Taking a few days off blogging

Trying to rest and unwind a bit, staying away from the computer for a bit. We are spending a bit of time with Pam & John, so I hope there will be more sunshine and champagne. Blogging will resume soon.

Remember to show hospitality to strangers

Today is my first Sunday back where I will be leading services. I want to tell everyone about my adventure but it would take far too long (even for my lengthy sermons!!). Today I will talk about three days that fit in well with the set readings for today. They are about rejoicing, dealing with sin, and handing over heavy burdens. I'll let you look through the blog archive and see if you can find illustrations to match. This photo is a man called Donald who we met outside the Cross Keys pub in Ancrum. Ancrum is in Scotland near the English border. It is a place that enjoys Scottish v English rivalry. As soon as he heard we were wanting a place to camp he opened his home and invited us in. A genuinely nice guy, maybe I should be more like him. (But without the long hair!!)

How are your feet?

This is the most common question I have been asked since returning from the walk. I thought you would like to see some photos of the feet. Sorry if they cause you distress, as you can see I did a little work on them with a needle and thread which works wonders. My feet are now recovered and enjoying doing less. I have started putting the blog entries into a file in chronological order to make it easier for me to write up the walk story using my daily diary. I didn't get much time off yesterday, but I am sure next Thursday will be better.

Gradually easing back in

Well, I have managed to get through the mountain of mail and use my desk again. This is a photo of me and John at the end. John has since shaved off his beard, which was a shame as I thought he looked good with it. The other photo is a young man we met at Land’s End as he was setting off for John o’ Groats. (Rather him than me!!) The other photo is Archie who helped me unpack my rucksack. He really did enjoy the smell. I am starting to get back into the frame of mind that will make me able to do parish work again. I don’t have any duties in church this Sunday, so that will help me ease back into things. I thought a trip to the doctor would be good after my walk, working on the assumption that I must be fit after hiking 1200 miles. I was also still having the dizzy turns so I wanted to mention that. Result of seeing the doctor is , ‘High Blood Pressure’ (Bad) ‘Plenty weight loss’ (Good) ‘Dizziness is labyrinthitus’ (Virus of the inner ear - apparently it will just go away). So back next week for more blood pressure checking.

home again

Walking for nearly three months was fantastic, I arrived back in the vicarage last night and it feels really good. As you can imagine there are many tales to tell and I can’t wait to see all those who have followed me on my walk, albeit via the blog. I really have missed friends, parishioners and family and hope to see you soon. I am looking forward to reading the blog as I have heard so much about it from people’s texts which was great. I was delighted when Leanne and Gill said they would update the blog as I know many of you wanted to have updates. I can just manage to get to my computer this morning as my desk is surrounded with piles of mail. I will try and stay away from it until next week when I am back to work, (but I know I won’t be able to leave it alone) I have not unpacked my rucksack yet but after lugging it the length of Brittan I will be pleased not to touch it for a while. (The smell is most interesting) I feel refreshed and rested which is strange after so many strenuous days behind me. Once I have unpacked and downloaded some photos I will post them. I now need to go and get back to normal.