Hi all. I hope everyone is well and enjoying a little more freedom as the restrictions ease. It has been a strange eighteen months! I know a lot of us have been through a tough time. I pray we’ll all come out of it stronger than we were before. I am certainly feeling better these days and am working on getting back out into the world. I say working on it… It is not as easy as I thought it would be. I’ve gotten a bit too used to being indoors and semi-isolated. But I don’t want to stay here. Things have to change. One of the changes I’m considering is finishing up this blog and moving to po ..read more

I’m delighted to have joined the blog tour for Jocelyn-Anne Harvey’s new book, Not Knowing but Still Going: A buoyant hope for uncertain times, published by Instant Apostle on 21 April 2021. Jocelyn-Anne is a fellow member of the Association of Christian Writers here in the UK. The book focuses on the story of Noah’s Ark, but this is far from a Sunday School telling of the story. Jocelyn-Anne takes us through the chapters in Genesis. Giving names to Noah’s wife and daughters in law, she explores how these women might have reacted to what was unfolding. All the while, rooted in the biblical ..read more

So finishing this year’s AtoZ Challenge a day late, but I got there. How can I not mention this piece of tech which has been both a blessed provision and the bane of my life for the last year or more! Pre 2019, to me ‘Zoom’ was a song by Fat Larry’s Band or something Wylie Coyote did. But what would we have done without this communication software during the last year? It’s been a gift. I’ve been at parties with my family in Ireland, we’ve had family chats, writer’s group, prayer meetings, church services, after church fellowship, and I’ve attended some wonderful conferences and workshops ..read more

I looked in the mirror the other day and said to myself, I look dreadful for 30! Then I thought, Hang on , I’m nearly 50, I LOOK GREAT! Is 50 old? Cos is isn’t young! I don’t feel old, although my knees would disagree. Age may only be a number, but next year it’ll be a big one. I am healthier than I was ten, even twenty years ago. I’m far more active than now, and even though I still struggle with weight, I am dealing with it. I spent a long time pretending it didn’t matter and I didn’t care. It does and I did. So, with age has come personal development, spiritual growth (I hope), physical ..read more

Most years I have to go searching for X words. I can’t write about Xerxes every year now can I. (Xerxes being the King who Queen Esther is married to in the Old Testament.) So I found this word – Xenial – pronounced Zee-nee-uhl. Dictionary.com says that one of its meaning is “warm, welcoming, and hospitable.” It is something I have missed being and doing during lockdown. We love to have people over for dinner and coffee. Myself and himself both come from families where there were always family popping in. His family is smaller but he was not completely averse to a houseful. Though a housef ..read more

It’s true, V and W are not for Haiku, but for these two letters I’m giving some Haiku a go… I’ve just asked the husband to throw some words at me and so I’ll write based on them Vinegar Brightens whitens cleans Vinegar is versatile Put it on my chips Violin I did learn to play but bow to better players not quite up to scratch VeilArm in arm I walk with my father, and a smile shining through white lace WaterMake sure not to waste develop a thirst to save life-saving liquid Wild Can I please throw off restraining expectations so I can be me Worm Do you remember wormwood, gall and afflict ..read more

T should be for tardiness cos I’ve fallen behind in my A to Z Challenge, but today T is actually for Tallaght. My beloved home town Tallaght has had a bad rap over the years, but I for one am proud to have been born and bred there. I was brought up in St. Maelruan’s Park, went to primary school in Our Lady of Loreto GNS (as it was then), and went to secondary school in Old Bawn Community School. I lived in Tallaght until I was 27. I worked in Dublin city centre while I was hairdressing and then worked locally in Xtra Vision on the Greenhills Road and then for The Echo Newspaper before mov ..read more

In my first post of this year’s April AtoZ Challenge, I mentioned that I had no specific theme. I’ve shared some flash fiction, some Easter thoughts, I’ve had a bash at some poetry. I also mentioned back in that first post that I would share about a ministry project I’m thinking and praying about. I want to help individuals and churches get to grips with technology. I reckon Zoom and live streaming of services and conferences is here to stay. I have helped many people get used to Zoom and find their way around YouTube. I have also spoken to a number of people who are sorry they’ve let the ..read more

Today was the MIL’s birthday. Her second one in Lockdown, but thankfully, we didn’t have to stand at the bottom of her driveway and blow kisses. We were able to take her out. So we took a picnic to our local reservoir. Llandegfedd Reservoir is about ten minutes from us in the car. Its restaurant is closed at the moment due to Covid restrictions, but they have opened a takeaway coffee shop. All three levels of their carpark face the lake and it’s a fabulous view. Rich and I go regularly, and REALLY missed it when it had to close. It also has a watersports centre for sailing and paddle boa ..read more

On the 20th of each month, I write for the Association of Christian Writers blog in the UK, called More Than Writers. So my Q post is over there. Click here to read – Q is for Questions ..read more