December—January 2021 Churchchurch && Villagevillage Newsnews

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December—January 2021 ChurchChurch && VillageVillage NewsNews

THE BRININGHAM BENEFICE

BRININGHAM St Maurice STODY St Mary BRINTON St Andrew SWANTON NOVERS St Edmund HUNWORTH St Lawrence THORNAGE All Saints www.brininghambenefice.org.uk

Rector: Churchwardens: (01263)

BRININGHAM: 862785 Miss Sylvia Took 860057 Mrs Karen Siddall

BRINTON: Mrs Esme Bagnall-Oakeley 860247 860247 Mr Jeremy Bagnall-Oakeley

HUNWORTH: 713306 Mrs Charlotte Crawley 861114 Ms Lucy Woodall

STODY: 862247 Mrs Nicola Baker Mrs Morag Lloyd 860407 Advertising rates for the SWANTON NOVERS: ‘In Touch’ magazine: Mr Roger Langston 860163 1/8 page: £25 per annum THORNAGE: 1/4 page: £50 per annum Mr Joe Ashley 862298 1/2 page: £100 per annum Full page: £200 per annum Editorial Team: Invoices and receipts will be sent. BACS payments or Teresa Anderson at; cheques accepted. Contact: [email protected] [email protected]

Views expressed in ‘In Touch’ are those of the individual contributor, and do not always reflect the official doctrine of the Church of England, nor necessarily the views of the Rector.

Items for inclusion in the February magazine are welcomed and should be submitted by Thursday 14th January please to Email: [email protected] 2

3 Prayer

Although this was published a fortnight ago, we at In Touch believe it is relevant for this edition.

5 The Christmas Census

Every ten years in our country all the adults are asked to fill out a form and send it to the government so that they can work out how many people live here and what their jobs are and so on. It’s called a ‘census’ and the next one is due to take place in March 2021.

But did you know that the first Christmas also involved a census? Just over 2000 years ago it was the Roman king Caesar Augustus who wanted to know how many people lived in all the countries that he ruled over. But they had to do more than fill out a form to be counted. They had to go back to their family’s home town.

For one young couple this meant travelling from Nazareth in Galilee to Beth- lehem in Judea. That was a journey of about 90 miles. What’s more Mary had just been told by an angel – a messenger from God – that she was going to give birth to a very special baby, someone God had been promising for hundreds of years to send into the world. Mary’s husband Joseph had also had a message from God. In a dream an angel told him that they should call this baby ‘Jesus’ because ‘he would save his people from their sins’. ‘Sins’ are wrong things that we all sometimes do.

We don’t know exactly how Mary & Joseph travelled to Bethlehem. It may have been by donkey and it must have been a difficult journey. We do know that when they arrived it was so busy that they couldn’t find a comfortable room to stay in. After all they weren’t the only ones who had to visit the town at the same time.

That night, Mary gave birth to a baby boy but there was no cot or bed for him. They had to lay him in a feeding trough which animals like cows usually ate their meals of hay from! There was no baby-grow either. Mary wrapped him in simple strips of cloth. And just as he had been told, Joseph named him ‘Jesus’. The name ‘Jesus’ means ‘God saves’.

6 So was it just an accident that Jesus was born in Bethlehem? His parents lived in Nazareth and would later return there, where Jesus would grow up. Well remember that God had been promising to send this special person into the world for many years. He made those promises to certain people who wrote them down for others to read. People who wrote down God’s promises were called ‘prophets’. Those promises include many details about Jesus’ birth. For example, about 700 years before Jesus was born, God had told a prophet called Micah that the one who could save his people would be born in Bethlehem. Yet Caesar Augustus knew nothing about that when he ordered his census! God had used even that Roman king to make his prom- ise come true, exactly as he’d said it would. The Bible tells us that God always keeps his promises. Jesus did come. He was born in Bethlehem. And he did ‘save his people from their sins’ through his perfect life, death on the cross and rising again from the dead. In fact God has a sort of a census too – a list of all who belong to his family by believing in the one he sent whose birth we remember at Christmas. You can read more about the birth of Jesus in the Bible, in Matthew chapters 1 and 2 and Luke chapter 2. QUIZ TIME! 1. What’s do we call it when people are counted? 2. How did God tell Mary & Joseph what would happen and what they should do? 3. Where did Mary & Joseph have to travel to? 4. Many years before, who wrote down the name of the place where the promised one would be born? 5. What does the name ‘Jesus’ mean? With your parent’s permission, email your answers to the questions – along with your age and address – to [email protected] and we’ll deliver a special prize! And if anyone would like a free children’s Christmas story booklet, or a free copy of the New Testament, simply send a request to the same email address. Matthew Pickhaver 7 Editorial

As we approach the end of 2020, the common feeling among us is what a strange experience this has been. For some, the lock-downs, particularly the first one, proved to be in some ways a happy time; but the current one feels subtly different and all the more irksome for that. Many people are worried about Christmas and how to make it work in difficult circum- stances.

