Edith joined a house group I was leading one Lent. The Course was about Prayer and in one session we were encouraged to pray aloud for people and things that concerned us. We were given a week’s notice and just before we were due to meet again, Edith sent for me. She told me that she would have to miss the next session. She had an anxious and slightly guilty look so I probed a bit deeper. She was scared of praying aloud because she had nothing to pray about. ‘You see, I’m not very spiritual’. I think what she meant was that she wasn’t very pious. She thought that people had to put on a very posh or sugary voice when they pray believing that you have to speak to the Almighty in a certain way. Edith was too down to earth for that. So I asked her how her daughter was. She was going through an horrendous divorce. Edith told me all her anxieties and how she hoped God would strengthen her and be with her and the children and so on and so on. At the end I said to her, ’say ’Amen!’’ She asked me what I meant. ‘Well’, I told her, ’you’ve just been praying about your daughter for ten minutes so you might as well say ’Amen’. Edith was no fool and she got it right away. ‘I have, haven’t I?’ ‘Now come to the group and do it there again, amongst your friends.’ That is exactly what she did and everyone present promised to pray for her daughter. I saw a life lit up with new joy.
Edith didn’t join the rota for the intercessions. She had a much more important job in the church. She made all the purificators and corporals and albs and surplices. She was an amazing seamstress and everything she made for God’s service was made prayerfully. Every stitch carried it’s own moment of praise. ’It’s important to give God the best’ she would say. ‘After all, look what he’s given to us in Jesus. He’s given us so much love and grace. We must give our all to God!’
Of course, as she reminded me, she wasn’t spiritual! Yet she gave her all to God and that day when she prayed aloud in that Lent Group, she gave a bit more. And it made her happier than ever. I might just have forgotten to say that she not only made our albs and other linen, she also washed and ironed them! She lots more vestments for the Church—but she wasn’t spiritual!
As we Christians celebrate Pentecost, it’s people like Edith who come to mind because she is an example of those Christians who just use their gifts happily for God and actually don’t realize that they are doing anything more than returning to God the love they have received from Him. They never think about themselves. They lose themselves in the service of God and others. I think Edith was one of the most spirit-filled people I’ve ever met.
Dandelion near Bradley Wood. photographed by Piers Northam
I confess that I love Dandelions. They are always welcome in my garden. They brighten the early Spring and they are a wonder to behold. Maybe if we didn’t take them for granted or, worse, wage war on them, we might appreciate the intricate sun flower in all its bright array. The golden dandelion, with its intricate and gorgeous leaf formation will still be bringing bright joy to otherwise dull verges, hedgerows, fields, wastelands, and almost anywhere, whatever we feel about them.
I find this story (which I’ve quoted on a number of occasions) great fun. A frustrated gardener wrote to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. In his letter he explained that his aim to have a perfect lawn was being thwarted by the persistence of Dandelions. They simply kept appearing no matter what he did. He had tried to root them out; he had smothered them with various chemicals; He had re-sown the most badly affected areas but it was all to no avail. In desperation he begged the Ministry to provide him with a solution to get rid of the Dandelions forever. After the usual delay, an official wrote back to him. The letter offered the Department’s considered advice: We suggest that you learn to love them.
We should indeed learn to love them, though I am not expecting total agreement about that!
Here’s a poem from someone who does agree with me!
Unwelcomed Save by children, Dandelion, I declare you Patron flower Of prophets.
Who would Believe such power Lies within The beauty Of your soft Geometric fluff Posed to take A ride On the wind And land in Uninvited places?
Badger in Latton Garden. Photograph by Revd. Lynn Hurry
The badger was a night time visitor in her garden and Introduces herself.
“ I try not to show my face too often. It isn’t always wise or safe. As you see I have a rather distinctive face. It’s the broad white stripe that gives it away! I am told that it serves a purpose. It’s a sign of my knowledge and insight into matters not easily accessible to other animals on earth.
One of my special attributes is my strong jaws. This is very useful because it makes it easier to chew and also, when required, to snap and bite at those other animals who like to throw their weight around. A much more useful thing is that my jaws help me to habit the mysteries of the Word’, which is a pretentious way of saying how I reveal the ‘magic of storytelling.’
When needed, I give away generously to people, a magical word which is the way I guide people who are looking for beauty, encouragement and a more open mind especially when they seek a differing direction and purpose in life which otherwise deludes them. I use the word, story’ in a sense of helping others to listen to that inner voice whereby God speaks. I am part of that spirit-filled creation which leads people to embrace courage and independence and so cultivate a tenacity which shows the importance of holding on when running away and hiding would feel much safer.
Drawing from my own characteristics and a tendency to dig deeper into the soil of the earth, I am able to show other members of God’s creation how to embrace untapped potential and take that journey all of us must take if we are to become our true selves under God.
I have this story to tell from the heart of my being and it has inspired a number of important people to use me as a character in their writings. The late eighteenth century poet, John Clare, wrote of me in a poem entitled Badger. At a time when many humans were cruel to animals, he took my tenacious character and wove it into a poem which emphasizes endurance and resistance rather than then being a victim. Beatrix Potter, in her Tale of Mr Tod, was less kind of me, speaking of my curiously, earthy voice in a dismissive way. She called me Tommy Brock By then, I was being referred to as Broc which actually was my Celtic Name and really only meant ‘grey.’. That nice Mr Graham, who wrote the delightful book, Wind in the Willows, called me a “wise and kind badger” though he did say that I could be bossy at times, by which he meant that I was forthright!
