Not Again!

The temperature today has been 23C and Barton Grange once again are working on their Christmas display and the shop floor is littered with Christmas paraphernalia!  I had a chat with one of the contractors working on the electrics for the display and he commented that he felt depressed about coming into work today.  Totally mad, they it did it last year and it really does take the joy out of visiting the place.  Barton Grange is one of the very few places that has something for everyone in addition to being disability friendly.

 They managed to redeem themselves slightly by offering some rather lovely Christian cards for sale. However we tend to support Traidcraft or Aid To The Church In Need for all our Christmas cards.

Today was a tricky home school day with Pip and I still quite unwell.  Still we plodded through and made a good attempt at the tasks on our list.  Benedict took some of his work with him when he stayed with Shein, after which he attended his first ever kick boxing session at the gym.  He came home really pleased with his efforts and is looking forward to his next session on Wednesday.  Not only will the kick boxing improve his confidence, give him a new skill and potentially provide a means of defending himself should the need ever arise, it will also help with his learning needs since the cross body movements reinforce neuro pathways in the brain.  Definitely a win-win situation :-)

On a different note I think Dave and I are suffering from the Post Walsingham Blues, if you check out the Youth 2000 face-ache page it is in fact a recognised condition!!  Mind you our symptoms are more related to the fact that Walsingham is a place where disability and sickness does not stand out and so for a brief period we almost felt "normal."  Suffice to say it has been very hard returning home to isolating suburbia :-(  

My initial word for the year was "trust" but in fact the word that keeps appearing is "acceptance."  Easy to say but incredibly hard to do.  When I find myself struggling with the ongoing worries and concerns for those in my immediate family, I often here myself saying, "it is as it is."  There is some small comfort in these words because if I am unable to change my circumstances then it is useless fretting over the what ifs, or might haves.  Like the manna in the desert I have grace for the moment :-)

Lord, grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change,

The courage to change the things I can

And the wisdom to know the difference.

Amen x