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THE PARISH CHURCH OF SAINT PAUL

GRANGE-OVER-SANDS WITH LINDALE

October 2020

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Team Rector Tel No Rev’d Dr Jim Bruce (rector.cartmel@gmail.com) 07776 821 736

Team Vicars Rev’d Nick Devenish - The Vicarage, Priest Lane, Cartmel, LA11 6PU 36261 Rev’d Rachel Stavert - The Vicarage, Allithwaite, LA11 7QR 83187

The Revd Rachel Stavert is currently on an extended leave of absence.

Licensed Lay Readers in the Cartmel Peninsula Team Ministry

Steve Bell, Beckside Barn, Beckside, Cartmel, LA11 7SW 36789

Joyce Leach, Stoneleigh, 11 Highfield Road, GOS, LA11 7JA 35297

Jenny Leahy, Studio, Mill House, Lindale, LA11 6LF 35979

Elisabeth Arthurs, 14 Meadowbank Lane, GOS, LA11 6AT 35406

Diane McGuire, Cardrona Road, GOS 07951423789

Chris Mason, 5 Maychells Orchard, Allithwaite LA11 7PY 32159

Visit our website www.grangepcc.co.uk Twitter: @StPaulsGoS

Services at The Parish Church of Saint Paul

Sundays - 11.00 am - Parish Service Wednesdays - Not at the moment

Services at The Fell Church, Grange-over-Sands Proposed from 4th October

9.30 am First Sunday - Matins (BCP) 9.30 am - Third Sunday - Holy Communion (BCP)

Fifth Sunday of the Month Joint Service with St Paul’s at 11.00am in the Parish Church

**Saints Days and Holy Days - See Notice Board/Pew Sheet**

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Dear Friends,

Surprises! We either love them or hate them.

At the beginning of this year, few of us could have guessed what would unfold as we journeyed through 2020. Our diaries were full of dates to remember – plans were made and most of us had little idea of what this year would actually hold. Words such as ‘lock-down’ belonged to other places, not here. Maybe we had become rather blasé about our freedoms, assuming they would always be there.

Reality has not always been easy and there have certainly been a number of surprises. We spent the spring hearing sounds we may have overlooked in the past. The beauty of birdsong, the joy of deep silence as the steady drone of traffic was hushed. We took time to appreciate the vibrant colours of springtime, the lengthening of days and the warmth of glorious sunshine. We talked too of our hopes of coming out of lockdown into a kinder more compassionate world. Were these hopes or dreams?

As a second wave of Covid 19 bears down on us, selfishness, accusations, grumbles and bitter words tumble off the pages of our papers and out of mouths. None of this is a surprise to God and despite all we hear and see, He IS in control. God has not taken his hands off the world. He still very much involved and wants to work with us as his partners to bring about change.

Just as we are not surprised by the sheer beauty of leaves displaying the fiery colours of autumn, we as followers of Jesus have been baptised by the fire of the Holy Spirit, not just to give us a fuzzy warm feeling, but to equip us to be agents of change. Maybe it really would surprise our friends and neighbours if we were to speak more openly about what God has done for us; if our generosity of words, spirit and action reflected more openly the actions of our generous God. Our harvest praise acknowledges this generosity. Maybe others might be surprised if, just like our God of surprises, we Christians can demonstrate more clearly in word and action the new way God calls us to live.

Biblical truth today seems to be facing a mass of angry, opposing voices. We will need to be people of strength and courage to keep following Jesus and not the crowd, however challenging that might be. So, as we thank God and enjoy all the good gifts he gives us, why don’t we use the shortening days, lengthening evenings and even curfews to make sure that we don’t under eat spiritually, that we remember the times through the last six months when God has met with us and shown us his love and faithfulness, the times when he has met with us in special ways, giving us his help, comfort and deep sense of peace in these difficult times. We are called to praise and thank God, even when we don’t feel like doing so, in ALL circumstances.

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St PAUL’S CHURCH. GRANGE-over-SANDS

A CONCERT

of “Illustrative Music”

for Piano & Organ

given by CHARLES EDMONDSON

Wednesday 14 October, 2020 at 11 am

Admission Free Retiring Collection

Charles will explore the natural world in sound on keyboards so expect musical descriptions of cuckoos,

bees, swallows, swans and penguins, and await the boiling of a kettle.

ST PAUL’S MISSION STATEMENT

Our mission is to build confidence in Jesus Christ in the heart of the community through prayer,

worship and learning, in joy and practical service to the wider world.

Maybe if we practice this more as the next few, probably difficult months roll on, we will surprise ourselves at the effect this will have on our own lives, as well as on the life of our church and the lives of others with whom we come into contact. With every blessing,

Revd Sue

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NOTICES 2020

CONTINUING EMAILING - We have decided to continue emailing out the pewsheet and readings each week. If, however, you would prefer NOT to receive them, perhaps to avoid cluttering up your email box, then please let Penny know (pennyward01@gmail.com or 33243). They are also mounted on the web site.

EASY FUNDING "Been using easyfundraising since 2015 and so far I've raised in excess of £357 in free donations for my worthy causes. Everybody should use it for the cause they want to support. It's free... it's easy... it's a no-brainer!" – recent view on Google easyfundraising is the UK’s BIGGEST charity fundraising site!

- Trusted by 1.8 MILLION fundraisers - Over £30 MILLION raised so far - Rated EXCELLENT on Trustpilot

If you order items on the internet, eg your weekly food shop, book tickets for travel at home or abroad, theatre tickets or hotels for accommodation, are you using Easyfund-raising? You can download the app to your computer, smartphone or ipad, and use that gateway to over 4,000 retail shops, rail or airline tickets, etc.

