Brixham Mission Community

Brixham, Churston Ferrers, Galmpton,

July 2020 Price 50p

  THE BRIXHAM MISSION COMMUNITY   THE CHURCH OF IN BRIXHAM     CHURSTON FERRERS, GALMPTON AND KINGSWEAR

Team Rector The Rev’d Stephen Yates The Church of England The Rectory 16 Holwell Road Brixham TQ5 9NE 01803 853106/07840 785426 [email protected]

Team Vicar The Rev’d John Gay 13 Warborough Road, Churston Ferrers TQ5 0JY 01803 845692 [email protected] Associate Priest The Rev’d Angela Sumner (Self-supporting) 9 Wayside, Brixham TQ5 8PY 01803 853959 Licensed Miss Wendy Emlyn, 42 Old Road, Preston TQ3 2RA 555192 Lay Mr Martyn Hodge, 3 Gillard Road, Brixham TQ5 9EG 851302/07932620999 Ministers Mrs Hilary Hyde, 1 Windmill Road, Brixham TQ5 9SG 852323 Mrs Eileen Saunders, 50 Alma Road, Brixham TQ5 8QR 852975 Miss Sue Shaw, 13 Higher Copythorne, Brixham TQ5 8QB 882613 Mrs Elaine Vestey, 167 Northfields Lane, Brixham TQ5 8RD 883454 Mr Roger Williams, Hunters Moon, 19 Horsepool St, Brixham TQ5 9LD 431961 SUNDAY SERVICES IN THE MISSION COMMUNITY—SUSPENDED FOR NOW

ALL SAINTS 9.30am Sung Eucharist and Junior Church BRIXHAM (Morning Worship 3rd Sunday) ST MARY’S 8.00am Holy Communion BRIXHAM 11.00am Sung Eucharist (1st, 3rd and 4th Sundays) 11.00am Worship for All (2nd Sunday) 6.30pm Sung Evensong ST MARY’S 8.45am Said Eucharist (Barn Chapel, Galmpton) CHURSTON 9.30am Sung Eucharist (1st and 3rd Sundays) 10.00am Worship for All (4th Sunday) 11.00am Sung Eucharist (2nd Sunday) 4.00pm Evensong (1st Sunday, Barn Chapel) ST THOMAS OF 10.30am Morning Prayer(1st Sunday) CANTERBURY 10.30am Sung Holy Communion (2nd and 4th Sundays) KINGSWEAR 10.30am Morning Worship (3rd Sunday) When there is a 5th Sunday there will be a joint BMC service at one of the BMC churches WEEKDAY SERVICES– SUSPENDED FOR NOW Tuesday 10.00am All Saints, Brixham Wednesday 10.30am St Mary’s, Brixham Thursday 10.00am Barn Chapel, Galmpton CLERGY DAYS OFF Revd Stephen Yates & Revd John Gay Friday The Clergy and Licensed Lay Ministers are glad to be told of anyone who would like a visit. The Blessed Sacrament is reserved in our Churches. Communion can be taken to the sick and the housebound by arrangement. 2

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4 Two local nursing homes, two outstanding reputations Three Corners Nursing Home in Churston Ferrers and Hill House in Brixham are now part of the same group. Both homes have outstanding reputations amongst local residents and healthcare professionals. Both homes also have excellent accommodation having been recently refurbished and extended and are mainly purpose built. They provide the best in nursing and residential care including short stay respite (subject to availability) and day care for convalescence. There are top quality en-suite bedrooms, fantastic lounges and dining areas, all in peaceful settings. Please ask to see what many local residents have said about the quality of the accommodation and the outstanding attention delivered by the care teams. Three Corners and Hill House both provide: Purpose built environment Highest quality care Freshly cooked wholesome food Well being and social activities Short and long stay Visitors welcome at any time For further information please visit www.threecornersch.co.uk or www.hillhousenursinghome.co.uk Or ring us on 01803 842349 Three Corners, Greenway Road, Churston Ferrers TQ5 0LW 01803 853867 Hill House, Park Avenue, Brixham TQ5 0DT

5 Brixham MOBILE FOOT CLINIC Tyres LAURA TURNER HCPC Registered Chiropodist/Podiatrist Tel: 01803 858307 BSc (Hons) Podiatry MChS Trade prices Direct to the Public on all For a friendly and professional service…. Visits to Elderly and Care Homes also Leading Brands NEW ROAD available Tel: 07817 514724 BRIXHAM email: [email protected]

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Brixham Bowling Club (Founded 1913) Affiliated to Bowls England & Bowls Nelson Road, Brixham TQ5 8BH Tel: 01803 852118

