TBC June 2019
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Tarves and Barthol Chapel Quarterly Newsletter TBC June 2019 'Front cover reproduced by kind permission of Ailsa Ross and AA Publishers' Issue 49 TOLQUHON GALLERY Original art in a unique setting beside Tolquhon Castle Paintings, Sculpture, Ceramics, Glass, Wood, Jewellery 15 June - 9 July — Jolomo ‘A Tapestry of Colour’ 20 July - 31 August — Summer Exhibition Tolquhon, Tarves, Ellon, AB41 7LP T: 01651 842343 E: [email protected] www.tolquhon-gallery.co.uk 2 ‘The Woman Who Rode a What?’ Hello to readers of the June TBC Newsletter Have you heard of Kimi Werner? Neither had I, until I read a chapter on her adventures in ‘The Woman Who Rode a Shark’ by Ailsa Ross. I had 2 long train journeys recently where ‘The Woman Who Rode a Shark’ was my companion, and I paid no attention to time until the mid-afternoon con- nection. Kimi was the adventurer who swam with a shark on a research expedition to Mexico in 2013. Further chapters in this book tell stories about daring women, from the pirate queen Teuta in 200BC to Isobel Gunn leaving Orkney in 1780 for Hudson Bay and up to present times where Aus- tralian Jade Hamiester age 16, skied to the Arctic. The bright blue front cover of this book instantly invites readers to open up and from then on, readers of all ages will be engrossed. We relate to deep sea diving, mountaineering, space exploration, as adven- tures principally undertaken by men: Scott and Shackleton, Aldrin and Arm- strong were pioneers in exploration and we are familiar with their 20th century achievements, but Ailsa’s new book will make young people hungry for more information on each of these female characters. I would never encourage anyone to ‘draw’ on books, but for any young reader of this book, an old charity shop encyclopaedia would be an ideal companion with a pencil to trace their routes. Follow the 1977 travels of Robyn Davidson across Australia, Amelia Earhart as the first women to fly across the Atlan- tic in 1932, teenager Laura Dekker who sailed round the world alone in 2011/2012 and Hester Stanhope crossing the Syrian desert in the early 1800s. Reading their achievements would be a joy for curious minds with the hopeful outcome of further reading and even creating a personal sense of adventure (closer to home for a start naturally). The illustrations in this book are bold, bright and highly original, relaying the theme of each of these female ground breakers, sea breakers, space breakers, mountain climbers and travelling journalists. Ailsa has been on many adventures herself, all starting from her family home in Tolquhon in Tarves, with tales to tell on each of her own journeys. This book introduces young readers, girls and boys to many parts of adven- ture history that until now, have been undervalued and unreported. Start reading by visiting Tarves Heritage Museum or the Murly Tuck and investing in your own family copy. It is too good to wait until the traditional gift giving season – let your young adventurers and readers enjoy this now. You will enjoy it too. Ruth Nisbet Editor [email protected] 3 The Manse 8 Murray Avenue Tarves Dear Friends A couple of months ago we had a new addition to the manse house- hold – an eight week old golden retriever puppy, who goes by the name of Melville. He is the fourth in our line of golden retrievers. As Melville is our fourth retriever, we thought we knew all we needed to know about puppy-proofing the house and garden…..well it turns out that we had for- gotten quite a lot in ten years! Let me explain. Over the winter Sean has been busy building raised beds in a section of the manse garden. We thought we might grow some fruit and vegetables to enjoy later in the summer, and at the same time see if we can improve on last year’s 2nd prize for a cucumber in the Tarves Flower Show! To protect the new beds and their contents from the unwanted attention of dogs, Sean put up a piece of fencing and a metal gate. Unfortunately, within 48 hours of his arrival Melville had dis- covered he was small enough to get through between the railings in the gate. So we hurriedly blocked them up with a piece of netting. Then the puppy discovered the fun of digging and managed to tunnel his way un- der the gate – until we blocked that off too. But woe betide us if we forget to shut the gate - he is into the vegetable area like a shot enjoying the wooden beds, the smells, the vegetation, building himself a nest in the midst of it all! For Melville it seems, that that old rusty gate leads into puppy heaven – and he is determined to find his way there! I don’t know what your idea of heaven is, but the Bible has quite a lot to say about heaven. The kingdom of heaven was the subject of much of Jesus’ teaching. And while we may not be able to say exactly what heav- en will be like, we do know that in heaven it is God’s reign that prevails. And that reign is characterised by love and justice, peace and joy. What is more the Christian understanding of heaven begins not after we die, but in the present. Wherever we see darkness being transformed into light, hatred and bitterness into grace and forgiveness, war and conflict into peace and joy, pain and suffering into healing and wholeness, then we see the seeds of God’s future reign of love growing in the world today. Sadly, down through the generations God’s future has too often been misinterpreted or abused by those who would seek to promote their own ideas of heaven. Much violence has been perpetrated both in the name of religion and against religion. And we have seen tragic examples of this in recent times in New Zealand and Sri Lanka. However, in the midst of 4 this the Church celebrates the season of Easter. And we are reminded that sin and death and hell do not have the last word. Because the last word be- longs to God who is love. In love, for love God in Christ laid down his own life for the world. And he invites people to share in his work of love, and to pray for the coming of God’s kingdom on earth as it already is in heaven. And that may mean laying down our own selfish hopes and dreams, or giving up things that are precious to us, for the sake of God’s world and future gen- erations. Surely what our world needs more than anything else today, is a renewed vision of God’s heaven, and a fresh determination to seek love and justice, peace and joy for all the world’s people. And while that may sometimes seem a far off hope, it begins to become a reality as we seek, with God’s help, to live it out in the small actions of our own daily lives. I hope you have a relaxing and refreshing summer, and look forward to catching up with you at the various celebrations and events that we enjoy in Barthol Chapel and Tarves over the summer. With warmest wishes Alison I Swindells Your friend and minister Tarves Kirk Session News ● Sunday Worship - 11.15am in Tarves Kirk (Unless otherwise intimated) ● Informal Communion after worship on the last Sun- day of the month. ● Refreshments every Sunday unless there is Messy Church or Communion Please note that during July we will hold joint services on Sundays 7th and 21st July at Barthol Chapel and 14th and 28th July at Tarves, all at 10:30am. Thinking Day: 24th February This year we heard from the uniformed organisations about how Guiding be- gan. As usual attendance was good and we enjoyed some lively songs. Tell our Story April 2nd saw us host the Presbytery meeting at which Barthol Chapel and Tarves told our story. This was a worthwhile experience and it was good to make connections with others around the Presbytery. Feedback has been very positive. 5 Lent, Holy Week and Easter This was a busy time with the study group and various services. As I was on holiday, I can’t report from personal experience but reports are good. Particular mention was made of the Easter service conducted by Valerie who tackled some of the challenges around acceptance of resurrection. Alison was at the Easter Messy Church which you can read about elsewhere. Fashion Show The Fashion Show was a great success raising a magnificent £1100. A big ‘thank you’ to Alison & Andrew along with their models and helpers who put on a fantastic show of Spring & Summer fashion. Also thank you to the local busi- nesses and villagers who supported this event with raffle prizes, the Tarves Church team for all the organising and everyone who came along on the night. A brilliant evening. Spring Communion 12 May Around 80 people attended our spring communion. Once again we used the old method of 'tincture' - dipping the bread into the common cup. With gluten free bread and non-alcoholic wine, each person partakes on exactly the same basis so it is very inclusive. Alison preached an excellent sermon that as usual, was very thought provoking. Future events Sunday 2 June: Annual Meeting during worship. Saturday/Sunday 28/29 September: Harvest Festival weekend of events in the Church and Youth Hall.