However, there are some reasons to be cheerful. We are hearing promising news of vaccines becoming available - though there is still some way to go before promising news becomes a certainty. As well, the weather so far has been relatively kind (if wet) and don't forget that after 21st December the days start to become longer.

Wishing you a safe and happy Christmas from all at In Touch.

Teresa

Please see the article on page 33 on the sad news regarding Glynis Williamson.

Norfolk Life Did you know ….

The label on a Duvet, when sown on the edge, goes to the side of the bed when making up the cover. No more having a second go !

8 Poem for the Month

Forward by John Smart—Thornage For my December offering I have chosen a startling metaphysical Poem. Robert Southwell (1561-95) was a Jesuit priest and martyr. 'The Burning Babe' is his best known poem. AS I in hoary winter’s night Stood shivering in the snow, Surprised I was with sudden heat Which made my heart to glow; And lifting up a fearful eye To view what fire was near, A pretty babe all burning bright Did in the air appear; Who, scorchèd with excessive heat, Such floods of tears did shed, As though His floods should quench His flames, Which with His tears were bred: ‘Alas!’ quoth He, ‘but newly born In fiery heats I fry, Yet none approach to warm their hearts Or feel my fire but I! ‘My faultless breast the furnace is; The fuel, wounding thorns; Love is the fire, and sighs the smoke; The ashes, shames and scorns; The fuel Justice layeth on, And Mercy blows the coals, The metal in this furnace wrought Are men’s defilèd souls: For which, as now on fire I am To work them to their good, So will I melt into a bath, To wash them in my blood.’ With this He vanish’d out of sight And swiftly shrunk away, And straight I callèd unto mind That it was Christmas Day. 9 Norfolk Life This Month’s Guest Recipe Norwegian Cinnamon Loaf

This months recipe is from Gro Butcher—Thornage

Ingredients:

125 gr butter 500 ml milk about 2 tsp yeast 100-150ml castor sugar 1 tsp cardamom, if you can't get ground cardamom, take the seeds out of pods and grind them 1300 ml plain flour

10 Method: If the yeast needs reactivating it needs to be done in some of the milk, warmed up. Melt the butter and add milk and warm up to 37 degrees. Mix 2/3 of flour, sugar, cardamom in a mixer or by hand. Then mix in the liquid, butter and milk, milk and yeast. Add more flour until the dough stops sticking to the bowl, but should be soft and very play- able. If you have a Kitchen Aid machine just leave it mixing for 5-10 minutes. Once well mixed form into a ball and leave a bowl, covered with club film until doubled in size, an hour or two depending on room temperature. Once doubled in size turn it out on a floured surface. If the dough is sticky a little more flour needs to be added. Roll the dough into a rectangular shape as per photos. Spread soft butter all over, be gener- ous, and then sprinkle with sugar (good to use brow sugar) and cinnamon. If you want to make a big loaf, fold one long side in 1/3, then the other side on top of that (so you have 3 layers) Cut the long rectangle into 3 strips and plat them into a loaf. Transfer to baking trap covered with baking paper and leave to rise again, about an hour. Can brush it with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar.

For a large loaf bake at about 220 °C for about 30 minutes. For smaller buns, baking time about 10 min. 11 A Bird Watchers Red - Letter Day

On the 9th of October, a friend and I were chatting in our garden when we became aware of a flock of Rooks and Jackdaws flying over us in a fast and aggressive manner, looking up we saw they were chasing a very large bird which glided quite low over us across the water meadows in the direction of Brinton. This very large bird had a massive wingspan, as it disappeared over the woods at Brinton, it glided the whole way not taking one wing beat, it truly was like a barn door moving through the sky. We had no idea what the bird was, at first I thought it might be a White Tailed Sea Eagle as I was aware that some birds of this species have been released as part of a re-introduction program in the Isle Of White but then thought the plumage was not right so I was left com- pletely baffled.

