Tag: Mr G

Singing the song in our heart

I post this on St Cecilia’s Day, November 22^nd. Since the 15^th century she has been known as the Patron Saint of Music. A document known as the Golden Legend’ described her as a “bride of Christ whose love of music elevated her soul to God. This document also encouraged us to consider the link between earth and heaven. It is a link between the song of heaven, led by the angels and the echo of that song on earth, particularly in religion, poetry and music.

The poet, John Dryden, wrote a Song for St Cecilia’s Day which strengthened that link and serenaded the power of music with the line:

“What Passion cannot music raise and quell?”

For many of us, this is expressed in song and hymns and psalms whilst others use the gifts they have to make music in other ways. (Not a mutually exclusive experience!)
Song and music as an expression of faith has been the subject of a short piece of writing by the Taizé Community which is worth pondering over:

Singing is one of the most essential elements of worship. Short songs, repeated again and again, give it a meditative character. Using just a few words they express a basic reality of faith, quickly grasped by the mind. As the words are sung over many times, this reality gradually penetrates the whole being. Meditative singing thus becomes a way of listening to God. It allows everyone to take part in a time of prayer together and to remain together in attentive waiting on God, without having to fix the length of time too exactly.
To open the gates of trust in God, nothing can replace the beauty of human voices united in song. This beauty can give us a glimpse of “heaven’s joy on earth,” as Eastern Christians put it. And an inner life begins to blossom within us.
These songs also sustain personal prayer. Through them, little by little, our being finds an inner unity in God. They can continue in the silence of our hearts when we are at work, speaking with others or resting. In this way prayer and daily life are united. They allow us to keep on praying even when we are unaware of it, in the silence of our hearts. (Taizé Community)

I love the quotation from Maya Angelou which accompanies the photo above.
In the interplay of the Godly song of heaven and our earthly melody of the heart it is good for Maya to remind us that the main reason we can sing and make music is because there is a song in our heart to be sung. A Song put there by God. It raises spirits and lifts our lives beyond ourselves to God. That’s a good enough reason for me to sing.

[Mr G + Taizé Community]

Blowing the Whistle on ARP.

*Air Raid Precaution Whistle. photo by Mr. G.*

Last weekend we kept the annual Remembrance for those who died/gave their lives for their country in both the First and Second World Wars. Increasingly, and sadly, we have added further conflicts for our remembrance, since 1945. From Aden to Afghanistan (and now in Europe and the Middle East) the battle for peace and justice continues to need both our prayers and our participation.

Last weekend, at the UK Festival of Remembrance in the Albert Hall, London, there were deeply moving moments as, through the medium of television, we joined in thanksgiving for all who in the armed forces, the support groups who worked with them, and the Merchant Navy contended against evil. In different ways, all of us were involved. This included those who worked in the munitions industry and in farming, as well as others in reserved occupations in civilian life.
One group, however, has rarely got a mention beyond being classed with the ‘civilian services’.

As I looked for the family medals, I came across a ‘whistle’ with the inscription ‘A R P’. I was immediately reminded of ‘Auntie’ Annie, who, though unable to join the Army, could at least do her bit. The letters ARP stood for Air Raid Precaution and the whistle was a vital part of the equipment given to those who ‘volunteered’ as Wardens.

The main role of an ARP Warden was to protect people during air-raids when enemy attacked by dropping bombs, especially on our cities.
After the bombings began in 1940, in what is known as the ‘blitz’, ARP wardens became important and necessary members of our communities, especially in highly populated areas.

They received prior warning of the raids and shepherded the population into shelters, either purpose built or designated such as the London Underground.
They were also in charge of making sure that the ‘black out’ was observed, checking that every light was switched off or blocked with heavy curtain. This was to ensure no naked lights could be seen by the enemy. After the bombing, wardens led the rescue of any caught in the rubble, trying to reunite families and seeking those who were on their own. The wardens would also try to find temporary shelter for those made homeless. All this, as well as tending the injured with First Aid and even helping to put out any fires alongside fire-fighters.

The Whistle was provided to alert people of an incoming raid. Most were made in Birmingham by J. Hudson & Co, in brass and then chrome-plated. The company also made police whistles and in order to distinguish them, the ARP whistle was given a less sharp and shrill sound. An ‘Air Raid Warning’ pamphlet produced by the government in 1939, explains:

‘When air raids are threatened, warning will be given in towns by sirens, or hooters which will be sounded in some places by short blasts and in others by a warbling note, changing every few seconds. The warnings may be given by the police or air-raid wardens blowing short blasts on whistles.‘

As in the photo above, the letters ARP were engraved on the body.

