Devils' Dyke Morris Men at the Thriplow Daffodil Festival

This is a video of the Devils' Dyke Morris Men at the Thriplow Daffodil Festival near Cambridge, England on Sunday 29th March 2009. You can see how much latter spring is here in Western, NY. We have daffodils blooming right now and its May 3! This has been a cold spring and I think the flowers are maybe a week or two late is all however.

http://www.thriplow.org.uk/

Morris Dancing for May Day

Congratualtions Kate and William

Prince William & Catherine Middleton
The Bishop of London's Sermon

29th April 2011

“Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” So said St Catherine of Siena whose festival day it is today. Marriage is intended to be a way in which man and woman help each other to become what God meant each one to be, their deepest and truest selves.

Many are full of fear for the future of the prospects of our world but the message of the celebrations in this country and far beyond its shores is the right one – this is a joyful day! It is good that people in every continent are able to share in these celebrations because this is, as every wedding day should be, a day of hope.

In a sense every wedding is a royal wedding with the bride and the groom as king and queen of creation, making a new life together so that life can flow through them into the future.

William and Catherine, you have chosen to be married in the sight of a generous God who so loved the world that he gave himself to us in the person of Jesus Christ.

And in the Spirit of this generous God, husband and wife are to give themselves to each another.

A spiritual life grows as love finds its centre beyond ourselves. Faithful and committed relationships offer a door into the mystery of spiritual life in which we discover this; the more we give of self, the richer we become in soul; the more we go beyond ourselves in love, the more we become our true selves and our spiritual beauty is more fully revealed. In marriage we are seeking to bring one another into fuller life.

It is of course very hard to wean ourselves away from self-centredness. And people can dream of doing such a thing but the hope should be fulfilled it is necessary a solemn decision that, whatever the difficulties, we are committed to the way of generous love.

You have both made your decision today – “I will” – and by making this new relationship, you have aligned yourselves with what we believe is the way in which life is spiritually evolving, and which will lead to a creative future for the human race.

We stand looking forward to a century which is full of promise and full of peril. Human beings are confronting the question of how to use wisely a power that has been given to us through the discoveries of the last century. We shall not be converted to the promise of the future by more knowledge, but rather by an increase of loving wisdom and reverence, for life, for the earth and for one another.

Marriage should transform, as husband and wife make one another their work of art. It is possible to transform as long as we do not harbour ambitions to reform our partner. There must be no coercion if the Spirit is to flow; each must give the other space and freedom. Chaucer, the London poet, sums it up in a pithy phrase:

“Whan maistrie [mastery] comth, the God of Love anon,

Beteth his wynges, and farewell, he is gon.”

As the reality of God has faded from so many lives in the West, there has been a corresponding inflation of expectations that personal relations alone will supply meaning and happiness in life. This is to load our partner with too great a burden. We are all incomplete: we all need the love which is secure, rather than oppressive, we need mutual forgiveness, to thrive.

As we move towards our partner in love, following the example of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit is quickened within us and can increasingly fill our lives with light. This leads to a family life which offers the best conditions in which the next generation can practise and exchange those gifts which can overcome fear and division and incubate the coming world of the Spirit, whose fruits are love and joy and peace.

I pray that all of us present and the many millions watching this ceremony and sharing in your joy today, will do everything in our power to support and uphold you in your new life. And I pray that God will bless you in the way of life that you have chosen, that way which is expressed in the prayer that you have composed together in preparation for this day:

God our Father, we thank you for our families; for the love that we share and for the joy of our marriage.

In the busyness of each day keep our eyes fixed on what is real and important in life and help us to be generous with our time and love and energy.

Strengthened by our union help us to serve and comfort those who suffer. We ask this in the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Amen.



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"There is nothing nobler or more admirable than when two people who see eye to eye keep house as man and wife, confounding their enemies and delighting their friends."

-Homer

Today I am so Sad.

I just read vandals have destroyed one of the most celebrated Christian pilgrimage sites in Britain. They chopped down a tree said to have sprouted from the staff of Joseph of Arimathea 2,000 years ago.