However during the evening I was watching the local news which in- cluded an item about a very large Vulture seen first of all in the Peak District then in Lincolnshire and travelling down to Norfolk, it was definitely our bird, it was a bone eating Bearded Vulture. Someone had found a few feathers from its roost in the Peak District which were sent for DNA testing and it was found that they were from a second year female bird part of a re-introduction programme taking place in the Alps where it had become extinct. 12

Whilst here it had been feeding on road kill victims and had stopped the traffic on several roads including the A12. It was last seen in England flying out over the Channel towards France and we now know it is safely back in the Alps.

How lucky was that ?

Joe Ashley—Thornage

Do you have a comment or view on this article. Email the editor of In Touch and let us know. [email protected]

Nostalgic Advertising

13 Briningham

BRININGHAM VILLAGE HALL DRAW RESULTS

October Draw Results 1st Prize £15 Ralph Wiggins No. 6 2nd Prize £10 Chris Westlake No. 49 3rd Prize £5 John Whelan No. 39

November Draw Results 1st Prize £15 Melanie Thomson No. 12 2nd Prize £10 Janice Ainsley No. 37 3rd Prize £5 Gemma Rolfe No. 39

Norfolk Life Did you know ….

Sodiam Hydroxide can remove stubborn stains caused by make-up on white towels. Oven Pride Deep Cleaner has the right mixture. Use an old toothbrush and rub a small amount of the liquid into the stain. Leave for an hour and wash. Wear protected gloves and glasses. 14

15 What do the 12 Days of Christmas mean?

The partridge in a pear tree: Jesus Christ. Two turtle doves: The Old and New Testaments. Three French hens: Faith, hope and love. Four calling birds: The four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John. Five golden rings: The first five books of the Old Testament. Six geese a-laying: Six days of creation. Seven swans a-swimming: The sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit. Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy. Eight maids a-milking: The eight beatitudes. Nine ladies dancing: The nine fruits of the Holy Spirit. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control. Ten lords a-leaping: The Ten Commandments. The eleven pipers piping: The eleven faithful disciples. The twelve drummers drumming: The twelve points of belief in the Apostles’ Creed.

THORNAGE VILLAGE WEBSITE ThornageVillage.com

Photographic Competition 2021 It is planned to have a photographic competition in 2021. Details of categories and how to enter will be posted on the Thornage Village website in due course. Those from outside Thornage will certainly be welcome to take part.

Check out the new village website let us know what you think. [email protected]

Norfolk Life Did you know ….

The colourful wrappers of Quality Street sweets are compostable? They’re made from cellulose, derived from wood pulp, so rather than chuck them in the bin, add them to your compost heap!

17 Iceni Christmas Choir

Celebrations of Readings and Carols at St Nicholas’ Church, Blakeney Two concerts on Sunday December 20th at 4.00pm and 6.00pm Also at Binham Priory Church A concert on Monday 21st December at 6.30pm The Iceni choir has been giving carol services in North Norfolk for thirty one years, twenty five under the baton of our conductor Mark Jones. This year, Covid 19 permitting, we propose to hold three shorter concerts, as above, in Blakeney and Binham. Attendance is free but, due to social distancing, is limited and restricted to those with prior reservations. Those wishing to come should;

Blakeney  Apply by email to [email protected],  State the number of places to be reserved, ie one, two or a family group,  Indicate the concert they prefer to attend but be prepared to accept places at either of the concerts according to availability and  Provide all the names of the people concerned Applications will be allocated on a first come, first served basis and will be acknowledged and determined as soon as possible. Ushers will lead the audience to their reserved places. Masks should be worn unless the then current rules permit otherwise. You are urged to arrive in good time.

18 Binham

Those wishing to attend the Binham concert are asked to contact Maureen and David Frost at [email protected].

All these arrangements are subject to the rules that will apply after December 2nd, and assume that there will be a relaxation from the lockdown to the tier system that applied before. Though we cannot hold carol services as such, we hope that these concerts, with a lighter touch, will bring you some Christmas joy in these hard times.

Poultry keepers across England, Scotland and Wales are facing tough new lockdown-style measures on their farms to control the spread of bird flu. It follows outbreaks of a “highly pathogenic” H5N8 strain of bird flu in Cheshire, Devon, Gloucestershire and Hertfordshire over the past two weeks. The outbreaks have been found in wild bird popu- lations and two broiler chicken farms, where all the birds are being culled. The UK’s Chief Veterinary Officer Christine Middlemiss has declared an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) across the whole of England to mitigate the risk of the disease spreading.