We invite new members (experienced or novice) to join our friendly club. Coaching is available, and we offer first year membership for free (although we do have to charge a small fee to cover our affiliation to Bowls Devon). For details, please see our website www.brixhambowlingclub.co.uk Or contact the Hon. Secretary, Chris Dawes, via email [email protected] Or phone 01803 883874 7 Editorial Welcome to the July magazine, the third produced entirely since lockdown. CONTENTS I’m impressed with how people think of things to contribute in spite of very little 9 From the Rectory happening outside our homes. Several 10 Churches of you have contributed reminiscences, re-opening for which throw an interesting light on the private prayer adventures that some of our older parishioners had in their youth. If you 12 BMC prayers for the sick had an interesting, publishable, youth- ful experience please tell us about it. 13News from Churches: St Mary’s, All Saints, It’s good to see our young people and Churston, Kingswear their leaders still getting involved with Messy Church and virtual walking for 17 Coronavirus scams Christian Aid. Thanks are due to Marie, 18 Hedgehogs Lesley and Lindsay for continuing to come up with challenging ideas—please 19 Lent appeal update help out and get involved if you can. 20 Christian Aid Definitely the happiest development this month is that our churches have re- Messy Church 21 opened for private prayer. The Mission 22 The church lectern Community must be keeping the sellers of red and white hazard tape in 23 What number bus? business. There are pictures to show 25 Reminiscences you what to expect when you go into church once again and all the times 26 Postscript from Sue when you can do so on pages 10 and 11. 28 Warden’s notes Copy date for July Our clergy keep finding fascinating BMC locations to stream weekly services Cover photo: tree of life quilt based on a William Morris from on YouTube—links, together with design hand quilted and this magazine and the weekly Grape- appliqued by Valerie Brown vine, are on Stephen’s weekly email. Anne Rickwood 8 From the Rectory Dear Friends, You may already know that the church’s year is split broadly in two. It begins, not on 1 January, but on Advent Sunday which marks both the beginning of the church’s preparation for Christmas and the beginning of seasonal time. Advent soon makes way for Christmas quickly followed by Epiphany. No sooner does Epiphany end than Lent begins, ending in the most glorious festival of all, Easter. Forty days later comes Ascension followed ten days after that by Pentecost. After six months of celebrating, or preparing to celebrate, different festivals, the church enters Ordinary time, six months without a festival. Ordinariness is one of those things that you often only long for when it has been ripped away. Those of you who have experienced long term illness, bereavement, a sudden change in your financial circumstance or other extraordinary times in your life will know what it is to long for things to return to normal, that they would once again be ordinary. To be told you are ordinary is often seen as a put-down, we encourage our children by telling them they are extraordinary; we look for extraordinary sporting, artistic or intellectual achievement. Whilst it is right to celebrate excellence, the bible teaches that human beings are both extraordinary, as they are made in the image of God, but also ordinary. St Paul says we are like simple jars of clay, Jesus reminds us that apart from him we can do nothing. For Christians the thing that transforms the ordinary is God working within them. As the church enters its ordinary time there are signs that wider society is beginning to slowly return to normal. As this happens I hope we will appreciate in a new way the joy of the ordinary, that we will look on those things we used to think of as mundane in a new way. So, as we enter a new season, why not take time to enjoy the ordinary things of life and to remind yourself that, though ordinary yourself, you are made extraordinary by the God who works in you and through you. With Every Blessing Stephen 9 Brixham Mission Community churches re-opening for private prayer Dear Friends, We are pleased to announce that most of our church buildings are now open for private prayer. This is really exciting news and I am sure that many of you will be keen to get back into the buildings of the Mission Community to pray. A huge amount of work has been put in by many people to ensure that the church buildings are safe and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them all. The diocese has asked that we remain closed during our normal service times, to minimise the possibility of too many people being in the building at once, which is why you will see that none of our buildings is open during normal Sunday service times. You will find that our buildings look and feel very different from usual. (photos here and later in this magazine) There is sadness that we are prevented from going to familiar places within them, we miss the joy of worshipping together, we miss the fellowship of hugs and hand- shakes. These things will return in time; as we wait do keep praying that, as we continue to adjust to new norms, we will continue to know that God, through his Holy Spirit, is guiding and comforting us. With every blessing Stephen

Saint Mary's, Higher Brixham Tuesday: 2.30pm to 4.00pm Wednesday: 10.30am to 12 noon Thursday: 7.00pm to 8.30pm Saturday: 11.00am to 12.30pm Sunday: 2.00pm to 3.30pm

Thank you to Alison Lodge for sourcing the sanitiser and Colin for building the beautiful stand which has pride of place in the South Porch entrance. 10

St Mary’s

All Saints Brixham Tuesday and Friday 10am to 12 noon

Churston Parish The Barn Chapel will be open on weekdays between 8.30am and 3.30pm Kingswear Parish Saint Thomas' will open on Mondays, Tuesdays and Saturdays between 10am and 12noon. STOP PRESS As this magazine went to press the government announced that church services could resume but without singing. Look out for further updates in the Grapevine and our Rector’s weekly emails.