All in all, in some areas particularly, being an Air Raid Warden was a very demanding and dangerous job and many communities relied on their service. Most of those who became Wardens were part-time and voluntary and over 7,000 were killed during raids in the 2^nd World War.
It has been estimated that over a million Wardens served over the whole period of the war. One of them was Annie Chiverall whose ARP whistle is in my possession.

Winston Churchill said, in 1940, that “it was not only soldiers who were engaged in battle but the entire population, men, women and children”. Those who served in as ARP Wardens responded to that call to serve alongside so many in the Civilian Services. They deserve a recognition for what they did and why they did it. It is often said that wars begin and prosper where, in the face of tyranny, good people do nothing. Dear ‘Aunty’ Annie was a good person who did her bit and more.

I hold them in loving remembrance and share in a peace and a justice that they worked for and know that this isn’t something confined to times of war. It is now and it is always.

And weep

The hand of a little girl clutching a cross at the siege of the School in Beslan, Russia
in September 2004. She was rescued and was a survivor.
This photo taken by a journalist at the scene went viral and spoke of the horror
and also the hope which often emerges in the most evil of situations.
In our current world of darkness and on a day of Remembrance we too must hold on to hope
and strive for peace and and work for love to prevail.
(Remembrance Sunday 2024)

and weep

Photographers and film-makers
take their images of devastation,
and weep.

Reporters, clad in flak jackets,
tell their story of human failure to live in peace,
and weep.

Old people,
once more sift through the rubble of their homes,
heavy with despair.
and weep.

Medicine men and women
try to bind up wounds,
and weep.

Parents watch children play
among diseased and crumbled streets
of a lost childhood,
and weep.

Mothers, fathers, grandparents
hold bundles of the dead,
hearts bursting with grief,
and weep

We, who cannot bear their pain,
switch our televisions to football matches
and bake-offs
and try not to weep.

And God …
seeing once again
what his children are doing to one another,
climbs upon a cross
and weeps.

[Mr. G. ]

Pondering about water

*Mist over Windermere, Lake District, photographed by Gill Henwood.*

The BBC reported last week that a water company responsible for supplying water and treating sewage in Cumbria has been pumping untreated waste into Lake Windermere. This was between 2021 and 2023. It was illegal dumping of sewage and it has damaged the water quality in the biggest Lake in the area. The figure reported is over 140 million litres of waste poured into the Lake at times when this was not permitted.

Britain’s water companies are under scrutiny for the pollution of lakes, rivers, streams and ultimately, the Sea.
One campaigner said that Windermere, the jewel in the crown of the Lake District
National Park is being used as an open sewer.
Hopefully the Water company concerned will be taken to task by OFWAT, the Water Services Regulation Authority and will be sanctioned to act responsibly in service to their customers. and keep our water supplies safe.

*The boy is trying to catch a few drops of water in Gaza.* (Getty Images)

Keeping water safe to drink combined with making it available to those in great need is a different but not unconnected story. The Global Commission on the Economics of Water report that more than
2 billion people lack access to safe drinking water, and 3.6 billion people – 44% of the population – lack access to safe sanitation. Every day, 1,000 children die from lack of access to safe water. Demand for fresh water is expected to outstrip its supply by 40% by the end of this decade. Over half of the world’s food production comes from areas experiencing unstable trends in water availability.
For the little boy in our other picture (reproduced last week in the Guardian Newspaper) it makes no difference how much water is wasted in the Lake District. He could well be dead by the time the balance between making money for shareholders and honest and responsible service to its customers gets sorted out.
In Gaza, Lebanon, Ukraine, Africa and so many other dark places in the world, the basic right of innocent people for clean water is making the situation far worse. So we have to work for a fair distribution of God’s provision of natural resources making them available to all. Failure to do this would be yet another sign of our misuse of the Planet which is not ours to do with as we like but is for all to share.

Loving God, we ask for Your blessings on children,
mothers, fathers, and communities who are thirsty.
Purify, protect, and multiply their water sources.
Strengthen their resolve so they may fully enjoy the benefits of clean water
— essentials like education, gardens of fresh produce, and good health.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heavenly Father, source of living water,
Proverbs 25:21 says, “If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat;
if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.”
Please convict our hearts to help children, families, communities,
and even our enemies to receive clean, accessible drinking water.

[Mr G]