19 THE MAYFLOWER PILGRIMS AND THEIR

WORLD - Phil Anderson - Thornage

Following on from the article in the last edition of In Touch the May- flower had arrived in the New World with 102 passengers and around half of these did not survive the following twelve months. How then did such a small group survive let alone prosper. The reasons are many but one factor is particularly significant. Beavers were plentiful in the area and the indigenous population had trapped them and used their fur for generations. However, in England in around 1619 beaver hats had become the fashion item du jour. In the early 1620’s the hats were selling for around 50 shillings and as always what was fashionable at court became desirable for the “moneyed classes. ”It is worth pointing out that these hats bore little resemblance to the tall pointed hats depicted in Victorian paintings of the Pilgrims. In the mid-1620’s the fashionable beaver hat was known as a mousquetaire which had a low rounded crown and a very wide brim and was usually adorned with a gold or silver hatband and ostrich feathers.

This unexpected source of income (or gift of God depending on your viewpoint) provided the settlers with the means to acquire much needed supplies and in particular cows and sheep. Previously no merchant ship would have supplied items to a struggling small colony but now they were competing to obtain the supplies of beaver fur.

20 Another strand from the previous article was the Norfolk connection with the Pilgrim Fathers. Of the 102 passengers four of the Leiden congregation were definitely from Redenhall. These were Edward Fuller, his wife (recorded only as Mrs Fuller), their son Samuel (aged 12) and Edward’s brother, also called Samuel. Two further families were also believed to be originally from Norfolk although the evidence is not con- clusive.

The Tinker family consisted of Thomas, his wife and his son whose name was recorded as “boy”. The Turners were John and his two sons who were recorded as “boy” and “boy the younger”. Sadly all three “boys” failed to survive the winter of 1620.Of the servants of the Leiden congregation Desire Minter was definitely from Norwich and John Hooke was almost certainly from the Norwich area .Of the passengers recruited by the Merchant Adventurers Edmund Margesson was believed to be from Norfolk.

To complete the Norfolk connection John Robinson, the Pastor of the Pilgrim Fathers, was not born in Norfolk but as detailed in the last In Touch was based in Norwich before going to Leiden. His wife was Bridget and her brother, William, was on the Mayflower together with wife ,Susanna, and their son Resolved (aged 5). Susanna was pregnant at the time of the voyage and duly gave birth to Peregrine on board the ship in Cape Cod Harbour. Susanna was not the only pregnant passenger. The other was Elizabeth Hopkins who gave birth to Oceanus on the Mayflower en route to the New World.

There is considerable historic debate about the origins of some of the passengers but perhaps significantly there seems to be no dispute that two dogs made the voyage: Peter Browne took his large bitch mastiff and John Goodman took his spaniel.

In the interests of space I will limit myself to a more detailed account of just one of the passengers. This is John Howland who hailed from Fen- stanton in Huntingdonshire and was part of the Leiden congregation by virtue of being the manservant of John Carver.

21 Aged about 21 at the time of the voyage Howland very nearly did not make it to the New World-in the blast of a gale in mid-ocean he came up on deck and almost immediately fell overboard.

John Howland

However before he hit the waves he grabbed a rope that was trailing in the sea and this kept him afloat long enough for a fellow passenger to haul him out with a boat hook. Howland described as a “lustie young man” went on to spend five decades in America. He was considered a “profitable” member of the community primarily because he managed the beaver trading post at Cashnac. He clearly took his responsibilities seriously .Even at a relatively advanced age he and his men were involved in a gunfight which resulted in the death of an English fur – trading competitor.

Howland and his wife, Elizabeth are, however, best remembered for founding a lineage with probably more descendants than any other Mayflower couple. At the time of his death in 1673 John Howland left his widow, ten children and eighty eight grandchildren. Many citizens of the USA today claim to be descended from the Pilgrim Fathers Some of these claims are very dubious but for those making such a claim the best option would seem to be to claim descendancy from Howland. It would take an immense amount of research to disprove.

One other aspect of modern America is the importance given to Thanks giving. Supposedly after having survived for one year the colonists had a feast and referred to it as Thanksgiving.

22 In fact the only Thanksgiving referred to by either Bradford or Winslow (the most significant Pilgrim Father diarists) was held immediately the Mayflower reached dry land. This was not a feast but a religious ceremony based on a Jewish ritual, the birkhat ha-gomal. Hebrew had a special appeal to the Puritans who wished to absorb the wisdom of the Bible and especially the Old Testament from as close to the original sources as possible. In particular there was mistrust of errors in trans- lation aided and abetted in the Puritan view by duplicitous Roman Ca- tholicism.