11 In the absence of the printed weekly Grapevine, please pray for our members known to be unwell ALL SAINTS’ Chris Chinnery, Maggie Davis, Mike Lakey, Sondra Maney, Jenny Polson CHURSTON Miriam Beckett, Lyn Dowen, Michael Parnell, Anna Snuggs, Erin Venison, Elaine White, Debbie and family KINGSWEAR David Clayton ST MARY’S Linda O’Donnell, Vix Pritchard-Davies, Gordon Smith, Paul Stamp, John Upchurch, Angie May God surround all who are sick in mind, body or spirit with His healing love So that we can keep the prayers for the sick as up to date as possible, please tell us of any additions or changes.

THE TREE PRAYER You who would pass by and raise your hand against me, Listen before you harm me. I am the heat of your hearth on long winter nights, The friendly shade screening you from the summer sun, And my fruits are refreshing draughts. I am the beam that holds your house, The board of your table, the bed on which you lie, And the timber which builds your boat. I am the handle of your hoe and the door of your homestead, I am the wood of your cradle and the shell of your coffin. I am the gift of God and friend of all, You who pass by me listen to my prayer and harm me not.

Photo sent in by Gill Malkinson

12 News from the Mission Community Churches News from the Square Here we are again and how nice it is to be able to go into St Mary’s and to have a little quiet time in there for prayer. Obvious- ly one can pray anywhere but it is lovely to be back and to breathe in the atmosphere. A big thank you to all who did a brilliant job cleaning the church and making everywhere nice and fresh for us to visit, including a beautiful flower display beside the altar that Ann Dodd created, and some lovely welcoming flowers in the porch, thanks to Lindsay. See( also hand sanitiser picture page 10, thanks to Alison and Colin Lodge.) Also thank you to those who worked hard to prepare the building for social distancing. After our walk in the park Biddy see( pictures: left before, right after—the haircut we all need) and I had a walk in the churchyard and then we were first in the queue to enter St Mary’s. There were no bargains to be had but I did pick up a couple of plenary indulgences for next to nothing. It does look rather like a scene from Midsomer Murders with all the tape to maintain distancing which is a bit distracting, but then that is probably only my very scanty brain!

13 Remember the anchorite I told you about in my last article? Well, she is still down at Lindsay and Roger’s. They have grown quite fond of her and built a log cabin for her and her little dog in the garden. She now helps Roger choose new wines for his cellar and they have wonderful theological discussions. You must all now imagine the scene in St Mary’s Square as the immense queues of people waiting to get into St Mary’s for prayer wend their way through the Square and down Horsepool Street, where the anchorite entertains them from Lindsay’s front garden with her religious discourse and, for a modest donation, offers the pilgrims a glass of redundant altar wine. It certainly adds a little kudos to the area. Along with missing our celebrations of Holy Week and Easter we have also missed Pentecost and our shared service in Fore Street. I think we all enjoy meeting up with the wider Brixham church on this festival and giving joint witness to our town and the visitors but, like so much else this year, it did not happen and goodness knows when we will be together again for worship. In the meantime we just keep doing our best and making the most of things and thanking God for our many blessings. Our friend the anchorite, down Horsepool Street, reminded me of the words of her fellow anchorite Dame Julian of Norwich that, ‘All will be well and all manner of things will be well’. So until next time keep safe and well, enjoy calling into one of the churches for prayer and God Bless. Christine Carroll I thought you might like to see our Dracunculus vulgaris...otherwise known as a Voodoo lily or a Dragon lily. It comes out for about 36 hours, stinks of rotting meat, attracts flies and then dies away!! The stem is an amazing leopard skin pattern and is beauti- ful. Lindsay Williams 14 ALL SAINTS Well, like all our churches not a great deal to report in terms of services although with the technical abilities of our clergy and our intercessors we can still experience our Sunday services via YouTube and the Coffee Morning via Zoom. In addition, those of you who are online will find the link to this magazine there when Stephen circulates the weekly service/ Grapevine information. Probably like all the churches we have been preparing All Saints for the partial re-opening for private prayer and the accompanying photographs (see page 11 where the opening times are shown) will attest to how different the church will look for weeks to come yet. Our PCC decided on Monday 22nd to limit the opening times to just Tuesday and Friday from 10am to midday. We initially thought to open for perhaps five days per week and we are grateful to the number of volunteers who offered to assist in stewarding on those occasions. However it did present some logistical challenges and the times we have decided upon mean that we only need two dedicated couples to manage those openings and they give a 72 hour period between openings, therefore requiring only minimal cleaning following each opening. Although, as this goes to press, the Government is set to announce the reduction of social distancing to 1 metre, we have taken a more cautious approach and the church remains arranged to cater for the 2 metre distancing, which we feel our mature congregation members will feel more re-assuring. Peter’s Rose Sadly many of you will recall that in 2019 we lost Peter Dyer to God’s tender mercy. Margaret and Peter love gardening and recently Margaret planted one of Peter’s favourite roses, Bonica, in the churchyard. Margaret hopes it will create a colourful memory of Peter and we all look forward to watching it grow beautifully. With All Blessings Peter & Susan