You name your chosen charity – in our case, THE PCC OF ST PAULS GRANGE OVER SANDS – and that charity will receive a percentage of the total price.

The percentage varies at the different sites.

It is as easy as that – a WIN/WIN situation!

The percentage you raise each time may not be very large, but it is surprising how it

mounts up. Rosemary has already raised over £30 and Penny over £50.

Our Stewardship Officer, Chris Brown, and his wife Pat have now moved:

18 Winfield Gardens Allithwaite Grange LA11 7DF

Their telephone number is 015393 24015 We wish them every happiness in their new abode.

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“God is love and those who live in love, live in God”

FROM THE REGISTERS

BAPTISM ANNIVERSARIES

Callum Robert Ramsay (Adult) 1st October 2017

Evaline Grace Melling 8th October 2017

Tommy Roger Davidson 28th October 2018

YEARS MIND - OCTOBER

Margaret Glenridding Keith 27th October 2015

Peter John Dyke 11th October 2016

Robert Foster October 2016

James Procter 22nd October 2018

Rowland Williams 31st October 2019

“In sure and certain hope of the resurrection to

eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ”

“Born of Water and the Spirit”

ST PAUL’S DIARY - OCTOBER 2020

4th October - Sunday - Trinity 17 9.30 am - Harvest Festival - The Fell Church, Grange - Lay-led 11.00 am - Harvest Festival - St Paul’s, Grange - Ven Penny Driver

11th October - Sunday - Trinity 18 11.00 am - Eucharist - St Paul’s Grange - Rev’d Dr James Bruce 12 noon - AGM in church after the service

14th October - Wednesday 11 am A Concert of ‘Illustrative Music’ for Piano & Organ given by Charles Edmondson.

18th October - Sunday - Trinity 19 9.30 am - Holy Communion - The Fell Church, Grange - Rev’d Brian Williams 11.00 am - Eucharist - St Paul’s ,Grange - Archdeacon Vernon Ross

25th - October - Sunday - Trinity 20 11.00 am - St Paul’s, Grange - Lay-led

1st November - Sunday - Trinity 21 9.30 am - Mattins - The Fell Church, Grange - Lay-led 11.00 am - All Souls Service - St Paul’s, Grange - Ven Penny Driver

8th November - Sunday - Trinity 22 11.00 am - Remembrance Sunday Service - Rev’d Dr James Bruce Civic Remembrance Service under discussion

ST PAUL’S DIARY - OCTOBER 2020

4th October - Sunday - Trinity 17 9.30 am - Harvest Festival - The Fell Church, Grange - Lay-led 11.00 am - Harvest Festival - St Paul’s, Grange - Ven Penny Driver

11th October - Sunday - Trinity 18 11.00 am - Eucharist - St Paul’s Grange - Rev’d Dr James Bruce 12 noon - AGM in church after the service

14th October - Wednesday 11 am A Concert of ‘Illustrative Music’ for Piano & Organ given by Charles Edmondson.

18th October - Sunday - Trinity 19 9.30 am - Holy Communion - The Fell Church, Grange - Rev’d Brian Williams 11.00 am - Eucharist - St Paul’s ,Grange - Archdeacon Vernon Ross

25th - October - Sunday - Trinity 20 11.00 am - St Paul’s, Grange - Lay-led

1st November - Sunday - Trinity 21 9.30 am - Mattins - The Fell Church, Grange - Lay-led 11.00 am - All Souls Service - St Paul’s, Grange - Ven Penny Driver

8th November - Sunday - Trinity 22 11.00 am - Remembrance Sunday Service - Rev’d Dr James Bruce Civic Remembrance Service under discussion

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HARVEST - will be celebrated on the 4th October at both St Paul’s and the Fell Churches. It will be a special celebration for the Fell congregation as the doors will open for their first service since the lockdown in March.

The decorations at St Paul’s will be scaled down this year because of the restrictions, but we will still celebrate in style! Donations of food are requested for our local foodbank at Barrow, and envelopes will be available for

monetary contributions to the Bishop’s Harvest Appeal.

Over the last three years over £80,000 has been raised for overseas farming projects. Two major beneficiaries have included a Christian Aid scheme in Malawi which supports pigeon pea farmers, and a USPG project in our link Diocese of Zululand developing community food gardens to help empower local communities. Harvest appeal money has also been donated to local projects, ie the Cumbria Development Education Centre, Carlisle One World Centre, and Global Justice Now.

This year the proceeds will be split two-ways. We are supporting a Christian Aid programme in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, through which observers monitor interactions between Palestinian inhabitants of the West Bank and East Jerusalem and the Israeli military, building a peaceful and protective presence. The second beneficiary is a Mothers’ Union Literacy and Agriculture project in the Democratic Republic of Congo which aims to protect thousands of women from the threat of sexual and physical violence.

Alan Anderson will be leading the service at The Fell, and the Ven Penny Driver, our former Archdeacon, will be at St Paul’s.

HARVEST HOME Harvest season marks an important date in the British farming calendar as crops are harvested for food and animal feed. Our guide on harvest in the UK looks at the history and traditions of this important annual event.

In the UK the harvest festival, also known as the harvest home, is traditionally celebrated on the Sunday nearest the harvest moon. This is the full Moon that occurs closest to the autumn equinox, which is often between 21-23 September.