Thanksgiving at the site of Plymouth Plantation, in Massachusetts

It is the case that probably in October 1621 there were festivities after the first harvest but from what Winslow describes (which is but a few words) this was most likely secular in nature and a reminder of Har- vest Festivals in England. The honest answer is that nobody knows for sure what the event was but we can be sure that the Pilgrim Fathers would not have described it as a Thanksgiving ceremony.

In conclusion I would like to reiterate that the Mayflower passengers had very mixed motives for crossing the Atlantic. The original records list each passenger in grades of wealth and social standing. At the top of the list were John and Katherine Carver together with their five servants and at the bottom of the list were ten single men without families land or skilled occupations. No direct mention is made of religious convictions (or absence of) but while the Leiden congregation were certainly radical Puritans we do know others had Puritan leanings of a less radical nature and it seems others were purely economic migrants. 23 Revitalisation! Yoga in the time of Covid 19

Yoga is a set of practices designed to help people realise a sense of wholeness, harmony and potential through physical postures, breath- ing exercises, relaxation techniques and meditation. It works at all levels on the mind and the body and makes us feel stronger physically, mentally and emotionally.

Yoga is non-competitive, causes no harm and the only special equip- ment you will need is a mat. You will work to the best of your ability, without strain. For many people, their first yoga lesson marks the be- ginning of a lifelong practice.

I am a fully qualified Yoga teacher and Yoga Therapist and have been teaching in North Norfolk since 1996. I teach yoga in groups and provide one-to-one yoga therapy, tailored to a wide range of medical con- ditions.

Yoga Therapy is not a substitute for conventional medical treatment recommended by a GP, but is complementary to it. Many GPs now ad- vise a course of Yoga or Yoga Therapy for their patients.

My teaching style is calming, encouraging, and gradual. During a yoga class we focus upon moving harmoniously with the breath, which de- velops a sense of wellbeing. By reducing muscular tension and focusing on the breath, the mind can relax. There is simply no time to worry! As the mind relaxes and negative emotions are progressively eliminated, tension subsides. At the end of a session, you will feel physically re- newed, mentally refreshed and able to see things from a fresh perspec- tive.

24 Lockdown is the perfect time for practising Yoga!

Practising yoga helps us establish a good daily routine and a focus for the day ahead.

It’s a great way to begin one's day with pleasant stretching movements and provides a slot in which to switch off from everyday concerns. You can practise at any time of the day or evening that suits you, so long as you have not just eaten.

Feeling better physically translates into feeling better mentally. I tailor practices to all levels of fitness and flexibility.

Gentle movements of the joints will enable you to move more easily in daily life and your increased flexibility and strength will lessen the risk of falling.

Whilst Covid 19 restrictions last, most of my classes will be held online via Zoom.

If you would like further information, please telephone or visit my website where you will find details of times and fees.

www.yoga-northnorfolk.co.uk

You can use the link in the website to email me, or you can ring me on

07767 650405.

If you are experiencing financial hard- ship because of the lockdown, please let me know; reduced fees are available for anyone on benefits.

I look forward to meeting you!

Paula D'Attoma BWY (Dip.) YBT (Dip) 25 Brinton

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Norfolk Life

Sowers and Growers December — January Look after the birds Wash and disinfect bird feeders and tables. Clean out bird baths too, stock up on fat balls and make sure they have access to fresh water. Attract birds, which will in turn eat pests in your garden. Prune climbing roses now, removing diseased or damaged growth and tying in any new shoots to their support. Prune older flowered side shoots back by two thirds of their length. Rose Bushes that suffered from black spot or rust this summer gather up and remove any fallen leaves to reduce the chance of infection next year. Lift and store dahlia tubers once their leaves are blackened by frost. Check climbers are securely attached to their supports with ties. Now is the perfect time to prune fruit trees to maintain an open, balanced structure and encourage quality fruit production. The excep- tion is plums, cherries and other stone fruits that should not be pruned until the summer to prevent silver leaf fungus. Use clean, sharp secateurs to avoid damaging your trees.

