General Chat

Good morning :-)


Stay positive....

Stay positive

Support your local business.

It’s been interesting to see how many folk (self included) have been depending on local shops during this crisis. We have grown so used to visiting the supermarkets that we are in danger of forgetting what we have on our doorsteps and the people who are trying to make a living from selling local produce.

There has been a large return to the milkman and farm shop etc. Now we have to remember to continue to support them once the crisis is over.

Lord, we thank you for our local shops and for the people who are so willing to go out of their way to provide the things we need. Help us to appreciate them in the future. Amen.


Cx :-)

Hello all

Hard to believe that it is the 1st of May today.

Have a happy Friday and stay safe everybody.

Good morning all

I haven’t ventured outside but it looks a beautiful day. At the moment of course we can only enjoy it in our gardens but I feel very blessed to have a small garden. It must be so hard to be cooped up in a small flat with young children and no garden. My thoughts are often with people in that situation.

There are some positive things coming from Covid-19. I have found time to spring clean the downstairs of the house and have managed to collect quite a lot of items for the charity shop, all in good condition and some new. There are so many deserving causes but we often give our unwanted items to the Salvation Army shop. They are not right in the shopping area like the other charities but in a side road so are not so visible. They are always pleased to receive goods. I admire much of the work they do.

Another positive is the community spirit that’s come to light. Like many areas we have a Community Network of volunteers delivering food and medicines and generally helping those who can’t manage and there are lots of instances of kindness. Yesterday a friend was 80. She was supposed to be in Canada visiting her frail, older brother for possibly the last time and is naturally upset not to be able to go. Mid morning her husband got her out into the front garden where she discovered several of her neighbours in their gardens, glasses raised to toast her health and she was told that, weather permitting, she and her OH should take their chairs and tea tray into the front garden at 2 pm as they were having a communal tea party, albeit from a distance. I thought that was very neighbourly and kind and hope this spirit continues when the crisis is over.

I have rambled on a bit today. Thinking of all who are lonely or depressed at this time.

Stay positive and stay safe.

Hello all

Loved reading your post Vera, ramble all you want it's good to share our thoughts on here.

I'm blessed with a (mainly) positive attitude and can usually see my glass half filled as opposed to being half empty. It helps in stressful times like these.

Sadly I'm alone now and miss my lovely hubby daily.

My thoughts and prayers for those living in an abusive relationship and frightened for each new day.

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in time of trouble (Psalm 46 v 1). NIV.

Good morning :-)


Looks as though I got carried away yesterday....I remember thinking to myself that I must go on GR in a minute....where did that minute go I wonder??? :-S


Love the idea of that tea party Vera....I would be tempted to do the same but, as I live on a busy main road, it may be a little dangerous :-D


The Collect (special prayer) for today :

Collect
Almighty God,
whose Son Jesus Christ is the resurrection and the life:
raise us, who trust in him,
from the death of sin to the life of righteousness,
that we may seek those things which are above,
where he reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Today's gospel tells the story of Jesus the Good Shepherd.

Stay safe all.

Cx :-)

Good morning :-)


I went out this morning. I brought the milk in :-D :-D


Last week we looked at ideas for staying positive during this pandemic. We’ll continue that theme this week with a short inspiring story each day.

Everyone Has a Story in Life

A 14-year-old boy seeing out from the train’s window shouted…
“Dad, look the trees are going behind!”
Dad smiled and a young couple sitting nearby, looked at the 14-year old’s childish behaviour with pity, suddenly he again exclaimed…
“Dad, look the clouds are running with us!”
The couple couldn’t resist and said to the old man…
“Why don’t you take your son to a good doctor?” The old man smiled and said…“I did, and this is his first trip out since his sight was restored”.

Every single person on the planet has a story. The truth can surprise us.


Lord, we thank you for those who are skilled in the gift of caring for our eyesight - the surgeons and nursing staff - the opticians and the manufacturers of spectacles. We ask your blessing on them during this pandemic. Amen.


Cx :-)

Hello all

Amen to your prayer Cynthia.

There are many people who are quick to judge others and often come to the wrong conclusion.

A gardening day for me, I'm still clearing the overgrown ivy and there's still a lot more to be done.

I'm blessed to have a garden and feel sorry for others in lockdown who live in high rise flats now.

Good morning :-)

A man’s favourite donkey fell into a deep precipice. He couldn’t pull it out no matter how hard he tried. He therefore decided the only thing he could do was to bury it alive.

So he began to pour soil onto the donkey from above. The donkey feels the soil hitting him, shakes it off, and steps on it. The man pours more and more soil in and, each time, the donkey shook it off and steps on it. The more soil was poured, the higher it rose. By noon, the donkey was at the top and was soon grazing in green pastures.

The lesson for us is that we need to try and shake off our problems and, stepping up, learn from them so that we may graze in ‘green pastures’.

Dear Lord,
Calm my troubled mind
Still my worried heart
Guide my endless thoughts
Come and leave your mark.

Shelter my tired body
Lift my heavy soul
Quiet my deepest fears
Come and make me whole.

Carry my deepest hurt
Cover my open wounds
Restore my abandoned dreams
Come and hold my life.

Open my ears to hear
Shower my life with praise
Full up my thoughts with truth
Stay by me every day.


Cx :-)

I have never heard that one before Cynthia, its one i will remember and learn from.

Thank you as always for giving me food for thought.

<3 <3

Good morning :-)



Staying positive...

Whilst on an overseas holiday, a man was taken to see the local elephants. He suddenly stopped, confused by the fact that these huge creatures were being held by only a small rope tied to their front leg. No chains, no cages. It was obvious that the elephants could, at anytime, break away from their bonds but for some reason, they did not.