15 From the Churston churchwardens Greetings once again to all our parishioners within the Brixham Mission Community. Perhaps some of you are now getting a little frustrated with the situation throughout the land but particularly in our part of the west country. Without trying to be political, the senseless attitude of thousands of people crowding our lovely beaches, most of them visitors, was beyond belief. That’s enough on that subject. On to other business. At last the new bell ropes have arrived and are in place. We believe the bell ringers are happy and relieved everything is now ready to go for our first service, whenever that shall be. With Covid 19 easing gently the country seems to be going in the right direction. However there is still no indication of when normal church services will commence. But churches are now open for private prayer for short periods (see details page 10 and 11). Our Christian thoughts are with those whose marriage ceremonies have had their date altered a number of times due to the coronavirus. On 6 June our Union flag was raised in memory of the servicemen who lost their lives during the D-Day landings and beyond. A poppy wreath was laid in our Garden of Remembrance. The Union flag was raised again on Satur- day 13 June in honour of our Queen’s official birthday. It stayed in position to commemorate the liberation of the Falkland Islands on 14 June 1982. The Potterers are still working hard every week. The church organ is still being played every two weeks to ensure all is well, and those on their own receive a phone call to ensure they are well and not forgotten. God bless you all. Bob and John

May the Celtic Blessing strengthen you in the coming week May the roads rise to meet you, May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, The rains fall soft upon your fields, And, until we meet again, May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.

16 Bob Marley RIP 7 June 2020 Bob was born in Wallington in Surrey. After leaving school he worked in a local bookshop and then for the NHS. At the age of thirty he retired from work on medical grounds. Bob and Sandra married in 1972 and moved to Torquay in 1982 where they purchased a guest house. They moved to Brixham in 1986 and Bob spent many hours at the Brixham Mission doing all he could to help. Bob attended Churston church for many years and was always willing to assist in any way, especially when the church held open days and flower festivals etc. Rest in peace Bob. Compiled by Bob Brooke

Watch out for Coronavirus Scams Kindly sent in by Elisabeth Lakey from the Food Alliance Lots of scammers are using coronavirus to trick people into giving them money or personal information they can use to commit fraud. Help stop them in your community by talking to your friends and family about scams, and what they can do to protect themselves. Scams to look out for include:  Advertising face masks or medical equipment at high prices  Emails or texts pretending to be from the government  Emails offering life insurance against coronavirus  People knocking at your door and asking for money for a fake charity Protect yourself against coronavirus scams:  Make sure you only use trusted sources of information about coronavirus  If you see emails about coronavirus from someone you don’t know, don’t click on any links or buy anything  Don’t give money or personal details to anyone you don’t know or trust—for example, if someone knocks on your door and offers to help 17 Coronavirus Prose Poem By Kitty O’Meara, a former teacher and chaplain who lives in Wisconsin, USA, and has said the poem ‘offers a story of how it could be, what we could do with this time’. And the people stayed home. And read books, and listened, and rested, and exercised, and made art, and played games, and learned new ways of being, and were still. And listened more deeply. Some meditated, some prayed, some danced. Some met their shadows. And the people began to think differently. And the people healed. And, in the absence of people living in ignorant, dangerous, mindless, and heartless ways, the earth began to heal. And when the danger passed, and the people joined together again, they grieved their losses, and made new choices, and dreamed new images, and created new ways to live and heal the earth fully, as they had been healed.

One example of apparent healing, sent in by parishioners, is the revival of hedgehogs. This one is the first to appear in Alison Crozier’s garden for 25 years. I hope the moral of The Mower by Philip Larkin makes up for its sadness

The mower stalled, twice; kneeling, I found A hedgehog jammed up against the blades, Killed. It had been in the long grass. I had seen it before, and even fed it, once. Now I had mauled its unobtrusive world Unmendably. Burial was no help: Next morning I got up and it did not. The first day after a death, the new absence Is always the same; we should be careful Of each other, we should be kind While there is still time. 18

Mandy Seffert found this one while clearing leaves in her garden

The flowers don't know there's a virus, they sit there and smile at the sun. They brighten your day in a positive way. They'll be here when the whole thing is done. The birds don't know there's a virus, they sing for all they are worth. They have no idea of the panic and fear that's creeping all over the earth. The hedgehogs don't know there's a virus, and wonder why traffic is light. It eases their load when they're crossing the road and now they feel safer at night. The cows don't know there's a virus, Still need to be milked every day. It seems such a shame and they're not to blame, but the farmer just throws it away. The dog doesn't know there's a virus, he still wants to go for his walk. We stand 20 feet from the people we meet. We wave where once we would talk. John Wilkinson BMC Lent Appeal update The total raised across the BMC, including gift aid, was£1293.63 plus £50. Helen Lovell from the Mission thanks you all for making a real difference in enabling them to support present and retired fishermen.