Now is the perfect time to prune fruit trees to maintain an open, balanced structure and encourage quality fruit production. The excep- tion is plums, cherries and other stone fruits that should not be pruned until the summer to prevent silver leaf fungus. Use clean, sharp secateurs to avoid damaging your trees. Protect wall trained peaches and nectarines from wet winter weather which spreads the peach leaf curl fungus. Construct a screen of clear polythene over the plant, but not touching it. 28

Lift and divide established clumps of rhubarb to renew the plant's vigour. Sections taken from the outside of the plant are better than those from the centre. Protect the tips of fig tree branches. They will carry the fruits for Sowers and Growers next year and are susceptible to frost. Cover with fleece or straw. If your strawberry plants are over 3 years old, remove and encourage new plants from runners to replace them. Old strawberry plants can harbour diseases and tend to lose vigour and productivity. Ventilate the greenhouse on warmer days to reduce humidity and the risk of disease. Work in some manure to greenhouse borders to prepare them for next spring. Leave enough space to add compost later on. Propagate perennials from root cuttings including phlox, oriental poppies and mint. Keep an eye out for aphids over-wintering on your plants, remove them by hand or use a pesticide. Avoid walking on your lawn when it’s blanketed by heavy frost or snow, as this damages the grass. If it's a mild winter, continue to cut the lawn if it's grow- ing, but raise the height of the mower blades. Spike lawns with a garden fork to improve drainage and aeration. Keep clearing leaves off the lawn to let the light in and prevent dead patches appearing. Check the security of your shed. This is particularly important in winter when you visit it less often. Repair fences and apply a wood preservative to prevent them from rotting. There’s still time to clean out water butts before they fill with fresh rain water over winter. Check tree ties and stakes to ensure that trees are still secure following strong autumn winds. Tighten or loosen ties as necessary. 29 Hunworth and Stody HUNWORTH AND STODY VILLAGE HALL

Our Village Hall has a well-equipped kitchen, plenty of parking, quality tables and chairs and is available for hire from £7 per hour.

To book, please contact: Des Simmonds at Ivy’s Cottage, Stody on 01263 862523 or 07305 585279 or [email protected]

As usual, the keys will remain with the Crawleys at Hunworth Hall and all payments should continue to be posted through the Crawleys’ letterbox, on collection of the keys. WITH MANY THANKS TO ALL OUR REGULAR CLIENTS!

30 Hunworth and Stody

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Glynis Williamson We were very sorry to hear of Glynis Williamson’s death. She had been the Parish Clerk for Hunworth and Stody for many years and the clerk for Thornage for the past four. Glynis was very much a family person who relished time with her husband, children and grandchildren. She was knowledgeable and experienced and respected by all the mem- bers of the councils she served. But, most of all, she brought a sense of calm and kindness to our meetings. If things got heated, her presence was always calming and constructive. We shall all miss her very much and send our condolences to her family. - John Smart

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33 Backwards and Forwards

In his poem Aubade, Philip Larkin describes waking at four o’clock in the morning and, in the “soundless dark”, seeing “what’s really always there: Unresting death, a whole day nearer now”. Aubade is a meditation on the unique fear that death engenders in us. Thinking about death, Larkin writes, “is a special way of being afraid/No trick dispels”. One of the “tricks” used to dispel the fear of death is (or was) religion, “that vast moth-eaten musical brocade/ Created to pretend we never die”. This is a beautiful and memorable line but it demonstrates why Larkin is a better poet than a theologian.

This year, we have been much preoccupied with death. Faced with a highly contagious virus we have seen how we respond when death seems closer than we are used to. It turns out that we do not respond very well. The public health crisis of 2020 has cemented our already well- established moral arrogance in the face of ill health. It seems that we now regard serious illness and death from virus or disease as something of an affront to our right to an ever longer and more comfortable life. In other words, they are obstacles to the pretence that we never die.

Where is religion in this? Even the most enthusiastic advocate for religion will admit that it is a diminishing force in public life, almost van- quished in many hearts and minds. Having lost our religion, one would think that the pretence of immortality might die with it but instead this is a delusion that grows and expands. In the absence of religion, not only do we pretend we never die but we seem also to lose all notion of our ever having to do so. Larkin’s view of the pretence offered by religion ap- plies more properly to a world without religion, the world we have created since the much-trumpeted death of God. It is in this modern god- less world where the avoidance of death takes root and flourishes.

Religion, by contrast, uses notions of immortality and spiritual eternity to fashion a vocabulary which enables us to confront our fear of death. Religion does not deny the reality of death: it does not pretend we do not die or regard death as a failure of some divine health and safety policy.

34 Indeed, a frequent criticism of religion is that it focusses too much on mortality and Christianity is the only major faith in which God becomes incarnate in order to die.

