It's a long time since we came to Leicester, exactly 30 years ago in fact, with only 3 years away during that time while Malcolm did his ordination training in Cambridge. So now the time has actually come to leave the vibrant (but messy ;) city, this lovely county, our jobs and many friends and contacts... and it's rather unsettling. What makes it stranger is that both our children have already left Leicester, having chosen to settle elsewhere. And what's more, we are headed somewhere that we've never been before and feel we don't know anywhere near enough about. Meanwhile, of course, sorting through and clearing out our possessions involves reviving memories - and letting a lot of things go.
So it was reassuring and encouraging to receive a parcel last weekend, which turned out to be from Bishop Philip Wright in Belize. For any of you who might be kind enough to send us something once we're out there, be warned that it took nearly 5 weeks to get here! (So maybe you'd better think twice about sending us homemade chocolate cake...) The parcel contained books to help us acclimatize to Belize, including the diocesan prayer book, a Spanish service book, a collection of Creole proverbs and two school text books: A Short History of Belize and an atlas.
We were very touched to receive all of this. It helps the unknown feel more familiar. And while we are saying goodbye at the moment to so many things, the new is beckoning.
As the Creole saying goes, "Neva buy puss eena bag", i.e. Never buy a cat in a bag! Which means examine something carefully before selecting it.
Bishop Philip's inscription in the front of the prayer book reads: 'On the occasion of the feast day of St. Matthew the Evangelist (Independence Day of Belize) - September 21st'. It's good to think that we're headed to a country that values independence and celebrates its freedom.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Thursday, October 18, 2007
How to declutter your life
A couple of years ago our friend Andrew Barton, now vicar of a church in Auchterarder, Scotland, wrote a small booklet called "Decluttering: A Spirituality of Less". I think it's still avaiable from www.grovebooks.co.uk. When I read it, I inwardly applauded a lot of what he said, and even began to declutter in a small way. Things that we really didn't ever use were given away, and there was a bit more space on the book shelves.
But now we're only a few weeks away from leaving our house in Leicester, and moving to Queen's College Birmingham. Suddenly decluttering is at the top of the agenda. We will take two large suitcases each on the airplane to Belize. Another 2 cubic meters each of other possessions will go with us to Birmingham, and then be shipped off to Belmopan, Belize. That's it. Everything else has to go.
Christian Aid used to have a slogan that went something like: "live simply, so others can simply live". I've always thought that was a good motto. My reality has been rather different, and a bit of me is quite glad of the opportunity to return to a bit more simplicity. Another bit of me, however, has a real emotional attachment to some of our things...
Some good friends have made room for us to store a few bits of furniture and some boxes in their house, but that still leaves an awful lot of possessions to deal with, and not long to do it in. Knowing there is a strict limit on what we can take, and on what we can keep, we have to make some hard decisions. So no more prevaricating about the bush. Less is best! Time for some more adverts in the local newspaper, and another trip to the charity shops.
But now we're only a few weeks away from leaving our house in Leicester, and moving to Queen's College Birmingham. Suddenly decluttering is at the top of the agenda. We will take two large suitcases each on the airplane to Belize. Another 2 cubic meters each of other possessions will go with us to Birmingham, and then be shipped off to Belmopan, Belize. That's it. Everything else has to go.
Christian Aid used to have a slogan that went something like: "live simply, so others can simply live". I've always thought that was a good motto. My reality has been rather different, and a bit of me is quite glad of the opportunity to return to a bit more simplicity. Another bit of me, however, has a real emotional attachment to some of our things...
Some good friends have made room for us to store a few bits of furniture and some boxes in their house, but that still leaves an awful lot of possessions to deal with, and not long to do it in. Knowing there is a strict limit on what we can take, and on what we can keep, we have to make some hard decisions. So no more prevaricating about the bush. Less is best! Time for some more adverts in the local newspaper, and another trip to the charity shops.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Photos of Belize
No photos of our own at this stage. Instead we’ve had to rely on trawling the net for images of Belize. That means we can only show you the Belize other people have seen.