Normally falling towards the end of September, or early October, the harvest festival is the closest thing we have to a day of thanksgiving. Although today we can plan a fixed day for this celebration, in the past the harvest festival differed, based on when all the crops had been brought in. The whole community, including children, needed to help right up until the end, as lives depended on the success of the harvest.

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In the past they would be held as soon as the harvest had been completed and the final cartload triumphantly returned to the farm where the Harvest Supper, also known as the ‘Harvest Home’, would take place.

At their most lavish the meal would brim with several meats, vegetables, puddings, tarts and ale, and would be accompanied by singing, drinking games and much reverie. One Shropshire tradition in the early 19th century was the arrival of the ‘Old Sow’ – two men dressed in sacks that were filled with prickly furze cuttings which barbed anyone they approached. That just left the gleaning, the act of collecting any leftover crops in the field which was carried out by the farm women. All of which was to be conducted by St Michael’s Mass on the 29th September, the signifier for the end of harvest.

By looking back through the history and customs associated with harvest we can see why it is such a crucial date in the country calendar. The word ‘harvest’ comes from the Old English word hærfest meaning ‘autumn’, aptly the season for gathering the food of the land. This was a vital time of year, when success was a genuine matter of life or death. A prosperous harvest ensured that a community would be fed throughout the potentially barren winter months. It’s therefore no surprise that it was also a time steeped in superstition and, if successful, much celebration. Many of these traditions even pre-date Christianity.

With technological advances lessening our dependence on the seasons and the number of people working on the land greatly reduced over the last two centuries, surviving practises are now mainly symbolic in nature.

What did unite everyone though was the importance of crop gathering and the reverence in which harvest was held. What follows are some of the better known examples from the past.

Roaming groups of labourers would seek employment from farms at the start of the season, in Norfolk they would drag their sickles along the floor to announce their arrival. A ‘Lord of the Harvest’ would be appointed and was in charge of negotiating rates and conditions of labour. Leading his workers (‘reapers’) as they scythed the fields, he would be served first at mealtimes. The church festival that is the most common harvest celebration still held today originated in Morwenstow, Cornwall in 1843, when Reverend Robert Hawker invited the parishioners of his church into his home to receive the Sacrament in “the bread of the new corn.” Whether from the Divine, the elements or the mystical, all help was gratefully received.

Now that most of us neither sow nor reap what we eat, it is almost impossible to

imagine how crucial this time of year was in the calendar, but by knowing a little of

the history and keeping these traditions alive we are honouring those who depended

upon it.

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OCTOBER CELEBRATIONS IN OUR CALENDAR

4th October 2020 - Many churches in the United Kingdom

observe the Feast of St Francis of Assisi on this day each year.

The feast commemorates the life of St Francis, who was born in

the 12th century and is the Catholic Church’s patron saint of

animals and the environment. It is a popular day for pets to be

“blessed”.

25th October - Daylight Saving Time

Why do we observe daylight savings time?

The idea of adjusting the time throughout the year has been around for centuries.

During the height of the Roman Empire, an hour could last 44 minutes in winter

and 75 in summer.

However, British builder William Willett from Chislehurst lobbied for nationwide

adoption of daylight savings time in his 1907 pamphlet The Waste of Daylight. While

riding his horse one morning, it is said Willett had an epiphany that "the sun shines

upon the land for several hours each day while we are asleep" but there "remains

only a brief spell of declining daylight in which to spend the short period of leisure

at our disposal".

In other words, Willett's proposal for daylight savings time had one main motivation

- for people to enjoy more sunlight. This change was also important for farm

workers, for example, who use the extra hour of sunlight to work into the evening

during harvest seasons.

Initially, Willett wanted clocks to go forward twenty minutes at 2am on four

consecutive Sundays in April, and then to be reversed on four Sundays in

September. This was later adjusted to a much simpler idea: a one-hour advancement

of clock time in Spring and a one-hour reversal in Autumn.

‘SPRING FORWARD, FALL BACK’

Willett lobbied for the adoption of DST until his death from influenza in 1915 - just

a year before it was adopted as a nationwide policy in the UK in an effort to reduce

energy consumption and increase production during WW1. It was for these same

reasons it was adopted in the US in 1918. While this was an emergency law in the

UK, it became permanent in 1925 with the passing of the Summer Time Act.

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Why is daylight savings time such a divisive issue?

Although the reason for the change was initially

economic, people disagree as to whether it produces any

economic benefits. In fact, it's been argued to have

notably damaging effects to health and the economy.

Not only is the initial change to daylight savings time

likely to make you feel more tired, likened to a subset of

jet lag, it's also estimated to cost $434 million in the US

alone. A poll in 2011 suggested that 53% of Britons supported moving clocks

forward an hour permanently, as opposed to having their sleep schedules

interrupted twice a year.

FALL BACK 25th OCTOBER 2020

ALL SAINTS DAY - 1st NOVEMBER Many churches, particularly Catholic and Anglican churches, in the United Kingdom annually mark All Saints' Day on November 1. This occasion honors all the saints in Christian history, particularly those who do not have their own special feast day. All Saints’ Day is a chance for people to remember the saints and martyrs who dedicated or sacrificed their lives to Christianity. Some people attend special church services on this feast day. Some Christian schools may offer certain activities to students prior to or on All Saints’ Day. These activities focus on the theme of various saints’ lives and their role in the history of Christianity.

According to some sources, the idea for All Saints' Day goes back to the fourth century when the Greek Christians kept a festival on the first Sunday after Pentecost (in late May or early June) in honor of all martyrs and saints. Other sources say that a commemoration of “All Martyrs” began to be celebrated as early as 270 CE but no specific month or date is recorded. Pope Gregory IV made All Saints' Day an authorized holiday in 837 CE. It is speculated that the chosen date for the event, November 1, may have been an attempt to supplant the pagan Festival of the Dead (also known as Samhain or the feast of Saman, lord of death).

All Saints' Day, which is celebrated globally, is closely tied with All Souls' Day, which was first instituted at the monastery in Cluny in 993 CE and quickly spread throughout the Christian world. All Saints’ Day is also closely linked with Halloween, which is a shortened form for the name “All Hallows' Even”.

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DEMENTIA There are three good books about dementia that can be recommended. God in fragments – ISBN 978-0-7151-2367-6 Edited by Matthew Salisbury, and available from Publishing House

Where memories go ISBN 978-1-4447-5178-9 By Sally Magnusson writing about how she and her sisters coped with their mother as her illness progressed.

Somebody I used to know – ISBN 978-1-4088-9333-3 By Wendy Mitchell writing about how dementia changed her life and how she coped.

ALL SAINTS and ALL SOULS

This year at St Paul’s we shall be celebrating All Saints and All Souls on Sunday, 1st November, at our 11 am service, which will be led by the Ven Penny Driver. Unfortunately the present restrictions prevent us from having a separate service in the afternoon to remember those we have loved and lost this year. It is particularly unfortunate when numbers able to attend funerals have also been restricted, and when we are conscious that a number of key members of our congregation have passed away this year. However, we shall be remembering them during the morning service. A list of names will be compiled and read out, and there will be an opportunity to light a candle in their memory.

If therefore you have someone whom you would like remembering, please let

Linda in the office know (phone 35560) before Tuesday 27th October.

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OUR CONCERTS RESUME

We were very happy in mid-September to welcome Charles back to the concert floor of St. Paul’s with his first of four presentations this autumn to mark his retirement (but not his total future absence, we hope) from our church at the end of the year. It was good to see him (and his wife, Eileen, to assist him) plus over 30 friends in the audience at the unfamiliar time of 11.00 a.m. and with the equally unfamiliar (and unwelcome) absence of refreshment. But these are extraordinary times and there had been considerable doubt in everyone’s mind over whether we should be able to hold the concert at all. The regulations were scrutinised – and we were legal.

The title was “A Garland of Songs & Hymns Without Words” and that is exactly what we received, rendered on piano and organ – a delightful collection of familiar tunes and arrangements, along with some not quite so well known, and in a variety of tempos and moods. A stirring Paean of Triumph on the organ from the delightfully named Oliphant Chuckerbutty (I had to mention him!) was followed by two delicate Songs without Words of Mendelssohn and the delightful Meditation on Brother James’ Air by Harold Darke (making at least three well-known renderings of the 23rd Psalm).

Variations and settings of well-known hymns (some straying quite a way from the basic tune) mingled with pleasing, more meditative and lyrical pieces. Sir Edward Elgar shared our senses with Louis Vierne and Fauré, ending with the mighty Karg-Elert Marche Trumphale improvisation of “Nun Danket Alle Gott”.

Thank you to Charles (and Eileen) and we look forward to your next performance in mid-October. A big thank you also to our audience: the donations are helping to fund the retuning and restringing of our Bechstein grand and the fitting of an “A Frame” to help with its moving within the church for future events. Do please continue to support these concerts – and we hope that we shall soon be able to serve at least a cup of coffee to everyone.

Please note that, at the time of going to press, the government has introduced new regulations for our safety – and there may be further items on this topic as October processes. Plese check our weekly Pew Sheet or on the church notice boards for any revision to our plans.

We are pleased to announce that Charles Edmondson will be giving

’Farewell’ concerts this autumn to mark his retirement on 31st December from his position as Director of Music at St Paul’s

Church: a post he has held for the last eight years.

The dates for the concerts are 14th October, 18th November and 16th December, all 11am Wednesdays.

If you previously enjoyed his talents then make a note in your diary.

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I attended this ‘Virtual’ meeting of the Friends of the Holy Land to hear Father Mamdoub Abusada speaking about the situation in Bethlehem, and particularly the School of Joy, which St Paul’s has supported over the last two or three years by my illustrated talk on my pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 2017, when our party visited the School of Joy, and by the sale of knitted Christmas covers Terry’s Chocolate Oranges. If you would like to watch the video, if you right click with your mouse on the blue paragraph below and then click on open link it will take you straight there.

Rosemary Hoyle

Dear St Paul's PCC, Grange-Over-Sands

We know many of you joined us for our first ever virtual event last week. We feel that despite a few technical teething problems it was a great success and many of you have told us you enjoyed hearing from Father Mamdouh about the work of the School of Joy and how they are preparing to return to having pupils on site in a few days time. For those who couldn't make the event or wished to share it with friends, Father Mamdouh has prepared a short video to recap the situation and how the team at School of Joy is preparing to open. Please share this video and the information with your friends and local community by forwarding this email using the link below, or sharing the story on our Social Media. Thank you for your generous support for the School of Joy, especially during these difficult times.

We will advise you of our next virtual event soon.

Watch the video here

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Colin’s collection of country churches to combat Corvid 19 “collisolation” Or… C.C.C.C.C.C.C No.6 St Catherine’s Church, Eskdale.

It is a most glorious location for a church! Half a mile down an unpaved road, but by far best visited on foot along the many trails and paths that lead to it in upper Eskdale. Certainly one of my favourite rural churches anywhere; it is always a great pleasure to visit this place.