19 THANK YOU for showing such marvellous love and generosity. The final total of all donations is £8,027.79 and that figure was reached without the usual visit to Lindsay and Roger's lovely garden! As you know you can't put a good woman down – so Lindsay and Sue Shaw replenished our books and made our gardens prettier by their roadside plant and book sale. And now Marie is preparing for Christian Aid Week 2021. She writes, “following our Land's End to John O' Groats jaunt a few of us thought it might be nice to carry on in some way, especially as we were benefiting from the regular exercise. This idea developed into a 'Round the World Walk' which we hope to complete by Christian Aid week 2021! Along the way we can find out about the work Christian Aid is doing and hopefully continue to raise much needed funds. We do need 40 or so walkers to make it manageable so I do hope you can join us again. As long as you are already a member of the group you just need to join our new walk and start adding steps. As we are in it for the long term, I would suggest adding steps weekly. I hope you will be able to contribute steps again and prove that together we can do amazing things.” Christian Aid encourages us to pray, act and give. We have given and acted and it is now time to storm heaven.Pray for our global family. During the coronavirus crisis, many people here in the UK and Ireland are experiencing some of the vulnerability that the people with whom we work experience every day. They’re also showing similar qualities of resilience. The communities with which Christian Aid works face an even bigger shock than the one through which we’re going. They’re already confronted with the injustice ofa climate crisis that wasn’t of their making. Now they face the threat of this pandemic – but lack the health services to protect them. Their economies will be crippled by the economic problems we and they face and this will lead to more hunger and poverty. PRAY for communities, which are already struggling, that the coronavirus does not destroy their resilience to cope. PRAY that our global family comes together to help each other, as neighbours are currently doing in the UK and Ireland. PRAY for climate justice and, as many meetings and 20 gatherings are cancelled, PRAY for those facing isolation and loneliness. There are now doubts as to whether the UN climate talks, COP26, will be able to go ahead. PRAY that, whether the meeting happens as expected or not, governments make the right decisions to increase their urgent actions to stop the climate crisis. “I have come that they may have life in all its fullness”. Mary Fallon

MESSY CHURCH June Even though we have been unable to meet during June, our Messy Church family has been in our thoughts and prayers. We have been busy planning the next Messy Church craft pack that will be going out to 50 children around Brixham. We will be looking at how we can be responsible guardians of our wonderful coastline, which is part of God’s wonderful creation. To help us with our ‘packages’ we would be grateful for any of the following: 6-egg eggboxes; Inside of kitchen rolls; Empty tissue boxes; Empty juice bottles…..any size…..it’s the bottom of the bottle we want! Coloured nets in which fruit or vegetables come; Plastic bottle tops…..any colour! Any of these items can be dropped off at Lindsay’s: Hunter’s Moon, Horsepool Street (431961) or Lesley’s: 13 Smardon Avenue (854036) Thank you as always for your support and prayers.

21 The Church Lectern Just before lockdown the Junior Choir of Churston were learning a song called “On Eagles’ Wings”. It was not long before I was asked, ‘Why an Eagle?’ I never did get time to explain all that but here is an explanation regarding eagles on church lecterns. Why are the lecterns in Anglican churches almost always in the form of an eagle with outspread wings? Well there are many theories on this, and here are some of them. One is, the Eagle is the symbol of John the Evangelist who proclaimed Christ as ‘the Word of God’ at the beginning of his Gospel. The flying eagle is thus a suitable emblem from which God’s word is read. It is also a bird which it is thought can see and fly directly into the sun, therefore can fly nearest to heaven. I am not sure such lecterns are confined just to the Anglican church. It was not until the Reformation that the lectern became prominent in ordinary parish churches of the reformed tradition carrying the open bible. Another theory is that the symbol of the eagle goes back to medieval use of astrological symbols in church design. The eagle of Scorpio is one of the four fixed signs of the zodiac and they represented stability and endurance long before Christianity arrived. They were appropriated to symbolise the four Apostles who were considered to be the firm and lasting foundation of the Church. Leo was given to Mark, Scorpio to John, Taurus to Luke and Aquarius to Matthew. But you should look closely at some of these eagles because some of them in fact are pelicans. If the bird looks as if it is scratching its breast with its beak, then it is a pelican. There was a myth that all pelican chicks were born dead, until the mother bit her own chest and revived them with her blood. This was open to much religious allegory (blood of Christ, resurrection etc) and the birds became a Christian symbol. There is one famous exception to the eagle motif in a church in the town of Boynton in the Yorkshire Wolds, where the lectern is in the shape of a turkey, commemorating the story that a local resident brought the first turkey to Britain from North America. Mike Wilkinson