As far as we know, these photos are all in the public domain. If any of them are yours, and you don’t want them used in this way, please let us know and we will remove them immediately.
This first photo is of Bishop Philip Wright, who we met in London earlier in the year.
Next comes the Anglican Cathedral College, which is the only Anglican Secondary School, and is in Belize City. We met with some former mission companions, Bob and Gill Rhoades, who were based in Belize City, Gill worked at the College.
This building is the Anglican Theological Institute in Belmopan, the new capital city. Malcolm's role, as Director of ATI, will be to help train local people for lay and ordained ministry. This building apparently doubles as the Diocesan hurricane shelter.
And finally this is the Rectory of St Anne's Church, Belmopan. Ruth is to be Priest in Charge of St Anne's, so this is where we expect to live. It's the only photo of the house we have, so now you know as much about where we will live as we do!
Introduction to Belize
How do you write about a country you haven't yet seen?
We've tried to do our research, but any real response to Belize will have to wait until we get there. Meanwhile, this is what the guidebooks have to say ...
Belize is about the same size as Wales, but its population is smaller than Cardiff’s, making it one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. Formerly known as British Honduras, it became an independent nation in 1981. It’s one of the most diverse nations of the Caribbean. English is its official language, but Creole, Spanish and Garifuna are just some of the other languages we’ll hear there. It’s committed to working and sharing cross-culturally, and has built up its own united national identity since 1981.
A third of Belize’s people are classified as poor, while one in ten have difficulty in getting enough food to eat. There are many single mothers, and drugs – with associated violence – are also a problem in some city areas.
We’ll be based in Belmopan, in the centre of the country, the new capital that was built after Belize City was damaged by a hurricane in 1961. It’s home to the country’s university and government institutions, and though tiny – 12,000 people – by world city standards, it’s the fastest growing city in Belize.
The Anglican Church in Belize
There are thirty one Anglican churches throughout the country, but only 15 ordained clergy, which is why the development of new leaders is so important. The church is its committed to working with the poorest in Belizean society. With funding from USPG, they have set up a group for unmarried mothers, and supported income generation projects for indigenous Maya communities.
The next six months
Although we’re excited about this new venture, there’s a lot of work that still needs to be completed. Our first challenge is to raise the £25,000 per year that needs to be pledged towards our living costs. We've made a good start, but we've still got some way to go. At the end of the year, we hope to move to the Selly Oak Centre for Mission Studies, before leaving for Belize in March or April. Please remember us in your prayers.
We've tried to do our research, but any real response to Belize will have to wait until we get there. Meanwhile, this is what the guidebooks have to say ...
Belize is about the same size as Wales, but its population is smaller than Cardiff’s, making it one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. Formerly known as British Honduras, it became an independent nation in 1981. It’s one of the most diverse nations of the Caribbean. English is its official language, but Creole, Spanish and Garifuna are just some of the other languages we’ll hear there. It’s committed to working and sharing cross-culturally, and has built up its own united national identity since 1981.
A third of Belize’s people are classified as poor, while one in ten have difficulty in getting enough food to eat. There are many single mothers, and drugs – with associated violence – are also a problem in some city areas.
We’ll be based in Belmopan, in the centre of the country, the new capital that was built after Belize City was damaged by a hurricane in 1961. It’s home to the country’s university and government institutions, and though tiny – 12,000 people – by world city standards, it’s the fastest growing city in Belize.
The Anglican Church in Belize
There are thirty one Anglican churches throughout the country, but only 15 ordained clergy, which is why the development of new leaders is so important. The church is its committed to working with the poorest in Belizean society. With funding from USPG, they have set up a group for unmarried mothers, and supported income generation projects for indigenous Maya communities.
The next six months
Although we’re excited about this new venture, there’s a lot of work that still needs to be completed. Our first challenge is to raise the £25,000 per year that needs to be pledged towards our living costs. We've made a good start, but we've still got some way to go. At the end of the year, we hope to move to the Selly Oak Centre for Mission Studies, before leaving for Belize in March or April. Please remember us in your prayers.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
