Apologies, friends. I appreciate my last two posts were a little heavy and I had every intention of writing something lighthearted and fun this week. Then, well, Soul Survivor. Lord, help us. The Telegraph reported this week that a Christian ‘cult’ leader was being investigated for inappropriate behaviour, amounting to spiritual abuse. The problem being,…
Tag: Church
When Ministry Sucks
I might be in the minority- or just early doors naiavity- when I say that so far, ministry is a privilege the majority of the time. There are so many perks to being a Vicar’s wife (and I’m not just talking about the house!) I love how open people are with me at times, how…
The Things I Do With Myself
Hello, loyal email and WordPress followers! Thank you for still being here. I have much to report, as you can probably imagine, but for now I thought it was time for a little life update. Five weeks ago, after nine years at home with bumps, babies and preschoolers; I graduated. By which I mean that…
A Journey in Words: Stars in Clay Jars
When I first started blogging 6/7 years ago, I did so very cautiously. I think I had this vision that I’d write something offensive, it would somehow go viral and I’d find myself in a tank full of pyrranas, unable to swim. So I set up anonymously on WordPress, disabled comments, spent a few hours…
That Old, Forbidden Crumble
Trigger Warning: This post discusses the issue of adultery, particularly in a Christian ministry context. It is not aimed at any particular persons, but rather addresses the alarming rate of clergy infedelity and reflects on why this might be. Please don’t read further if this is likely to upset you. “Did you hear about Elaine’s…
Child Prodigy
We have a framed quotation in our kitchen, hidden amongst the past projects, unidentifiable clay models and paintbrushes. We even made and decorated it ourselves, for good measure. I love it and almost certainly ascribe to the message. Lately, however, I have also found myself thinking that, whilst every child is an artist, some are…
Our Latest House Guest
I never thought we’d be an “Alexa!” kind of family. In fact, after hearing our previous neighbours’ children repeatedly squawk her name from the garden, I had sworn that Alexa would never set her submissive digital foot inside our home. Still. As is often the case with early parental swears, here we are. A previous…
The Sweet Spot
A couple of years ago I was at a church community meal that Husband was unable to attend. Breastfeeding a young baby in one arm, cutting up food for my two year old with the other and keeping half an eye on my four year old from across the room, I noticed another lone mother…
This Liminal Phase
A few weeks ago, right before the Easter holidays, something groundbreaking happened in our family. The Boy, our second-of-three, learned to ride his bike independently. He had been on two wheels for quite some time, but still needed a push off and someone to run alongside him; which is fine, except that it made taking…
Diary of ANOTHER Lockdown #1
Saturday Preparation day! The Eldest turns seven tomorrow and I have been largely plonked in front of the TV for a week, (in both senses of the word!) And so today is all about cake, and the planning of an entire birthday indoors as absolutely everywhere we could possibly think of going is closed. Thankfully,…
A Pandemic New Year (Week 13)
Saturday (Boxing Day) As you may have gathered from my previous post, Christmas Day (and week and month) is generally manic in a Clergy household, and this year has been no different. Which is why, as much as I love Christmas, I find that each year I am increasingly living for Boxing Day! For there…
Pandemic Diary #9
Saturday Supposedly Husband’s “light days”, Saturdays have been a bit of a washout of late. We play games and laze about in the morning while he works, talking about and fully intending to go for a bike ride in the afternoon. For a few weeks in a row, however, it has rained by afternoon or…
starsinclayjars 