22 Reminiscences from Christine Watt—What number bus? I grew tired of that question when I was going to Calcutta by bus. It was in 1968 when such ventures were considered bold and brave, but I chose it in the interests of economy—£100 from London to Calcutta, roughing it! The only competition they had was an expensive one, way out of reach of the pockets of me and my companions. The company provided tents and airbeds and we took it in turns to buy and cook supper. Frank, the driver, called us Brown’s cows when we followed too closely on his heels, but he cursed and nursed that old bus for ten weeks, richly deserving the gift we made him on arrival. We left Victoria coach station in September and our first camp was inland from Ostend. I shared a tent with a Kiwi (most of the party were antipodians) and harmony reigned throughout the journey. We joined the autobahn next day to Munich with a visit en route to Dachau, now a memorial to the holocaust, and Heidelberg. We crossed the Europabruck into Austria, with overnight camps at Innsbruck, and on via the Brenner Pass to Trieste and Venice. Mostly the dry weather made the whole thing exciting but, when rain nearly washed away a few tents one night, we began to take life more seriously. We continued through what was Yugo- slavia, with a stop at Zagreb, and on to the rather freer atmosphere of Greece. We explored Delphi and spent about three days in Athens, before taking a boat from Piraeus to the island of Mikonos for a few hours in that enchanting place. By this time we had been introduced to the ‘luxury’ hostelries that sometimes replaced our camping comforts, with varying criticism of Frank’s negotiating capabilities. (Although this was the fourth time he had done this journey, so no wonder he was hardened!) We travelled on, via Delos, Alexandropoulos and Salonika, swimming where possible, and enjoying the warmth and ever-changing scenery. Everywhere, it seemed, there were ruins of ancient civilisations that had come and gone over the centuries. When we reached Turkey we were told that camping was not permitted so we found ourselves cheap, often primitive, places to stay overnight, often sleeping in our bags on the floor. Istanbul allowed us a couple of days to explore, shop and, in my case, collect letters from the post office. Remarkably, the daily postcard I sent home arrived and was added to the record being kept of my travels. I was not allowed to photograph 23 Troy without payment but, as it is Troy IX, with the previous eight underneath, I decided on economy. We skirted Ephesus to visit Pergamum as a day excursion—well worth it! - and returned by the same route, after which we continued eastwards to Pamukkale. This is a fantastic place, honeycombed with sandstone caves which have housed people for centuries. This was dry, inhospitable country but cattle, sheep and people seemed to survive. The halfway point of our ten week journey was crossing into Iran. Here things were noticeably different. A couple of nights in Teheran and then on again via Persepolis, Isfahan, Sheraz etc to Afghanistan. Another contrast! Kabul was primitive, to put it politely, but I still managed to send the daily postcards. It took us four days to cross to Pakistan, including the dreaded Khyber Pass. After a short stay at Lahore we crossed into India. There was much to see and do there, including New Delhi, Jaipur ‘the pink city’, Agra and the Taj Mahal, Benaras and Patna. At Patna some of us left the bus to fly to Nepal for a brief stay in Kathmandu. We hired bicycles to explore the villages, and rejoined our erstwhile companions in Calcutta. From here some of us paid a brief visit to Thailand and spent a couple of days in Bangkok before returning to Calcutta to pick up a train that took us along the Malay coast to Singapore. En route my very small group and I enjoyed a day or two at Penang, recovering from our ten week bus journey. By this time most of the original party were a little the worse for wear. Finally we flew from Singapore, via a transit stop at Jakarta whence I sent my last postcard, to Sydney. Thus, apart from Frank who was driving his wonderful old bus back to London, we had all arrived. Well, almost. There was still a long flight to New Zealand for some of us to look forward to, as a homecoming or the start of a new adventure for me, as I had a job to go to. Meanwhile my arrival in Sydney came as something of a shock to my would-be hostess who had had no word, and a disappointment to me who had sent it. There was nothing for it but for me to find temporary work and take myself off until my expected arrival in New Zealand. With the few pounds I managed to earn I decided (an inspiration?) to take a coach tour. But that’s another story. Please tell us Christine—Editor

24 Reminiscences from Valerie Jackson So, my loved friends, in this dire situation we are now living in let me amuse you as I have a talent to amuse. My story is not ecclesiastical but it does involve a church. In August 1968 my husband and I, from Dartmouth, had to go to a 1pm wedding in . I was wearing a new light wool coat with three mid-waist buttons. I, then so elegant and busy with my two small boys and a new baby, dressed in a hurry and, oops, the new frock I had bought from Chanel in Torquay (those were the days) was one inch longer than the coat. So I abandoned the frock and just wore the divine coat. So off we went, my husband Charles and a friend, Adrian, at noon to Newton Abbot on roads in 1968 free of traffic.En route we met the bridegroom and his best man, with their car broken down at the side of the road. There were no mobiles then so my husband walked to find a phone box to call the AA while I drove the bridegroom and best man to Newton Abbot, an area we were not familiar with, to find the church. [In order to get to the punchline there is sadly no room for the amusing description of the wedding itself, conducted by a very deaf retired vicar who omitted the vital words ‘those whom God has joined together let no man put asunder’- you can imagine it. Editor] After the wedding and champagne and much laughter in the bride’s mother’s garden we set off to return to Dartmouth. At that time, on the road from Newton Abbot to Dartmouth, there was a famous tea shop – Miss Mellor’s Tea Rooms – where ladies wore hats and gloves and drank tea from china cups – elegance galore. So we stopped for tea and went in, so genteel. Unthinkingly I unbuttoned my coat and Adrian took it across to the coat rack. I had forgotten I was not wearing a frock! So there I stood, in black brassiere, small black pants, black suspenders and high heels – and my wedding hat. I just stood there composed as ever and said to my husband ‘oops, get my coat back darling’. The tea shop was silent. As people stared, we had a lovely tea, with Miss Mellor’s famous cream meringues, and drove home. Continued over

