touching base

Last week we spent two nights with SIM-UK (and N.Europe) in Wetheringsett Manor, near Stowmarket. SIM has field offices and sending offices, and although our sending office is SIM France, SIM-UK does handle some things for us, such as finances coming from the UK and communications with UK supporters. So since we didn't know the UK staff very well, they invited us to come and visit.

We stayed in the (very comfortable!) guesthouse, and gave a presentation of our work at the Wednesday morning Day of Prayer. It was good to get a better idea of who works at SIM-UK and what they do. We were made to feel very welcome, and also enjoyed relaxing in the grounds - the boys particularly liked the trampoline in the playground! And we admired the typical English cottages in the village, the horses and foals in the fields, and a hedgehog in one of the gardens! We even visited the Mid-Suffolk Steam Railway ... it was closed but we were allowed to go and have a look around anyway.

Wetheringsett Manor:


A cottage:


A foal:


The hedgehog:


At the railway:

presently past

Our last few church visits have included trips down memory lane for me! First we visited the Parish of Yeovil – the churches of St John's and St Andrew's – where my dad was Rector when I was a teenager. We then went on (after a couple of relaxing days in Westbury) to Bath, where Dad was vicar when I was a child. I still know people in both places, and had often been back to Yeovil, but being back in St Luke's for the first time in 18 years was quite an emotional moment for me!

In all three churches we were warmly welcomed, and there was a sense of thankfulness for past times spent together, but also real interest in what we are doing now. We feel very blessed to be supported by these churches, as by all the churches we have links with, and we see it as being very important to visit them and talk face-to-face with people. And the added bonus of having a personal link means that we already feel like family!

A few comments from others:

“Your husband's preaching was wonderful – I think we'll keep him here! And your boys are so gorgeous I could just gobble them up!” (So apparently I may be the only one returning to Benin!)

“I know I shouldn't say it, but when you stood up at the front you looked just like your mum!” (That's ok, I think my mum's great!)

The churches:

St Andrew's, Yeovil


St John's, Yeovil

St Luke's, Bath


It's tiring work, all this travelling!


And an extra big THANK-YOU to all those who have hosted us, whether in France or the UK! You have been so kind to us. (We're not leaving yet, but most of our travelling is behind us...)

moving swiftly on...

We have now visited our last church in France and our first in the UK! Our trip from France to the UK was eventful, as our one train from Poissy to Gare du Nord ended up having to be 4! The train we originally intended to catch was cancelled. I don't believe in premonitions, but that didn't stop me having one - when Marc's mum said, "We'll still have plenty of time," I replied, "If nothing else goes wrong, that is!" And sure enough, the train we took half an hour later then got stopped a few stations down by another broken down train blocking the line!

Fortunately a helpful man told us to get onto another train and we phoned Marc's brother Matthieu to get instructions on how to get to Gare du Nord as quickly (and easily) as possible. If we hadn't had Marc's parents with us to carry one of our suitcases and one of our small boys, we'd never have made it. As it was, having left ourselves over an hour to spare, we arrived only 2 minutes before check-in closed - phew!!

Maybe it was just so that when we go back to Benin we aren't tempted to believe that everything in Europe works like clockwork!

Anyway, we've had a good first week back in the UK, seeing friends and family, visiting our old placement church in Hatfield (from our time at All Nations college), preparing for future meetings and making sure all the local playgrounds are where we left them (they are!).

Our final church visit in France:


Our first church visit in the UK:


Playing in my parents' garden: