|
Chris
  I’m
still an "at-home Mum" – doing the usual run of school, pre-school, shopping,
gardening (finally feel like we are getting somewhere), house stuff and ‘please
can Simon/Peter/Joshua /.… come for tea’. But NOT quite such an ordinary year
for me as it happens. I took a nine day trip to visit a friend from church who
went in April to work in Cambodia. Together with another friend Netty I packed mosquito
repellent and malaria tablets and went to visit Emily. She is working with YWAM,
setting up Pre-school education for locals starting in the capital Phnom Penh.
We had a great trip and have a few stories to tell. Tim took the week off work
and was the ‘at home parent’. I came home with half-term to recover before
getting back to normal. Writing about it now makes it seem like almost a dream
– I would love to go again, next time Peter says I have to take him too.
 I continue to be on the
leadership team of the church we
attend, and this year I also brought together
and coordinated a new team that is responsible for the content of Sunday
meetings. Our aim has been to bring some new and fresh (some would say radical)
ideas; such as varying the room layout and having a variety of meeting formats.
These changes have not always been to the delight of everyone (some of us don’t
like change however good or needed it is!). So that’s been hard sometimes, and
I’ve wondered whether to drop one or other role, but at the moment I’m still
hanging in there. It was though a relief to be able to hand over the Pre-school
"Waiting List Secretary" role in September having done it (brilliantly
says Tim) for almost three years.
I am still on the team
who put together the ’Valley News’ (an A5, 60 page printed magazine with
local articles and adverts) three times a year – I look forward to having more
time and brain space for this activity. I enjoy being involved with something so
local – it is great to recognise and even be on speaking terms with so many of
the people that I meet everyday.
Finally from me, sadly in
the Spring my rabbits were visited by a fox – they were literally frightened
to death. Peter’s first question – ‘Can I see them?’. At his request we
buried them in the garden with full honours.
Tim
 Last year at work there were some big changes on the
near horizon; they happened between January and April, but it’s not turned out
the way I’d expected. I’m in the same area (selling IP telephony) but not in
the position I had every reason to think should be mine. Business is slow, so
everyone’s under increasing pressure to achieve more and more. Work demands
longer hours than is reasonable and so gets in the way of more important things
at home. There was a small ray of hope in July when a very interesting job came
up internally that looked as though it had been written exactly to match my c.v.
– but I didn’t even get interviewed, which was disappointing to say the
least (I found out later I would never have got it even if I had been by far the
best candidate, as the result had been pre-determined). Because of the current
climate there aren’t many opportunities within BT that I could even nearly
consider – and I don’t feel it right to look outside at the moment. So in
the meantime I will continue to do the best
job I can whilst keeping my eyes open.
|
Next