25 So now move on to 1984 and I read in the local paper that sadly, after many decades, Miss Mellor’s Tea Rooms was to close. Due to increased traffic the road was to be widened. So I took two Kingswear ladies to Miss Mellor’s for one last tea. I casually told the nice waitress about my embarrassing moment on my earlier visit. She said ‘I was your waitress that day. I was only fifteen years old and it was my Saturday job. We still remember you, so cool and composed, standing there in your black underwear and such a wonderful hat.’ C’est la vie. I hope this anecdote has amused you. The bride and groom lived happily for twenty years, then a man did come and drew them asunder and they parted. A true story. Valerie Jackson, St Mary’s 2020

Postscript from Sue Shaw Lockdown thoughts If you are single with no close relatives, solitude is one’s normal state, so self-isolation isn’t depressing, especially in the weather of this year’s April and May. Domestic chores in the morning, sunbathing in a most tidy garden in the afternoon, with a good book. Delightful! We have enjoyed the newness of spring growth, together with warmth and often cloudless skies, not usual at this time of year. Such pleasure could feel mistaken, insensitive, when considering families shut away in small dwellings, perhaps anxious about money or parents. High numbers of deaths were a daily reminder of our own mortality and the dangers that still exist in the world. It could have been worse. Suppose Covid-19 had been fatal for children? Suppose that even the healthy who caught this virus had been ill for weeks? As things were there was always enough food, a power supply, a working police force and of course an effective National Health Service. No, the active retired got off quite lightly compared with workers and young families. The difficult days for us may be yet to come as society returns to normal, for we, the elderly, may not feel safe until a proven vaccine has been developed. There will be continued uncertainty for some of us about mingling with others whilst odd little pockets of the virus continue to break out. Part of our anxiety is because we have come to believe that 26 life should be easy. That is, straightforward and predictable. We can usually foresee what might happen tomorrow. Cocooned by sheltering houses, electrical gadgets and a largely beneficial environment, we have come to expect that problems will be relatively few and that we will cope with them, or someone else will. A pandemic is quick to remind us that for all our human abilities some predicaments are beyond our control and will make inroads on our peace of mind. A timely reminder that we aren’t quite as powerful as we think we are. In all the daily government briefings, in all the statements and arguments of the media, none of them have said ‘pray’. For God seems, unofficially, to have become a back number with those in power. The church recommends prayer, as Christians do to each other, but trusting in God is left to individuals now. Perhaps religion is such a hot potato that even Christian members of the government are too afraid to mention God at all. He is too contentious, ridiculous, irrelevant, even inappropriate. Poor God, the creator of the world, to be inapt to be mentioned as a force for its recovery. Yet many thousands will have prayed for the world in private. Many will still look to their faith for guidance and comfort. The world may change but the Bible doesn’t. Despite religion being unfashionable it is still deeply rooted in countless numbers who look to its morality and teaching to keep them sane and safe. The teaching of Jesus Christ is immutable, constant, enduring. So, as we re-open our churches, we can pray, with perhaps more fervour and concentration, now that the world’s troubles seem to have been brought to a head. It will not matter a whit that we are distanced physically, for our spiritual oneness will perhaps be united as not for some time. We elderly people, also the sick, may have to distance ourselves from the outside world for longer than the rest. But the ones with faith will know that they are never really alone. Sue Shaw Sue asked me to add, what I mentioned to her while we were discussing her contribution at a safe distance in my back garden, that I have heard that a substantial number of people, far more than those registered as religious, have tuned into online services and entered the word ‘prayer’ in their search engines during the lockdown. Promising? Editor 27 Warden’s Notices(kindly sent by David Roberts) What seems long, long, ago, when we had home-grown concerts at St Mary’s, readers may remember Christine and I started giving notices. I have trawled again and come up with these. The Fabric Committee of the PCC has decided to change its name to the Building and Maintenance Committee following allegations that they spend all their time on screen printing and batik. Following numerous complaints, the notice at the entrance to the churchyard has been removed as its wording was considered ambiguous. Those visiting relatives in this churchyard are asked to keep them in good order. It has been decided that, this year, all the Harvest flowers will be given to those who are sick after Evensong. Correction to last month’s magazine. Page 2, Line 3, should read Reg Bishop of Furzeham, NOT Reg, Bishop of Furzeham. ————————————————————————————————— COPY DATE FOR AUGUST 2020 MAGAZINE Friday 17 July 2020 Publication Date Sunday 26 July 2020 Copy please to the Editor: Anne Rickwood, 29 Douglas Avenue TQ5 9EL Tel: 01803 882206 or 07753 658900 Preferably by email: [email protected] ————————————————————————————————— BMC Office( Alison Lodge) closed at present, but please get in touch if you need help: [Church House (Lyte House) 26 Bolton Street TQ5 9DH] Tel: 01803 851340 email: [email protected] or home 01803 882768 email: [email protected] LAYWELL HOUSE RESIDENTIAL CARE HOME Summer Lane, Brixham A beautiful house set in well kept grounds, with highly qualified staff caring for people wishing to enjoy their retirement in the company of others. All the rooms have been upgraded to a very high standard and many have en-suite facilities. We welcome both long and short stay clients and also offer day care services. Visitors welcome, phone the Manager 01803-853572