Things are not always what they seem and humans are not the be all and end all of creation. Each of us animals have insights, hopes and loves to offer as we share in shaping Creation. Each of us is made by God and we are Icons of His presence in the world. We are all filled with God’s Spirit and signs of the totality of His loving being. Increasingly we need to see that truth and treat Creation and the Created order in a new and more grateful way, all of us as part of God’s story of pure love.
Many the gifts, many the people, many the hearts that yearn to belong. Let us be servants to one another, making your kingdom come. (Bernadette O’Farrell)
[Mr G, a visiting Badger and The Revd.Lynn Hurry] 30th April 2026
[Based on a sermon by Piers Northam and adapted and added to by Mr G.]
This week we, in the United Kingdom and the British Commonwealth, have commemorated the Anniversary of the Birth of Queen Elizabeth II (our longest reigning Monarch) who would have celebrated her Centenary on April 21st. She died in 2022.
At the time of her death, our present King – Charles III – wrote:
‘The death of my beloved Mother, Her Majesty The Queen, is a moment of the greatest sadness for me and all members of my family. We mourn profoundly the passing of a cherished Sovereign and a much-loved Mother. I know her loss will be deeply felt throughout the country, the Realms and the Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world.’
In his message we can note a holding together of the two things: the personal and the shared. The Royal Family were mourning a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother; and we as a Nation were mourning the death of our Sovereign – who for many of us at the time was the only one we’ve ever known – but one with whom so many of us feel a strong, personal connection.
At the Platinum Jubilee, just before her death, the then Prince Charles began his speech ‘Your Majesty… Mummy…’ to huge applause. For Queen Elizabeth inhabited both those roles and in so doing, she became the person who drew us together as a worldwide family – through national ties, but also through ties across the Commonwealth and beyond. She inspired love and that drew people of all races, colours, creeds and classes together. This was her gift and, in her way, she made possible a drawing together of people.
She not only brought people together but also, through her historic ancestry was a link with many previous generations. She had clearly defined links to Queen Victoria and further back to Margaret of Scotland – the sister of Henry VIII. Her bloodline was well established. It brought with it a right to rule but this right was tied with both responsibility and accountability. No one, with power to govern, either elected or inherited, can avoid accountability which defines how they act and how that action is carried out in service for others. This is very important in our present day when some world leaders are wielding power for their own ends and with no real sense of care for others. Queen Elizabeth did not rely on right or might. What defined her was not bloodline, but rather, loveline.
For Queen Elizabeth the Loveline had its roots in God and in an Almighty Love which has a global outreach – and one that extends beyond humanity to all of Creation.
Queen Elizabeth gladly accepted that God’s love is for each and every one of us, his beloved children who, through Jesus are drawn into a global and eternal family of love. She expressed this in terms of a belonging together as a community under God, remembering that community is about holding our world in a common unity. Her Majesty, in her Christmas broadcasts, clearly proclaimed her belief in the importance of community: In 2001 she said this:
‘I believe that strong and open communities matter both in good times as well as in bad. Certainly they provide a way of helping one another. Communities also give us an important sense of belonging which is a compelling need in all of us. We all enjoy moments of great happiness and suffer times of profound sadness; the happiness is heightened, the sadness softened when it is shared. But there is more than that. A sense of belonging to a group, which has in common the same desire for a fair and ordered society, helps to overcome differences and misunderstanding by reducing prejudice, ignorance and fear. We all have something to learn from one another, whatever our faith… whatever our background, whether we be young or old.’
But her understanding went further than that, as she said in 2007:
Jesus of Nazareth reached out and made friends with people whom others ignored or despised. It was in this way that he proclaimed his belief that, in the end, we are all brothers and sisters in one human family.
Our humanity alongside our responsibility for the Care of all Creation is rooted and grounded in Love which flows from the Love of God.
For Queen Elizabeth this became an essential part of her loveline which she expressed in two ways. One is that she had a deep interest and love for people. At an individual level, so many have talked of how when they met her, she paid them her full attention; really listening to them; entirely focused on them during their exchange. There is that sense that in so doing, she honoured their identity, openly and without judgement.
The other theme is the way that at a national and international level, she was able to draw us together; to point to something bigger than our own private concerns. Her ability to forge a connection with us; to show her love and care and concern for us in that long life of service – service to the Nation, the Commonwealth and the wider global community;– helped us to feel that vital sense of connection to each other; helped us to see beyond ourselves and give us a sense of belonging. In our deeply fragmented world both internationally and locally, we need to take those words, which are the essence of who Elizabeth was, and cherish them deeply in our own hearts.
All this sprang from her profound faith and trust in God.
This must be something we seek for our own lives and what we should expect and demand from others. Not least from those in leadership who act in ungodly ways whilst pretending to believe they have some kind of Divine right to behave as they do! Not least those who have the temerity to believe they might have some claim to a Godliness which couldn’t be further from the truth.
Reflection on the Saints, their actions, prayers and faith has always been an helpful way of shaping our own lives and souls. Queen Elizabeth lived a saintly life (indeed, for me she is a worthy candidate for for Canonization!) and as we seek a way out of the present morass of our world, we would do well to ponder on her example, values and faith.
Here’s how we may set about doing it:
by following her example;
by trusting in the goodness of God and his ability to do great things;
by looking beyond ourselves to others;
by seeking to draw all people into family;
by honouring each of God’s beloved children who are our brothers and sisters;
So, here’s a blessing prayer which was a favourite one of Queen Elizabeth’s.
Go forth into the world in peace; be of good courage; hold fast that which is good; render to no one evil for evil; strengthen the fainthearted; support the weak; help the afflicted; honour all people; love and serve the Lord, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Mr G's Ponderings 