Smile And Wave

In the words of Skipper the Penguin: "Smile and wave boys, smile and wave". 

Sometimes it's all you can do given that shooting people (especially politicians) is frowned upon.

Unseen

There's quite a bit that goes unseen in the preparation of The Gathering's weekly Soup Kitchen and I thought it might be good to look at a little bit of it for a change...

Since we've taken the Soup Kitchen up to a minimum of 100 litres each week our consumption of the basics has rocketed meaning that keeping on top of it all and ensuring we have enough to prepare and serve the soup each Thursday has become a bit of a mission in itself.

Baptism

The last thing Jesus told his disciples was to "go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:19-20

We are so happy that Joel is being discipled by some quality folk at The Bay Christian Family Church here in Somerset West, and it truly warmed our hearts that he chose to get baptized with them today. It's been a joy to watch him plug in to a local church and explore his faith on his own with a church he feels safe in.

Late Night Music

I love coming through in the morning to make a pot of tea only to discover that one, or both of my boys have been playing their instruments late in to the night and maybe even had a jamming session together.

This pic is of Joel's personal pride & joy; his PRS, and what really blesses and excites me about knowing he's once again picking up his guitar to play is that  his desire to play is born out of his time spent at church and with his youth group. We just know that in that environment he is being constantly encouraged and it warms one's heart.

Not For Sale!

"Is your unicycle on Gumtree yet?"

This seems to be a common question amongst those that I've seen since breaking my arm just over a week ago, and the answer is very simple: "No they are not!" (yes I have seven unicycles) and nor will they be until such time as I'm physically unable to ride, and even then I'd be reluctant to get rid of them.

Someone even gave me a small lecture on extreme sports and how they're not of a very healthy mindset, and how at my age I don't need to prove anything anyway.

The thing is, the question and the mini lecture both miss something crucial, which is why I unicycle and why in the last 18 months I've become a lot more intentional in my unicycling, often taking my 36er out for 2+hour rides. 

Safe & Secure

I'm feeling a lot happier since speaking with the Surgeon over the phone about my cast and removing it. 

The cast (if you could call it that) was a bit Heath Robinson in its construction and felt very loose on my arm leaving me feeling quite vulnerable, so after chatting with the Surgeon about the wrist support I still have from when I shattered my wrist 10 years ago, he agreed I could remove the cast and use the wrist support instead, especially as it has a metal insert the full length of it for protection. This is far more comfortable and feels a whole lot more secure.

Whoops, I Did It Again

Firstly, thank you for all your prayers and kind wishes, they're much appreciated!

So there's good news and there's bad news...

The first bit of good news is that the Muni ride (Mountain Unicycling) on Saturday was a lot of fun with a great crowd of people who were also a massive help in sorting me out once I'd broken my arm.

Pearl

Today is our 30th wedding anniversary which traditionally is Pearl. Now I can't afford to give Paula a pearl necklace and she wouldn't want one anyway, but what I can do is share a pearl of wisdom...

Paula has already written the most beautiful post over on Facebook, so there's not a huge amount left for me to say, but if I could offer one tip for longevity in marriage it would be this: keep God at the centre of it!

Gone In 60 Minutes

It was a horribly wet and cold evening last night as the latest cold front slammed in to the Cape. Winter might be on its way out but it's not going without a fight.

Given how wet and cold it was, it was even more of a blessing knowing the The Gathering's Soup Kitchen had more than enough to make sure that no one went hungry, and everyone could have as much as they needed.

The 140 litres certainly went a long way and it was one of the few Soup Kitchen's in recent times in which we've not had to turn anyone away because the soup was finished.

Our Soup Kitchen is always a chilled and laid back affair, but everyone seemed to know there was more soup than usual and so our regulars were more than happy to take their time over being served, even if it meant standing out in the wet and cold for a bit longer than usual.

140 Litres

This morning I drove through to Cape Town to pick up a second 70lt pot for The Gathering.

So this Thursday will be quite a monumental one as our Soup Kitchen moves beyond our dream of serving 100 litres of soup each week to serving 140 litres.

It feels so right to be expanding in this way to help meet some of the need amongst the more vulnerable members of our community and we hope & pray that this is a real blessing to those that come for soup on Thursday. 

3D Printing

This may well be a case of 'little things pleasing little minds', but I'm rather pleased with myself today.

I've been battling to get a small bag to fit on my unicycle for a while now. I used to have one mounted on the handlebar but it broke and they don't make it anymore. So I was pleased to find a thread in the unicyclist.com forum (yes there really is such a thing) on the topic of saddlebags and unicycles.