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34 PARISH OFFICERS ALL SAINTS' BRIXHAM Wardens: Peter Thorp, 7 Leader Close, Berry Head Park, Brixham TQ5 9FQ Tel. 855329 Email: [email protected] Susan White, 3 Marina Close, TQ5 9BN, Tel. 267590 Email: [email protected] Acting PCC Secretary: Susan White, 3 Marina Close, TQ5 9BN, Tel. 267590 Email: [email protected] Organist: Mr R Thomas, 12 Bella Vista Road, Brixham TQ5 8BQ Tel. 850125 Choir Director: Jean Aird (Mrs Jean Holman), 36 North Furzeham Road, Brixham TQ5 8BD Email: [email protected] Tel. 858235 Treasurer: Dr D Watters, 27 Higher Ranscombe Road, Brixham TQ5 9HF Tel. 856648 ST MARY'S, BRIXHAM Wardens: Mrs Susan Francis, 23 Pine Close, Brixham TQ5 0DJ Tel. 411574 Mr Roger Holtom, 41 Mathill Road, Brixham TQ5 0DP Tel. 857357 PCC Secretary: Mr David Roberts, 13 Smardon Avenue, Brixham TQ5 8JN Tel. 854036 Organist/Dir. of Music: Mr Harry Symons, 29 Rougemont Avenue, Torquay TQ2 7JW Tel.616290 Treasurer: Alison Lodge, 58 Chestnut Drive, Brixham,TQ5 0DD Tel: 882768 ————————————————————————————————————————————- ST MARY'S, CHURSTON FERRERS Wardens: Mr Bob Brooke, 25 Cumber Close, Brixham TQ5 6RP Tel. 857636 John Bowles, 24 Higher Ranscombe Road, Brixham TQ5 9HF Tel. 852612 Email: [email protected] PCC Secretary: Mrs Lyn Elliott, The Lane House, Upper Wood Lane, Kingswear TQ6 0DF Tel. 752578 Organist/Director of Music: Mrs Dawn Fallon, 16 Coniston Close, Brixham TQ5 0RA Tel. 857549 Mobile 07742 546368 Email: [email protected] Junior Choirmaster: Mr Mike Wilkinson, Shearwater, Dashpers, Brixham TQ5 9LH Tel. 07925818216 Email: [email protected] Treasurer: Mr I A Webb, The Cottage, Brixham Road, Paignton TQ4 7BQ Tel. 845961 ————————————————————————————————————————————- ST THOMAS OF CANTERBURY, KINGSWEAR Warden: Mr N Critchley, 16 Raddicombe Close, Brixham TQ5 0HB Tel. 856600 PCC Secretary: Mrs Alison Crozier, Horizon, Redoubt Hill, Kingswear TQ6 0DA Tel.752618 Treasurer: Mrs Carolyn Williams, 3 Kingston Cottages, Brownstone Road, Kingswear TQ6 0EG Tel.752716 ————————————————————————————————————————————- CHURCH HALL BOOKINGS - PLEASE CONTACT St Mary's Church Hall Mrs M Seffert, 58 Raddicombe Drive Brixham TQ5 0EZ Tel. 853525 Lyte House, Bolton Street, Brixham Mr Tom Fallon Tel. 854667 Barn Hall, Galmpton Lynn Milner, Windyridge Maypool, Higher Greenway, Galmpton TQ5 0ET Tel. 843677 Trust Room, Kingswear Jan Henshall, 3 Overhill, Wood Lane, Kingswear TQ6 0DL Tel. 752226 ————————————————————————————————————————————- BMC OFFICE [email protected] Tel. 851340 FOR FUNERALS Please contact Rev’d John Gay or Martyn Hodge FOR BAPTISMS Please contact Rev’d John Gay FOR WEDDINGS Please contact Mandy Seffert Tel. 853525 Magazine Editor Anne Rickwood, 29 Douglas Avenue, Brixham TQ5 9EL Tel. 882206 Email: [email protected] Advertising Yvonne Brewer Tel. 855303 or 07483 810441 Email: [email protected] The dialling code for Torbay is 01803

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