daily life? What says “playtime” to you?

This little thing. I’ve never been a cat person but look who arrived for Christmas. This kitten has brought new realms of play to our home.

She is soft, she cuddles, she purrs. Then at times she gets this wild look in her eyes and I know it’s playtime. She pounces and darts and climbs and slips away from cuddles. My daughter made a mouse toy for her (in the background of this picture), and the tinsel has been a hit with my son.

Thank the Lord for fluff and big ears.

#bloganuary