St Catherine’s Church is built on the banks of the River Esk not far from Dalegarth Station and the tiny hamlet of Boot. Built out of local pink granite and to a very simplistic design, it is clearly part of a stunning location within the Esk Valley in West Cumbria. The church is much loved by locals and tourists alike.

It is believed that religious ceremonies have taken place on this site since the late sixth century, with parts of the present church dating back to 1390. However, in 1881 the building was completely remodelled using boulders and stones taken out of the nearby Esk. But, because of its close proximity to this river, the building is frequently subject to flooding, with the most serious occasion a result of “Storm Desmond” back in 2015.

The church’s connection with Saint Catherine is, again, surrounded in local myths and legends. It is believed that she once visited this spot, but was driven away by the then pagan locals, only to be thwarted by the river which in those days had no crossing. With God’s assistance, some large stepping stones appeared instantly and Catherine escaped by this route. Today, at the rear of the church “St Catherine’s Steps” are still

evident, and these afford tourists and visitors the opportunity to cross the water safely to take a closer look at this beautiful sanctuary. The river crossing makes for a most unusual entrance into a churchyard!

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The inside of the building is very simply laid out with the stained glass east window above the oak altar showing Saint Catherine meeting Saint Cecilia and “The Good Shepherd”. A small cross built into the pulpit depicts an “X” shape which is a reminder of the type of cross on which Catherine was eventually crucified. The solitude and smallness of the church add to its atmosphere of spirituality; it probably holds no more than a hundred souls should the building be full to capacity. I learned that it was part of a four-church benefice, but couldn’t find any reference to where the other three churches might be located. There were certainly writings of occasions of floodwater entering the building from the River Esk, but fortunately little damage has been caused once the building is allowed to completely dry out!

The surrounding churchyard is entirely enclosed by dry stone walls and was immaculately looked after at the time I visited. The locals who live in the Eskdale Valley certainly have great pride in this isolated place. It is in the graveyard that I ventured to find “The Dobson Memorial”, where I was told that, from which ever direction you look at it, the stone carving has eyes that appear to be always looking back in earnest to you! It is a memorial to Tommy Dobson, who died in 1915 and was Master of the Eskdale Foxhounds, as well as a great character of the Dale. He started the pack, which is still in operation today. Evidently the locals of the time held him in such high esteem that after his death over 300 Dales-men, contributed the necessary funding to purchase this wonderful memorial, of which some valley folk say that he now guards over the enclosed churchyard in order to keep demons away! This is a place of great beauty - well worth a visit. Mind you, the finest way to undertake the short walk here from the main road through the Dale is to arrive on board the “Eskdale and Ravenglass miniature Railway” - the li’le Rattie”, disembarking at Dalegarth,Station just half a mile away. It will be a wonderful experience for you!

Colin.

Another way of approaching this lovely church is via the old coffin route from the head of Wastwater, a route along which our Wilson ancestors carried their family members from the Old Hall farmhouse

at Wasdale Head! Sue & Penny

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THE WAR YEARS 1939-1945 A continuation of Mary Newman’s recollections

I do not recall the exact moment when I became aware that we were at war. I do, however, remember hearing news of it on the radio. Living close to Manchester, I was to come to know air raids well, but these never held any terrors for me. The one and only German who did strike terror was Lord Haw Haw. I remember that my father insisted on listening to every broadcast and often I would run outside into the yard to escape the sound of that voice. It was quite early in the war when we were issued with gas masks. They came in a small cardboard box which we carried to school each day in a khaki canvas case slung over our shoulder. Once at school, the gas masks were used in ‘battles’ more than anything else, and, I suspect, quite early in the war lost any practical use they may have had. Mine certainly remained non-operational throughout the war. Some mindless fear of disapproval prevented my admitting to anyone that my gas mask was in two pieces!

When the air raids did begin, it was for me quite fun. We had a large cellar beneath our house and this was transformed into a shelter. On two stone slabs, built at one time to keep food cool, lay two mattresses. Against one wall were two bunks. Slung between beams was a hammock, and in a small inner wine cellar was my camp bed. I slept in there in my siren suit, a camel cloth garment with feet, hands and hood which zipped up the front. The man who slept in the hammock, a neighbour of ours, said he would be permanently ‘V’-shaped after the war, and those others sleeping on the stone slabs looked for all the world like bodies in a morgue. I remember my mother suddenly realising in the middle of a raid that the bunks where she and my father were sleeping were directly under the piano in the front room upstairs. She could not rest until the piano was moved. So there and then my father and Uncle Jim went up to move the piano as the planes droned overhead and the sirens wailed. Every evening during this time it was my job to go to the shop and buy fresh bread, refill the water jugs, and take them down into the cellar. There was other food stored there, and such was my mother’s thoroughness that I am sure we could have survived there for weeks if necessary. Talking of food stuffs in a shelter reminds me of the shelters at school. These were by no means so comfortable as our cellar. They were only tunnels cut under the churchyard and shored up with wooden pit props. The orange clay soil was the walls and there was a permanent smell of damp and decay. However, our stays in the shelters were also highlights. Our teacher, who was also choirmaster, organised concerts down there and, as lessons were left behind, the raids were very popular. We also had the chocolate tin to think of. Our teacher had this idea. In the event of our being in the shelter for many hours, he decided that everyone must bring a bar of chocolate to school, which was then placed in a biscuit tin and sealed. As chocolate was very scarce, this tin was the subject of much discussion. We continually hoped that we might one day be down in the shelter long enough to open it. Alas we never were and eventually it was stolen by someone who broke into school one night. I think my only other air raid memory was of my father standing outside watching a ‘dog fight’

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between two planes in the sky. However, he moved quickly enough when a piece of shrapnel narrowly missed his head and hit the ground at his feet, sending sparks into the air as it did so. I still have this souvenir - he would have been very dead if it had hit him.

