This went round on email about eight years ago, so you may have seen it or maybe not. It kind of sums up how I feel about work just now.
I am hereby officially tendering my resignation as an adult. I have decided I would like to accept the responsibilities of an 8 year-old again. I want to go to McDonald's and think that it's a four star restaurant. I want to sail sticks across a fresh mud puddle and make a street with rocks. I want to think M&Ms are better than money because you can eat them. I want to lie under a big oak tree and run a lemonade stand with my friends on a hot summer's day.
I want to return to a time when life was simple. When all you knew were colours, multiplication tables, and nursery rhymes, but that didn't bother you, because you didn't know what you didn't know and you didn't care. All you knew was to be happy because you were blissfully unaware of all the things that should make you worried or upset.
I want to think the world is fair. That everyone is honest and good. I want to believe that anything is possible. I want to be oblivious to the complexities of life and be overly excited by the little things again. I want to live simple again. I don't want my day to consist of computer crashes, mountains of paperwork, depressing news, how to survive more days in the month than there is money in the bank, doctor bills, gossip, illness, and loss of loved ones. I want to believe in the power of smiles, hugs, a kind word, truth, justice, peace, dreams, the imagination, mankind, and making angels in the snow.
So . . . here's my chequebook and my car-keys, my credit card bills and my payslips. I am officially resigning from adulthood. And if you want to discuss this further, you'll have to catch me first, cause. . .
"Tag! You're it. "
Eat, drink
I'd be hard pushed to find a mate or colleague that doesn't think there is something significant about eating together - in spiritual, personal, community terms. And that's why I love Soup Kitchen so much. You get good food cooked fresh and for a nice price. You sit on huge benched tables with other eaters. You always see someone you know in there (if you think Mcr is a village, the NQ is a hamlet).
Simple and meaningful.
technorati tag: soup kitchen, manchester
Reel Spirituality - Kes
Don’t go to a cold and rainy bonfire party - join us for a cosy film night…
KES
by Ken Loach (rated PG)
The second of four films exploring the theme of “The Outsider” – alienation, isolation, exclusion and “the other”.
Every 1st Sunday of the month at Nexus, Northern Quarter
Doors: 6.30pm Film starts: 7pm prompt
If you want to explore the film’s themes and issues:
Post-film discussion: 9.15pm onwards Evening ends: no later than 10pm
Feel free to bring your own food. Drinks and snacks available on the night.
+ Book stall of film and spiritual books +
See Sanctus1 for more details.
Other films in this series include:
3rd December - Old Boy (18)
7th January - The Life Aquatic (15)
IMDB listing and technorati tag: kes
Son of Man
Unfortunately this isn't showing when we're at the festival, but based on the review and other synopsis material, Son of Man might find its way into a Sanctus1 event sometime in the future. Film night, a service? Something anyway!
technorati tag: son of man, london film festival
technorati tag: son of man, london film festival
No Music Day/ The17
Bill Drummond - the trickster - has spoken. "Live music, too, has had the same effect on me [as recorded music - constricting]. The experience is one-dimensional. You buy a ticket, go to a place, watch it performed on a stage, you clap, or even scream, enjoy yourself, you get your money's worth, you go home. But you weren't part of the music; you were just consuming it in bite-size chunks as defined by those who have decreed how these things should be done. I know these traditions are as much determined by the economics of bringing musicians from all quarters of the world to your local club or concert hall but that doesn't stop me from wanting more, something else in a different shape."
Two of his responses to this situation are The17 and No Music Day. He'll also be at hcmf on the last week of November - but not on the 21st. Good to see he's as consistent as ever/ still a controlfreak/ pedant/ perfectionist...
technorati tag: bill drummond
Sanctus1 Service - Dekhomai
To tie in with Manchester Mind Body Spirit fair we're having a service called Dekhomai at Manchester Cathedral on Sunday.
It starts at 8pm and will provide opportunity to reflect on and explore the God of welcome
Technorati Tags: Dekhomia, Mind Body Spirit, Sanctus1
Goodbye to Another Place
At the top of my blog is an image of Anthony Gormley's installation on Crosby beach - Another Place, I've just heard that its only gonna be there for a few more weeks so get over there if you can - It's stunning!
Dekhomai - Manchester Mind Body Spirit Fair
For the past 4 years Sanctus1 has been at the Mind Body Spirit Fair at the Gmex in the city centre. This weekend is the MBS fair again and we're partnering with Jonny, Moot et al and using the same name and branding - Dekhomai. We'll be there Friday - Sunday and then we're having a service in Manchester Cathedral also called Dekhomai and will be exploring how God welcomes all people.
I'll post some further thoughts over the weekend either here, on or my blog, or on the dekhomai blog...
