Benefice-Priest in Charge
Katrina Dykes
Message from Katrina May 2020
‘New Normal’ is a phrase I am hearing quite a bit at the moment as life is anything but old normal at the moment! Even in our little villages, where we are largely shielded from the harsher consequences of the Coronavirus, life has changed and people are beginning to ask whether the experience will change us and if so how?
Unable to meet in person, many of us have picked up new skills for working and socialising online. We are even ‘doing’ church online with Facebook and Zoom. One of the benefits of this for our church community has been the inclusion of people who haven’t been able to come to church for some time, now being part of a worship service with others once again. Sadly, not everyone is au fait with this way of doing things, and we miss them being part of our gatherings on Sundays.
For families there has been the huge adjustment to home schooling. A great opportunity for parents and children to spend more time being together and share in lots of creative activities. At the same time the pressure of trying to work from home, making sure children have their lessons and get opportunity to run off their energy, is a lot to juggle and can lead to arguments and stress.
I know many are using this time to get on with home improvement projects or spending time working in the garden. The sense of achievement and pleasure this brings is of great benefit to many. Whilst others are anxious about how long this will go one for and when they will be able to get back to work.
There has been a great outpouring of kindness and neighbourliness in our villages. People coming together to look out for one another, collect prescriptions and deliver shopping. More people are out and about walking and cycling and stopping for chat, as we have the time to catch up with friends old and new. And the peace and tranquillity of the countryside with fewer cars passing through our villages, draws our attention to notice the little things so easily missed, insects and birds, leaves slowly unfurling and the delicate colours of spring flowers.
I am sure there will be aspects of this experience we will want to leave behind as soon as we are able. But I hope that the good things we have discovered will stick. That we will move forward changed for the better, reconnecting with the good from the old normal and leaving the bad. Leaving the pain of the current normal, but taking with us all the good we found in this most abnormal of times, as we forge ahead into the ‘New Normal’.
There is a strong precedent in the scriptures for both change and stability to be part of the normal human experience and leave you with these words that have stood the test of many centuries whilst still remaining fresh:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:22-23
Church services:
Mon-Sat: 6pm Night Prayer Facebook Live
Sundays: 12 noon Facebook Live
6pm Zoom service
‘New Normal’ is a phrase I am hearing quite a bit at the moment as life is anything but old normal at the moment! Even in our little villages, where we are largely shielded from the harsher consequences of the Coronavirus, life has changed and people are beginning to ask whether the experience will change us and if so how?
Unable to meet in person, many of us have picked up new skills for working and socialising online. We are even ‘doing’ church online with Facebook and Zoom. One of the benefits of this for our church community has been the inclusion of people who haven’t been able to come to church for some time, now being part of a worship service with others once again. Sadly, not everyone is au fait with this way of doing things, and we miss them being part of our gatherings on Sundays.
For families there has been the huge adjustment to home schooling. A great opportunity for parents and children to spend more time being together and share in lots of creative activities. At the same time the pressure of trying to work from home, making sure children have their lessons and get opportunity to run off their energy, is a lot to juggle and can lead to arguments and stress.
I know many are using this time to get on with home improvement projects or spending time working in the garden. The sense of achievement and pleasure this brings is of great benefit to many. Whilst others are anxious about how long this will go one for and when they will be able to get back to work.
There has been a great outpouring of kindness and neighbourliness in our villages. People coming together to look out for one another, collect prescriptions and deliver shopping. More people are out and about walking and cycling and stopping for chat, as we have the time to catch up with friends old and new. And the peace and tranquillity of the countryside with fewer cars passing through our villages, draws our attention to notice the little things so easily missed, insects and birds, leaves slowly unfurling and the delicate colours of spring flowers.
I am sure there will be aspects of this experience we will want to leave behind as soon as we are able. But I hope that the good things we have discovered will stick. That we will move forward changed for the better, reconnecting with the good from the old normal and leaving the bad. Leaving the pain of the current normal, but taking with us all the good we found in this most abnormal of times, as we forge ahead into the ‘New Normal’.
There is a strong precedent in the scriptures for both change and stability to be part of the normal human experience and leave you with these words that have stood the test of many centuries whilst still remaining fresh:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:22-23
Church services:
Mon-Sat: 6pm Night Prayer Facebook Live
Sundays: 12 noon Facebook Live
6pm Zoom service