The Holy Thorn Tree of Glastonbury, Somerset, is visited by thousands every year to pay homage and leave tokens of worship. Those visiting today were moved to tears on finding the tree cut to a stump. The sacred tree is unique in that it blossoms twice a year - at Christmas and Easter - and sprigs taken from the thorn are sent to The Queen each year for the festive table.

I dreamed of visiting the thorn tree one day but I am too late. There are no words for the sadness I feel, this was an act of hate.


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1337159/Glastonburys-2000-year-old-Holy-Thorn-Tree-hacked-vandals.html

The Lincoln Imp

Brass Pipe Tamper made as a Souvenir of Lincoln Cathedral

According to a 14th-century legend two mischievous creatures called imps were sent by Satan to do evil work on Earth. After causing mayhem in Northern England, the two imps headed to Lincoln Cathedral where they smashed tables and chairs and tripped up the Bishop. When an angel came out of a book of hymns and told them to stop, one of the imps was brave and started throwing rocks at the angel but the other imp cowered under the broken tables and chairs. The angel turned the first imp to stone giving the second imp a chance to escape.

There are many variations on Lincoln Imp legends. According to one popular legend, the imp which escaped fled north to Grimsby, where it soon began making trouble again. It entered St James' Church and began repeating its behaviour at Lincoln Cathedral. The angel then reappeared and gave the imp's backside a good thrashing before turning it to stone like its friend. The "Grimsby Imp" can still be seen in St James' Church, clinging to its sore bottom. Another legend has the escaped imp turned to stone just outside the cathedral, and sharp-eyed visitors can spot it on a South outside wall.

Lincoln City Football Club are nicknamed "The Imps" and an image of the Lincoln Imp appears on their crest. Also, the club's mascot is called Poacher the Imp.

The Imp is the badge of No. LXI Squadron RAF.


The Lincoln Imp origin story


http://www.lincolncathedral.com/

Lincoln Cathedral (in full The Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln, or sometimes St. Mary's Cathedral) is a historic Anglican cathedral in Lincoln in England and seat of the Diocese of Lincoln in the Church of England. It was reputedly the tallest building in the world for nearly a quarter of a millennium (1300–1549), though this height has been questioned. The central spire collapsed in 1549 and was not rebuilt. It is highly regarded by architectural scholars; the eminent Victorian writer John Ruskin declared, "I have always held... that the cathedral of Lincoln is out and out the most precious piece of architecture in the British Isles and roughly speaking worth any two other cathedrals we have."


The Lincoln Imp is the symbol of the City of Lincoln, the county town of Lincolnshire, England.

Standing ovation for Boyle at Wembley gigs

Published Date: 22 June 2009
By BEVERLEY ROUSE
BRITAIN'S Got Talent star Susan Boyle received a standing ovation last night, when she performed live at Wembley Arena in London.
Boyle, 48, has missed several live dates, including two shows in Nottingham on Saturday, to take rest days due to the stress of being in the spotlight, but she returned to to perform at the two London shows as part of the talent show's tour.

The singer, from Blackburn, West Lothian, sang her semi-final tune, Memories, from the musical Cats, and I Dreamed A Dream, from the musical Les Miserables – the song that brought her worldwide fame.

A spokeswoman for the show said after Boyle's second Wembley appearance: "They were on their feet for her. It was a standing ovation."

Boyle became the focus of international attention after her powerful audition performance left the audience and judges open-mouthed with surprise.

Boyle was taken to the Priory Clinic in central London hours after losing in the final. One of the show's judges, Piers Morgan, said the church worker was emotionally drained and exhausted.

http://news.scotsman.com/scotland/Standing-ovation-for-troubled-Boyle.5387154.jp

Morris Dancing on May Day!

The Long Man Morrismen perform "Young Colin" at the foot of The Long Man of Wilmington at Sunrise on 1st May 2007 with barking dog in the background!!

And Cooper Again as winter Grinds on for Man and Beast.

Thomas Sidney Cooper (September 26, 1803 - February 7, 1902)