Friars, Dr Who, Harry Potter...and some food for the soul.

Oooo doing well, this is my 60th post... not as impressive as some but I feel happy that my blog now has more than 1 post by a significant amount. I'm also aware that many people have been crying out for something new to read... I mean I know that my blog is basically the centre of everyones coffee-break universe...tsk! (I really don't mean that!)

I am still recovering from possibly one of the best get-away-from-it-all weekends in the history of get-away-from-it-all weekends. I went to Alnmouth Friary, as a last minute guest, with York St John Chaplaincy. The friary is run by Franciscan monks and there are five of them living there from ages 30(ish) to 80(ish). They were inspirational people, for all the reasons you would expect, and more. Scrap any comedy monk stereotypes you may have floating around your head at this moment. My stereotypes have been completely dissolved... They were fantastic people, really funny, intellectual, down to earth, and most importantly from my point of view, they are completely in touch with what's going on in the world....possibly even more so than a lot of people bumbling around in this world.

Jessus!... no really I mean it's Jesus...

The Friary and the garden which was perfect...

The Friary is in a coastal village in Northumberland, on top of a hill overlooking the sea, with a beautiful beach, and cliff top walks going around the coast in both directions. They welcome guests of all beliefs and none. Guests could take part in as much or as little of the prayer life as they wanted. On Saturday evening, after eating supper in silence, we all wanted to watch Dr Who in the guest common room...when we got there we descovered that one of the friars, Brother Augustus, had already set the video to record it so he could watch it later (he was the coolest one!).

The Sea!

The following morning I got talking to the oldest Friar, Brother Edward, about London, and he talked about how he used to take the Tube to school everyday as a boy. Then I mentioned how the main thing I think about on the Tube is my memory of when the 5th Harry Potter book came out and seeing six people in a row all reading it. Then we started talking about Harry Potter, because he'd read it too!

Watching Dr Who... Awesome...(and my feet)

The stillness and peacefulness was exactly what I needed...to think. Sometimes I have trouble thinking straight in the city. It's too busy, too many noises that break my concentration. The weather was sunny, so I got some sketching done and no one interrupted me, and I went walking on my own. The only thing I missed out on was the library, which was one of those wall to wall Victorian style libraries complete with a sea view and so many comfy chairs it was difficult to choose where to sit. I should have paid more attention to it, but I spent most of my time outside or in the chapel.

Me and the sea... ok so I look terrible again... but the sea was bloomin' cold!

A weekend with monks is not for everyone admittedly... but I was really happy there, and I haven't felt that kind of peacefullness in a long time. It was definitely worth it.

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