In the 15th century an entire culture of “the good death” emerged. The ars moriendi (the art of dying) instructed people in how to prepare for a calm and gentle death through a process of reconciliation with the events of their lives. One of the most moving of early medieval hymns, set and translated many times since is “Media vita in morte sumus” (In the midst of life we are in death - look for the sublime setting by the Tudor composer John Sheppard). The dialogue between life and death, darkness and light are central themes of this time of year. As we head into the very dead of winter, Christianity turns its mind to light, new life and new beginnings. Christmas is the most obvious and celebrated explosion of life and light out of darkness. But 13th December sees the Feast of St Lucy, the saint in whom “is the way of light”. And the turn- ing of the year from old to new forces us to look both backwards and forwards in the manner of the old Roman twin-faced god Janus, from whom the first month of the year gets its name.

An absence of religion (an absence for which, sadly, the Churches themselves are, in part responsible) produces hysteria in face of death. Religion, by contrast, sees beginnings and ends as part of a great eter- nal cycle and so reconciles us to the fleeting nature of our lives. Our gradual creeping towards death might be frightening but, properly un- derstood, it gives shape, focus and meaning to our lives. As this year has shown, it is possible to be so afraid of death that we become afraid of life.

Andrew Taylor—Briningham

35 Thornage

Thornage Village Draw

November Draw Results 1st Prize £20 No. 59 Jim Freeman 2nd Prize £10 No. 49 Julie Gould 3rd Prize £5 No. 40 Chris Butcher

In It to Win It As the year draws to a close, we are looking ahead to 2021 so all those who wish to participate in next year's lottery please contact [email protected] or phone 01263 862284 Organised by FROTH the Friends of Thornage Group Rob Palethorpe 01263 862284 [email protected]

FROTH the Friends of Thornage Group FROTH would like to welcome a new resident to the village Gill Surret At Meadow View House Hello and Welcome

37 The Cromer & District Foodbank needs the following:

CHRISTMAS PUDDINGS - NO ALCOHOL

CHRISTMAS CAKE - NO ALCOHOL MINCE PIES - NO ALCOHOL

CHRISTMAS CRACKERS CRISPS AND SNACKS TINNED SALMON SPONGE PUDDINGS

TINNED POTATOES CUSTARD

TINNED HAM FRUIT JUICE BOXES OF BISCUITS SQUASH

CHOCOLATE TREATS TOILET ROLLS

If you feel able to donate any of these items we would be very grateful. Items for the foodbank may be left at: The main warehouse in Cromer, which is located at the back of the Methodist Church (NR27 9DT) If there are large donations then collection may be an option.

Foodbank 07826 376343

Items for inclusion in the February magazine are welcomed and should be submitted by Thursday 14th January please to Email: [email protected]

39 Thornage

Thornage memories of life in the 1950s to 1970 Tony Gravelling, a former Thornage resident sent us these fascinating recollections of time past. (First Published in parts within In Touch during 2017 2018 The basic structure of Thornage has changed little over the years but back in the 1950s the village seemed almost self sufficient in terms of services to those who live there. The local shop which in those days sold most things and had an adjoining bakery was very much the focal point of the village with Ernie Eke the shopkeeper listening to match of the village gossip. Queues would form on the shop steps early on Good Friday for freshly baked hot cross buns. The black boys’ public house was another rallying point for village folk wanting to chat and a pint or two. It had a well kept bowling green in the grounds and was popular with many of the working man. At the bottom of the street the post office kept by Lorna Bunn was a village essential before the days of the emails and Ipads. Thornage All Saints Church at the centre the village was, and still is the spiritual home of many of the village. The Old Rectory was home for many years to the Rev. John and Laura Lord who not only arranges church services for Thornage and Brinton but showed their many talents when arranging the village fetes in the rectory grounds. The rectory room, attached to the rectory served as a useful village community room for meetings or youth clubs. Almost opposite to the church stood the little Mission Hall which was converted from a small cottage in the 1940s by a Mr. Stanley Killick. Sunday Services and a Sunday school were held weekly together with the ladies meeting on a Tuesday. A Sister Annie Heavens felt called to move from London to Thornage to lead the Mission Hall later joined by Miss Edna Cordukes. Annie a single lady who lived in the cottage by the stream had no transport and constantly walked many miles whilst house visiting in Thornage and nearby villages. A little way along the street from the Mission Hall stood the butcher’s shop run by Mr. Markey who would cut the meat to your liking and sell homemade sau- sages and pork dripping. 40 Thornage