Tomorrow is one day in history
A mass blog for the national record. The History Matters campaign has designated 17 October a day for the public to make historic. We have chosen 'an ordinary' weekday of no particular significance to ask you to write a one day on-line diary.
Help us publicise it. Participate. Urge others to do so.
Prayer
The next series within Sanctus1 is going to be on prayer. Over the next 5 weeks we're going to be looking at the following themes:
Wk 1 - Introduction to prayer and Christian Meditation.
Wk 2 - Prayer and Creativity
Wk 3 - Prayer walking
Wk 4 - What happens when we pray and Ignation meditation
Wk 5 - Shared Service.
We hope that over the weeks we'll discover some of the breadth of prayer that exists within Christianity, hopefully this will enable us to discover new forms of prayer that enhance our spiritual life
Wk 1 - Introduction to prayer and Christian Meditation.
Wk 2 - Prayer and Creativity
Wk 3 - Prayer walking
Wk 4 - What happens when we pray and Ignation meditation
Wk 5 - Shared Service.
We hope that over the weeks we'll discover some of the breadth of prayer that exists within Christianity, hopefully this will enable us to discover new forms of prayer that enhance our spiritual life
Bishop for Urban Life
I'm sure most of you won't really care but...Bishop Stephen of Hulme and the Bishop that has pastoral oversight over Sanctus1 has been made the C of E's first Bishop of Urban Life and Faith. This role has come in response to the faithful cities report and is an exciting pioneering new post! Congratulation to him...
Dark. Darker. Darko.
Last night was the first in our new series of films as part of Reel Spirituality (with due deference – or reference? - to Rob, Barry, et al - thanks guys!)
The film was Donnie Darko: The Director’s Cut, as the first in our series on “The Outsider”.
We had some slight, ahem, technical problems, and started about 10 mins late, but overall it was a great night. Nice to see a few new faces and some familiar ones too! If you're still wondering what the heck it's all about - there's a Wikipedia entry here, covering trivia, interpretations and possiblities.
*** WARNING – the rest of this post contains potential SPOILERS ***
Issues, themes and questions that we raised as part of the discussion after the film included:
In what ways is Donnie an outsider?
Is he “mad” and everyone else “sane” - or vice versa?
Is it a film about time travel or mental health issues or tangent universes?
How do Donnie and his parents get along, connect, interact (or not)?
Do the new sections added to the film help “explain” it more?
How many other film references are there and what are they? (I think we counted at least six.)
What is the near-end sequence about – the shots of people at home, at night, in bed, crying, waking up (with Mad World played over the top)?
Is Donnie a superhero as he claims when talking with Gretchen?
Why is it set in 1988 - does Richard Kelly love the 80s, is it a device to make us think more about time, or does it serve to highlight the similarities/ differences between then and now?
Does Donnie have to die to redeem the “real” world?
Is everything in the world to do with fear or love as Jim Cunningham would have us believe?
What is the significance and symbolism of the eye/ seeing/ being seen, which appears in many ways/ forms throughout the film?
NEXT FILM:-
Here’s looking forward to the next one! It’s going to be Kes by Ken Loach on 5th November. More details in the coming weeks.
The film was Donnie Darko: The Director’s Cut, as the first in our series on “The Outsider”.
We had some slight, ahem, technical problems, and started about 10 mins late, but overall it was a great night. Nice to see a few new faces and some familiar ones too! If you're still wondering what the heck it's all about - there's a Wikipedia entry here, covering trivia, interpretations and possiblities.
*** WARNING – the rest of this post contains potential SPOILERS ***
Issues, themes and questions that we raised as part of the discussion after the film included:
In what ways is Donnie an outsider?
Is he “mad” and everyone else “sane” - or vice versa?
Is it a film about time travel or mental health issues or tangent universes?
How do Donnie and his parents get along, connect, interact (or not)?
Do the new sections added to the film help “explain” it more?
How many other film references are there and what are they? (I think we counted at least six.)
What is the near-end sequence about – the shots of people at home, at night, in bed, crying, waking up (with Mad World played over the top)?
Is Donnie a superhero as he claims when talking with Gretchen?
Why is it set in 1988 - does Richard Kelly love the 80s, is it a device to make us think more about time, or does it serve to highlight the similarities/ differences between then and now?
Does Donnie have to die to redeem the “real” world?
Is everything in the world to do with fear or love as Jim Cunningham would have us believe?
What is the significance and symbolism of the eye/ seeing/ being seen, which appears in many ways/ forms throughout the film?
NEXT FILM:-
Here’s looking forward to the next one! It’s going to be Kes by Ken Loach on 5th November. More details in the coming weeks.
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