The Church House moves!! And my Son's OK & Sober for now...

Hi there, again!

I've typed a lot of this instalment already and lost it all - my PC really winds me up. Do I really type that badly?? Anyway, today our London Jesus Fellowship (MJA) church household moved its residential home - up to Margaret Street in Central London, W1. I went over to help, and to take digital photos for my church's free newspaper and magazine. I sometimes do comissions - this time I had the opportunity to cover the West London end of the move. Emma, the church's "chief reporter" at our end, had to go into her "real" work-place, and the other, Central London end was covered by young sister Pavla (from Czech). I was free of other commitments today... I had none of the stress of the move, as it was not my own family who were moving. I have moved about 4 times in my life - so I do know what moving house is like. You just never stop. I could choose what to do here, and made myself useful. My photos are OK - at a first view.

My main brief was to get photo shots of our brawny "brothers" moving furniture out of the house, and into a large white hired van. First of all I thought I'd arrived there too late! The van had already gone off with many beds etc. But in the early afternoon it came back, so I took a series of shots, between dodging the sharp April showers, of our strong (mostly) young men carrying out beds, sofas, cupboards etc. - without uttering a single curse or swear word! (They are of course all Christian!) I also had some of freezers being moved into a smaller food van, with boxes and crates of food etc. There was one father and teenage son manhandling two huge washing machines up the road. The few "sisters" who were there did lighter jobs, like packing food-boxes - I got a few pictures of them, too, plus "still life" shots of discarded or forlorn pieces of equipment - an acoustic guitar and a houseplant on a dining table, or wooden bed frames stacked up, waiting to go off. We had a lunch break up the road at our neighbouring household, Spreading Flame - this was a rare moment of calm. I enjoyed seeing this house's mature, black shorthaired, male neuter cat, Wellington (Welly) sitting on a sofa arm and purring. Little does he know that he also has to move next week! Their household is all moving into the larger house that has just been vacated - 5 doors up the road.

I got pretty tired by vacuuming three rooms. Two were living rooms I had often spent good times in - the other was the laundry room - very hot and stuffy, and with much dusty fluff that had never been cleared before. Still I did quite a good job here. I also managed to do a load of washing up, of kitchen crockery, and tidied up little things, brewed a kettle for the 'workers' to have cups of tea, etc. I had to help one sister move some nasty sticky fly-paper from a lamp. I also had a few moments of peace, sitting in the garden at Battle Centre house - the one we are leaving - with Unju, the friendly Korean sister from the 'Flame' house. She will be moving into our new Central London house with the Battle Centre people. A number of the members are changing their households. It is sad for some of them, who have been with these houses for many years (and even a little for me) - but a challenge. "Moving on with God" we all say - to the next phase in the battle...

My son Tom did not come along with me on this moving day, as our "shepherd" elder said that he was still too vulnerable mentally to cope with the stress. He may have been OK, but we had to go along with this. He went to an AA meeting instead. He has been out of hospital over a week now, and is getting by so far. I will say more about him next time I blog. Today was a special day for me, sharing my church's adventure of moving into new pastures. I wonder what they are all feeling like now - probably very tired, but all are happy with their new surroundings. I came home and had a rest, but they had to carry on. Their new London house will carry the old house's name "Battle Centre" with them - we are all pleased about that. The other names suggested did not really fit (New Heights? - too much like a block of flats. Peaceful Haven? - Sounds like an old people's home! Even All Saints House? It's too formal, like an old Anglican church community, as it had once been.)

Later this evening I wrote up my experiences of the move (more snappily I hope) as an article for the church's magazine, or perhaps its free Streetpaper - a blow by blow account, to go with the photos. Well - bless all our London people (and their helpers), in both households - they must be tired! I will soon see them again on Sunday, when I guess they'll be more settled in. Now it is time to go and cook a meal here - and Tom is at another AA meeting. D.(my husband) and I will spend a quiet evening with the TV... Yesterday I went to an interesting social science conference in Islington, North London, on Drugs and Alcohol (at a huge new business centre, converted from 19th century railway engine sheds with great iron rafters) - but no time to describe that now. I may write on these items, and certainly more on my son Tom's progress in later blogs. Thanks for reading this, if you have been! Bless you out there. And the late Pope has his funeral tomorrow - he was a good man; I am not and never was a Roman Catholic, but he had great integrity (though some of his views I disagree with). It's very cold here in southern UK again - a north wind with chilly showers... I can't wait for summer to come (it will bring the 5th anniversary of my daughter Alice's death - in early May, quite soon - but also our Ruby Wedding, after 40 years, in August; plus my younger sister H.'s silver wedding, to G., in September. So life goes on!).

That is really it for now... Goodbye till next time!

Love and peace - Tigey.