Thornage was without nursing staff as the adjacent house to the butcher’s was home to the District Nurse then a Miss Sainsbury. The local doctor, of course, was based at Holt but often those doctors (notably Dr. Nixon) would have time to pop in to visit folk in the village he had not seen for a while. It may have seemed that Thornage did not need a policeman, but a po- lice house on the Letheringsett Road was home to Mr. Margetson who I was told never arrested anyone but would give a good telling off to anyone called scrumping apples or riding a bike at night without lights. Street in Thornage were kept clean and hedges cut by local roadman with his barrow and tools. A carpenter’s shop opposite the Lether- ingsett Road turn run by the Howlett family could make anything in wood including coffins. Many of the houses in the village were given large gardens in which to grow their own vegetables or keep some chickens, but as time went on people travelled further to work there was less time to spend in the gardens. This is where local retired couple came to the fore. Mr. and Mrs. Fordham owned a substantial smallholding and grew vegetables to sell to passers by. This was the next best thing for village people who wanted fresh local produce almost on their doorstep. Some products however had to come from the bigger shops in Holt. Byfords was a treasure chest of hardware products and her large brown van from the store delivered weekly and Thornage. The cheery call ‘Anything from Byfords’ would ring at the door and so anything from paraffin to hand tools, and kindling to polish. The Rusts and Co-Op groceries store in Holt would also deliver to the door those essentials not to be found at the village shop. The friendly delivery ladies always had time for a chat and a cup of tea while taking the orders for the next week. Milk in those days was delivered to the door daily and did not travel far as Howard’s Dairies was just a stone’s throw up the Brinton road and where you could also have television, if you had one, or radio prepared by John Howard. In those days not too many of the population owned a car but for those who did there was a garage run by Mr. Littleboy at the Holt end of the village who would service or repair your vehicle. 41 Thornage

Village schools were common in those days. Unfortunately Thornage was not considered big enough for a primary school but children were given a place at Brinton over a mile away. With no transport to the school pupils had to walk or cycle along the road or cross the meadows by footpath. This footpath took you through a very muddy farmyard, through a field with cattle (cowpats), across a stream and up a fenced pathway where there were many beehives. This was of course before the days of risk assessment!

Older children went to Melton Constable secondary modern school, or if they passed the 11 plus to Fakenham Grammar school or Greshams in Holt. In winter the narrow roads to the schools were often deep in snow and some days off school were almost guaranteed.

From this you might think that there was little for children to do in the village but far from it. There were many lovely walks out of the village; games will be played on the green or even in the road. There were clubs for children and outings to the beaches of Wells, Sheringham and Mun- desley. At Christmas time many children would be involved in Carol singing at every house, collecting money for charity and ending up at one of the big houses who would have hot mince pies and drinks at the ready.

In the holidays one of the aims for children was to earn pocket money. Jobs could be done for other people, also in the Summer there were fields of currants, beans and strawberries to be picked where you could earn a few bob for collecting baskets full.

The local gamekeeper, a Tom Welton who lived near the garage towards the Hunworth turn-off, would pay good money on a Saturday, for beating out pheasants in the fields and woods for the line of guns to take pot shots at. Money aside, children were often seen in the harvest field watching their fathers cut the corn and bale the straw, or cycling around the country lanes when there were fewer, and slower cars around.

With the railway nearby you could watch and listen to the steam trains puffing their way through Hunworth, Brinton and Briningham to Mel- ton Constable. 42 Thornage

At the weekend there were often cricket matches played on the meadow with the stream running through – a challenge for the fielding side. Many excellent players made up the Thornage team and were highly rated amongst other teams in the area such as Gresham and Aldbor- ough. The cricket field was later moved to the present playing field where part of the famous Go-Between film was made in the 70’s involv- ing many local people as ‘extras’. If you were patient and keen on fishing you could pass many hours by taking your fishing gear and cycling down to the lovely lake at Letheringsett watching that bobbing float and hoping for a big catch before it was time to cycle home when the clock on the Hall chimed and told you it was ‘going home’ time.

The fact is that this small village holds many memories for past resi- dents and visitors alike and hopefully will treasure its history and keep the village atmosphere alive.

Tony Gravelling,

Thornage Bottle Bank

The bottle bank in Thornage provides very useful revenue for the Parish Coun- cil and helps to keep the precept as low as possible. Recently there has been a slow- ing down of bottle deposits.

So this is an urgent plea: Use it or Lose it!!

WORSHIP & EVENTS

Briningham Benefice Schedule of Services

December 6th Thornage

13th Briningham

20th Brinton

25th Stody (Family Service, 10.30am) 27th Swanton Novers

January 3rd Thornage 10th Briningham 17th Brinton 24th Stody (Family Service) Swanton 31st Novers

All services are Holy Communion and are at 10am unless otherwise specified.