Family, Flowers and Funny Moments


Uncle John's small but lovely garden in Worcester

With Uncle John and Paul's cousin Stephen.

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After church in Worcester, we drove to nearby Alcester, where Stephen cooked us a delicious roast chicken dinner.

Uncle John, who celebrated his 80th birthday on July 5th, is leaving for a trip to Nigeria in November to meet with other pastors there. His life is a great example of living, in the words of Oswald Chambers; his "utmost for God's highest."

Susan was curious about what we feasted on with Eileen and Chris on Saturday. Well, from Prettys Bakery in the village, we bought an assortment of cakes that included custard tarts, jam donuts rolled in sugar, iced buns and macaroons. I made some ham and cheese, sesame seed rolls and salad. For supper we went down to the Tudor Rose Fish and Chip shop and got battered fish, fish cakes and chips, mushy peas and curry sauce. It was all enjoyed very much indeed! Fortunately we are walking miles and miles every day and are hoping that this will help burn off all of this decadence.

There are moments when, although we grew up in England, we find ourselves lost with some of the language! Within a few short miles here, there are several different accents. The Alvechurch accent is different to that of Redditch and Redditch has had an influx of people from Birmingham over the past few decades, which is a totally different accent. Paul had a funny moment in the shopping centre when someone asked him if he knew where the "tie-lits" were.

Paul said, "Pardon?" and the person repeated his question.

Paul gave up and said, "No, I'm sorry." It was only as he walked away that he realized that the man had been asking for the toilets! :)

We are enjoying every moment of time together with each other and with family.

Comments

Julie said…
There is nothing more beautiful than and english garden. You brought back many memories with you picture today for me and sharing today. Thank you Belinda
7:40 AM
Flowers said…
Your blog on english garden brought back a lot of memories! I have not thought of that in a very long time.
9:27 AM
Suz said…
The garden is lovely.

Aren't accents interesting? We have the same issues in the USA - the South vs New England vs Midwest.

What are mushy peas? I am obviously not from England!!

Thanks for your great post.
2:12 PM
Belinda said…
Dear Suz,
What are mushy peas? Well, I had to Google that! They are marrowfat peas (dried)that have been soaked overnight and then boiled. They are definitely something you either love or don't. I'm not personally a lover of mushy peas but Paul absolutely loves them.
2:35 PM
Susan said…
Why does Paul LOVE mushy peas?

I personally think that his heart made of pure mush mixed with equal parts of solid gold. He doesn't necessarily want everyone to know that, though...

When mushy peas hit Paul's mouth, they know that they are headed in the general direction of his heart and they know they have finally found their true home. (Sound familiar?)

That's my theory, anyway, and I'm sticking to it. :)
3:22 PM
Brave Raven said…
Perhaps Uncle John will stop in Canada again soon. I could listen to him for hours. His Biblical insights are rich with wisdom. Please say Hello to him and Stephen. Hopefully Stephen is still taking his beautiful photographs.
8:46 PM
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