He saw a trainer nearby and asked why these animals just stood there and made no attempt to get away. The trainer smiled and said, “when they are very young and much smaller we use the same size rope to tie them and, at that age, it’s enough to hold them. As they grow up, they are conditioned to believe they cannot break away. They believe the rope can still hold them, so they never try to break free.”

The man was amazed. These animals could at any time break free from their bonds but because they believed they couldn’t, they were stuck right where they were.

Like the elephants, how many of us go through life hanging onto a belief that we cannot do something, simply because we failed at it once before?

Failure is part of learning; we should never give up the struggle in life.


Lord, we pray that we may put our trust in you to help us with whatever is holding us back in life. Amen.



Cx :-)

All the world is full of suffering. It is also full of overcoming.

Helen Keller.

Cynthia - you have done it again - I was on a "why do I even bother" train of thought at work. Was happy to just plod on and give up as it obviously wasn't my time to be noticed. Now I have a new thought going round. - why shouldn't I be considered, after all your as young as you feel & age shouldn't matter.

I feel like I have a new spring in my step. I love this thread.

Take care all - enjoy the beautiful weather & start looking forward to things again. We have a lovely long weekend to think about & the weather on Friday looks really good.

You may have read on here my wife was a nurse. A friend of hers who
she worked with for years has been in a care home for years, poorly.
My wife has been visiting her when she could.
We had a phone call from her daughter today, sadly she has died.

Hello all

Lots of interesting stories Cynthia. Thank you.

"Nothing is impossible. The word itself says
"I'm possible!" (Audrey Hepburn).

Very sorry to read about Ellen's friends David.

Good morning

I am enjoying this week’s “stories with a moral”. Thank you Cynthia.

I am sorry to hear of the death of Ellen’s friend, David. Thinking of the lady’s family and, of course, Ellen as they grieve.

One of my granddaughters, nearly 18, should have been doing her A-Levels now. She was unsure what she wanted to do afterwards so had opted for taking a gap year and working to earn money while she decided. She has done retail work and photographic modelling in her spare time so could have gone down those routes but instead has chosen to work with dementia patients in a residential care home. I am a bit apprehensive about her going into a home in the present circumstances, though she doesn’t start for three weeks, but I am incredibly proud of her for choosing this challenging work.

With that in mind, my thoughts today are with care givers everywhere.

Sorry to hear of your loss David.

Your granddaughter sounds a wonderful person Vera and must have great patience and courage to choose such difficult but what can be uplifting work. I wish her well in her gap year.

Having gone through this with my father in law & friends parents I know its not something I am cut out for. However should the necessity arise in the future I know I would meet the challenge head on.

Look after yourselves.

Good morning :-)


Sorry to hear about your wife's friend who has died David.

Vera, your granddaughter sounds like an incredible young woman and you are rightly proud of her. Bless her for wanting to work with those who have dementia such a challenging thing to do.

Glad you are enjoying the stories everyone

Keep positive

Once upon a time a daughter told her father that she was very miserable and didn’t know how she would get through life. Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pans with water and put them to boil. He placed potatoes in one pan, eggs in the second pan, and ground coffee beans in the third. He then let them sit and boil, without saying a word to his daughter.

After twenty minutes he took the potatoes and eggs out of the pots and put them in a bowl. He poured the coffee into a cup. He said to his daughter “What do you see?” “Potatoes, eggs and coffee” she said. “Look closer,” he said, “and touch the potatoes.” She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to peel the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to sip the delicious coffee, which made her smile. “Father, what does this mean?” she asked.

He then explained that the potatoes, the eggs and coffee beans had each faced the same adversity– the boiling water. However, each one reacted differently. The potato had been hard, but in boiling water, it became soft.

The egg had been fragile, with the thin outer shell protecting its liquid interior until it was put in the boiling water. Then the inside of the egg became hard.
However, the ground coffee beans were unique. After they were exposed to the boiling water, they changed the water and created something new.

“Which are you?” he asked his daughter. “When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a potato, an egg, or a coffee bean?

In life, things happen around us, things happen to us, but the only thing that truly matters is what happens within us.

Which one are you?

Father God, I pray that You will build my faith so strong that I can stand up to any adversity in my life with great confidence. I know I do not walk alone and that you God, are my strength and guidance. Amen.



Cx :-)

Hello all

I hope you have enjoyed the very special VE Day along with the added bonus of sunshine.

Heavenly Father

As we recall the events of VE Day 75 years ago,
thinking about all who endured fighting and hardship for six long years during wartime. Today we give thanks for a more peaceful world and trust in your strength for a better future for us all. Amen

Good afternoon (just) :-)

Did everyone have scones with jam and cream yesterday? Any street parties - socially distanced of course?

We had the eats but there was no party but I have read about lots of other places having a wonderful time!


There once was a very wealthy and curious king. This king had a huge boulder placed in the middle of a road. Then he hid nearby to see if anyone would try to remove the gigantic rock from the road.

The first people to pass by were some of the king’s wealthiest merchants and courtiers. Rather than moving it, they simply walked around it. A few loudly blamed the King for not maintaining the roads. Not one of them tried to move the boulder.

Finally, a peasant came along. His arms were full of vegetables. When he got near the boulder, rather than simply walking around it as the others had, the peasant put down his load and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. It took a lot of effort but he finally succeeded.

The peasant gathered up his load and was ready to go on his way when he saw a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The peasant opened the purse. The purse was stuffed full of gold coins and a note from the king. The king’s note said the purse’s gold was a reward for moving the boulder from the road.

The king showed the peasant what many of us never understand: every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition.

God our Father, we ask for your guidance as we encounter the obstacles in our lives. Help us not to back away from them, but to face them in your strength and your courage, that we may grow in experience to continue life’s journey. Amen.


Cx :-)

Another week of uplifting words, thank you Cynthia. x