It must have been about this time that my father and mother started ‘the works’. There was a need for works making webbing equipment in the north, and my father volunteered to start one. I remember going to sweep out the first little building in York Street, ready for the machines that were to follow. I loved the works. I often went after school and talked to the women, and I still know some today. Edna in the office was very smart. She had a thing about hats, and I was always fascinated by her clothes. She was always very smart. Her husband was in the RAF and I was very impressed by her beauty and her blonde hair. Another beauty who fascinated me was Joan. She was a precocious miss, who was the star of the local dancing class. Her job was folding tabs on a little machine. Now I can’t imagine a more boring way of spending a day, but Joan executed this task with such an air and a flash of her brilliant finger nails that it was then all glamour to me. There also for the first time I met Margaret. She had a husband in the Army and a son in the Navy and was left alone. Like many others, she found comfort and company at her work and certainly always had time for me. She was remarkably like my own mother in appearance. So much so that my father once playfully smacked her bottom as she was bending over a box, thinking it was my mother! He was mortified when she stood up, but it was quite a joke to everyone else. How strange it seems now that this person was to become my closest confidant and friend, even closer than my own mother ever was. I suppose the reason for this was that my mother, gentle, kind and ever such a lady as she was, was rather narrow and inhibited in her outlook and soon moved to disapproval and criticism of anyone who thought differently to herself (especially me!) But this was in the future and, at this time, I was only a little girl of 10 or 11, wanting to talk with anyone who would put up with me.

It suddenly strikes me that I have, as yet, hardly mentioned Auntie Lizzie (Jack’s mother and my father’s elder sister). As the works grew busier and orders increased, my mother and father had less and less time for me. I do not criticise them. War does many things and many children lost parents, or didn’t see their fathers at all. However, at night, as my mother and father poured over problems and plans, I went to Auntie Lizzie’s. I also went every Sunday dinner time and always had a glass of pop. Jack was often in bed, as he was still not very strong, but he too had time to play ‘Sorry’ with me and Uncle Jim, and there was also my Auntie’s postcard album. Unfortunately, she threw it away - it would have been valuable now. My Auntie is still a character at nearly 80. At 50 she was a formidable woman. Completely indomitable, she terrorised the tradesmen who attempted to serve her with her ‘rations’! She had long ago completely mastered Uncle Jim, who is certainly the most worthy man I have ever met and who has given her a lifetime of devoted service, rather like a dog’s devotion to its master. My father continually tried to avoid her interference and domination, but to me she

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was kind, generous and I am sure spoiled me dreadfully. I could do no wrong. Her kindness to me has made her retain my affection for all her life, though there have been and always had been times when Auntie Lizzie would try the patience of a saint. Life seemed to be punctuated by various ‘crises’ involving her. She always craved attention and was a great actress in her part.

Of these, I remember the time Auntie Lizzie fell off the bus. What was probably a minor slip became a large-scale drama with ambulance men, neighbours and bus crew in a kind of mad fever of excitement. Then Auntie Lizzie and the wireless, which fell on her head from a shelf rendering her unconscious. On all these occasions, my mother was always summoned to administer comfort and medication. However, no-one dared to question Auntie Lizzie. So she always made the most of it. My father once summed her up by a story of their childhood. Auntie Lizzie had got a new bike which he borrowed and rode down a hill and into a wall, followed by an hysterical Auntie Lizzie, shrieking to him to leave her bike alone. As he sat up with bleeding head, bruised face and shattered bike around him, he saw all the onlookers crowding round a figure lying swooning in the road. Auntie Lizzie was never upstaged by anyone!

Another character who is still, to the best of my knowledge, enjoying the fresh air of Morecambe is Mr Parrington. He was my class teacher in the junior school I attended at Bury. St Thomas’ was, even in those days, an old black building with suspect floorboards and worn stone steps. It was in a very poor area though not a rough one. Most of the surrounding mill cottages were the homes of respectable, if poor, working class people for whom the church and school were the centres of all social activity. Mr Parrington, a diminutive man of World War I vintage, taught Class 4. As I myself have spent so much of my life in teaching, I can now appreciate just how eccentric the man was. I cannot imagine he would have lasted five minutes in our age of PTAs and court cases for assault. He caned the class regularly. I was the hapless victim on many occasions, but he was great. He was alive and full of vigour and humour. There was never a dull moment. I vividly remember the day he shattered a picture behind my head when I ducked as a wooden board cleaner whistled in my direction. The picture was called The Orange Grove and I was caned for breaking it! His aim with a piece of chalk was uncanny. He could throw it into a yawning mouth from 15 feet away. Each day, Mr Parrington sent a sealed letter to the Phillips Club. I imagined at the time that he must be a committee member with heavy responsibilities for the running of this establishment. Alas no! They were betting slips despatched by one of the class each lunchtime to the bookies runner. He then sent another boy for the racing paper which came out about 3pm in order to study form for the next day.

He was impulsive and one time decided that milk was too cold to drink and we would have Oxo instead. We all brought our packets of Oxo and he brewed up in two large enamel jugs at play time. No teacher would dream of letting 10-year-old girls carry large jugs of boiling Oxo about today, but we did, and no one was any the worse for it.

