Sunday 25th August

Wake-up time today was 08h30 - in time to get ready and have breakfast before church at 10h00. Not that our other mornings have been early! - breakfast generally seems to be at about 9 or 10a.m. - because the people we have visited so far have been retired, or on summer vacation, or over a weekend!

The church we attended with Derrick and Mary is an 18th century Georgian building - about 265 years old. The inside was refreshingly different from the churches we have visited so far. There were stained glass windows along the sides, but the walls inside are plastered and painted white - making for a much lighter, brighter look. There was a worship team consisting of painist, clarinet, two guitars, small drums, and vocalist - who lead with contemporary songs that were more 'British' than American - very refreshing! Ther order of service with prayers and songs was displayed on a screen in the front of the church above the altar area. A modern touch, tastefully installed! As it is still summer holidays, the service was a family service and included a baptism. There were a lot of children and young people present which was good to see. The church obviously has a large number of young families. I particularly enjoyed the order of baptism and plan to use it in future at home - particularly in the more contemporary services. It was good to experience how the whole service was conducted with the families and children in mind - something that i have certainly learnt from. Tea/Coffee was served afterwards in the church hall over the road - a busy buzz. I also appreciated the arrangements of the graves at this church. On entering the church grounds, the graves were not obvious as they were shielded from view by hedges, and there was a reasonable size garden in the front of the church where people could gather and chat without falling over tombstones. Much more to my liking!

On the way back to the house we drove past the river Avon and stopped at a sight from which one could see the old original suspension bridge crossing to Wales, and in the other direction the sea where the river enters it.

We departed Bristol and headed for Redhill to be with the Moxhams - a journey which took about 2 1/2 hours.