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Another scheme he had was to ‘dig for victory’. Next to the school was a park, and some of the flower beds were put at our disposal to grow vegetables. I remember going to plant and weed on several occasions, but I don’t recall ever seeing any harvest. There probably wasn’t any! In contrast to the boisterous life of Class 4 were the peaceful sewing lessons of Miss Wild in a downstairs classroom with the singing of the mill chimney outside the windows, and the singing lessons with our headmaster, Mr Burrows, a most knowledgeable and gifted musician. He was later to leave the area and later still to receive the OBE for services to education. He also was the choirmaster at Church and ruled with a firm hand, especially the evacuees, who came from London and certainly needed it.

My junior days were drawing to a close and so also were my days at the ‘end house’ where I had lived since I was 3.

(To be continued)

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JUST THINKING

If you could fit the entire population of the world into a village consisting of 100 people, maintaining the proportions of all the people living on Earth, that village would consist of 57 Asians, 21 Europeans, 14 Americans (North, Central and

South), and 8 Africans.

There would be: 52 women and 48 men: 30 Caucasians, and 70 non-Caucasians, 30 Christians, and 70 non-Christians, 89 heterosexuals, and 11 homosexuals.

6 people would possess 59% of the wealth and would all come from the USA. 80 would live in poverty, 70 would be illiterate, 50 would suffer from hunger and

malnutrition, 1 would be dying, 1 would be being born, 1 would own a computer and 1 (yes, only one) would have a university degree.

If we looked at the world in this way, the need for acceptance and understanding would be obvious.

But, consider again the following. If you woke up this morning in good health, you have more luck than one million

people, who won’t live through the week.

If you have never experienced the horror of war, the solitude of prison, the pain of torture, were not close to death from starvation, then you are better off than 500

million people.

If you can go to your place of worship without fear that someone will assault or kill you, then you are luckier than 3 billion (that’s right) people. If you have a full fridge, clothes on your back, a roof over your head and a place to sleep, you are wealthier

than 75% of the world’s population.

If you currently have money in the bank, in your wallet and a few coins in your purse, you are one of 8 of the privileged few amongst the 100 people in the world.

If your parents are still alive and still married, you’re a rare individual.

If someone sent you this message, you’re extremely lucky, because someone is thinking of you and because you don’t comprise one of those 2 billion people who

can’t read.

AND SO?

Work like you don’t need the money. Love like nobody has ever hurt you.

Dance like nobody is watching. Sing like nobody is listening.

Live as if this was paradise on Earth.

Bypass those who are determined to see the worst in the world no matter what.

Someone might smile while they are reading this, and that will be a positive.

AND APART FROM THAT, SIMPLY HAVE A NICE DAY

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LOVE IS….

What love means to 4-8 year old children…..

A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year olds, ‘What does love mean?’ The answers they got were broader, deeper and more profound than anyone could have ever imagined!

See what you think…..

1. ‘When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over to paint her nails anymore…. So my grandfather does this for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too’. That’s Love Rebecca - Age 4

2. ‘When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know your name is safe in their mouth.’ Billy - Age 4

3. ‘Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.’ Karl - age 5

4. ‘Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your chips without making them give you any of theirs.’ Chrissy - Age 6

5. ‘Love is what makes you smile when your tired.’ Terrie - Age 4

6. ‘Love is when my mummy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure it tasts o.k.’ Danny - Age 8

7. ‘Love is whats in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and just listen.’ (WOW) Bobby - Age 7

8. ‘If you want to learn to love better you should start with a friend whom you hate.’ (We need a few million more Nikka’s on this planet) Nikka - Age 6

9. ‘Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday.’ Nellie - Age 7 10. ‘Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after

they know each other so well.’ Tommy - age 6

11. ‘During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore.’ Cindy - Age 8

12. ‘My mummy loves me more than anybody. You don’t see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night.’ Clare - Age 6

13. ‘Love is when mummy gives daddy the best piece of chicken.’ Elaine - Age 5

14. ‘Love is when mummy sees daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.’ Chris - Age 7

15. ‘Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.’ Mary Ann - Age 4

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16. ‘I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.’ Lauren - Age 4

17. ‘When you love somebody your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.’ (what an image) Karen - Age 7

18. ‘Love is when mummy sees daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it’s gross.’ Mark - Age 6

19. ‘You really shouldn't say ’I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.’ Jessica - Age 8

And the final one -

From a four-year-old boy whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man crying, the little boy went into the

old gentleman's yard, climbed on to his lap and just sat there.

When his mother asked what he had said to the neighbor , the little boy said,

‘Nothing, I just helped him cry.’

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1. Godwit

2. Barnacle goose

3. Eider duck

4. Partridge

5. Honey buzzard

6. Kingfisher

7. Knot

8. Nuthatch

9. Pintail

10. Puffin

11. Redpoll

12. Kittiwake

13. Redstart

14. Shag

15. Snipe

16. Fulmar

17. Gannet

18. Blackbird

19. Corn bunting

20. Avocet

21. Ruddy duck

22. Razorbill

23. Jackdaw

24. Raven

25. Dipper

26. Waxwing

27. Shoveler

28. Tawny owl

29. Wren

30. Nightingale

31. Mute swan

32. Mandarin

33. Brambling

34. Oystercatcher

35. Starling

36. Pochard

37. Dartford warbler

38. Sandpiper

39. Peregrine

40. Dunlin

41. Merlin

42. Grouse

43. Swift

44. Tree creeper

45. Cuckoo

46. Skylark

47. Jay

48. Ruff

49. Rook

50. Fieldfare

Did you find the birds? ANSWERS TO TWITCHERS QUIZ IN LAST MONTHS’ MAGAZINE

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GRANGE OVER SANDS MONTHLY RAINFALL (MM) - ANDREW LITTLE

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

January 122 78 163 154 141 98 142 73 107 February 62 45 115 76 125 91 69 99 263 March 4 55 61 110 107 162 60 182 75 April 78 40 58 46 72 15 98 39 12 May 98 55 62 165 32 75 37 52 26 June 208 68 28 34 185 135 19 91 99 July 142 164 70 69 113 126 33 134 169 August 125 152 124 112 168 86 108 180 188 September 216 98 6 29 118 177 133 177 45* October 136 173 156 60 31 172 131 160 November 165 118 97 246 118 189 62 85 December 194 131 103 352 65 109 160 155 Annual Totals 1,570 1,177 1,043 1,453 1,275 1,435 1,052 1,433 982*

* means incomplete total till next month

SINGING FOR MEMORY Aims to strengthen memory and language through singing in a

relaxed and friendly atmosphere. Run by Grange Soroptimists.

Do you or someone you know have mild to moderate dementia, memory or speech problems? Come and join us at Allithwaite, Community Centre.

Thursdays 10.30 am—12 noon - including time for refreshments Dates for the 2020 Autumn sessions are as follows:

September - 10th, 17th, & 24th, October - 1st, 8th & 15th 9th, 16th, 23rd

The sessions are currently being held on-line via Zoom. If you would like to take part, ring Janice (58001)

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Denise Muir MAFHP MCFHP

Tel: 0797 134 3395

Positive Steps

For all aspects of Nail and Foot Care Nail Trimming, Callous (Hard Skin),

Reduction & Corn Elimination, Treatment for Fungal Nails, Athlete’s Foot & Verruca Monday Afternoons at

Em J’s Hair Studio Home Visits Tues—Fri

REFLEXOLOGY AVAILABLE

Em J’s Hair Studio We are open as usual Monday to Saturday For an appointment

Tel: 015395 34295 Kents Bank Road Grange over Sands

Paul Brown Handyman Property Home &

Garden Service

Tel: 015395 36646 M: 07812367287

Wilson Robinson

CARPETS FLOORING CURTAINS

UPHOLSTERY

SIMON BAKER

2 Birchleigh Terrace Kents Bank Road Grange over Sands

LA11 7EY 015395 32894

wilsonrobinson@btconnect.com

Please support our Advertisers & Local Shops at this time of

uncertainty

WR

J P Computers FREE Consultation

Collect & return service Based in South Lakes

Tel: 015395 35513 / 07964180021

www.johnparrycomputers.com

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Thornleigh Christian Hotel Themed Breaks

Conference Centre

We look forward to seeing you soon.

Welcoming, Refreshments, Fellowship, Peaceful Spaces Friendship, Christian books

& gifts, Spiritual, Sunday lunch

Inspirational Views, Accommodation

Tel: 015395 32733

GARY PORTER & SON

PAINTERS & DECORATORS Established 1997

Interior & Exterior work to a high standard

FREE Estimates Grange over Sands Tel: 015395 32253 M: 07794167285

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Call in and see your local friendly electrical retailer

ROBINSONS ELECTRIC

SALES, SERVICE & REPAIR Satellite, TV, Audio, Lighting, White Goods, Electrical Appliances

Both large & small

Birchleigh, Kents Bank Road, Grange-over-Sands

Tel: 015395 32077 - 33877

Branton Wild WATCH AND

CLOCKMAKER

14 Church Street LA7 7DX Milnthorpe

branton.wild@gmail.com

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USEFUL TELEPHONE NUMBERS

Churchwarden Mike Hill, Linden House, Linden Fold, GOS LA11 7AY 33511 Deputy Wardens Margaret Ratcliffe, Strand Court, The Esplanade, GOS LA11 7HH 35587 Treasurer Maureen Chadwick, 5 Crown Hill, Main Street, GOS LA11 6AB 32343

Parish Safeguarding Officer Judith Mitchell, Silverdale, Highfield Road, GOS LA11 7JB 35664 Fell Church Please contact either the Churchwarden or Deputy Churchwarden

Organist and Choir Charles Edmondson, Westholme, Lumley Road, Kendal 015397 23494

Parochial Church Council Secretary Rosemary Hoyle, 8 The Croft, Flookburgh, LA11 7NF 58108

Team Office / Parish Administrator Linda Brown Tuesday, Wednesday 10.00 am-12.30 pm Friday - 9.00 am - 1.00 pm 35560

E-mail - stpaulschurchgrange@gmail.com or cptmoffice@gmail.com

Magazine Co-ordinator Susan Jackson, 8 Fellside Court, GOS LA11 6BY 35681

Children’s Society Local Secretary Judith Mitchell, Silverdale, Highfield Road, GOS LA11 7JB 35664

Bible Reading Fellowship Representative Jose Baguley, 2 Churchgate, Grange Fell Road, GOS LA11 6AN 35162

Stewardship Secretary Chris Brown 015393 24015

Magazine Editor Team Office 35560 e-mail - stpaulschurchgrange@gmail.com

Missions Secretary

Rosemary Hoyle, 8 The Croft, Flookburgh, LA11 7NF 58108

Flowers

Kath Bush 32601 Audrey Gorman 35209