NEWSLETTER
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Mandy's Musings
Five years ago we were celebrating Easter in lockdown and our lives had completely shrunk. We did not mix with others outside of our homes and over a period of time, connections that we had taken for granted slipped from our fingers. There was probably a lot more quiet and silence in those days as cars left the road and people stayed in their homes. And we communicated through celluloid. It was interesting, celebrating Easter Sunday in 2020. Traditionally, Easter Sunday is full of colour, noise and excitement as the joyful news of the resurrection is announced. In 2020, it was quiet, with each of us probably looking at a screen either with others or at a recorded service. In Holy week, leading up to Easter Sunday we also have silence, particularly from Jesus who says very little while all the noise and furore is going on around him. He remains largely silent amongst all the noise. The Easter Eve Vigil Service on Holy Saturday, encapsulates this contract of noise and silence. We begin with the simple words 'The Light of Christ, Thanks be to God' in a semi dark building with candles being lit, and are reminded of the darkness and silence of the tomb. In this space we then tell the story of the whole of creation up to the resurrection, at which point we announce that resurrection with light, instruments, noise and music. 'The Lord is Risen!' The silence is taken over with noise and celebration. We might be the kind of person who functions well in silence and would naturally retreat from noise and people. In the Easter scenes that we will be hearing this week and next there is significant noise and significant silence too. In the noise, we have communities connecting and celebrating and in the silence we speak to ourselves, find God and make sense of the place we are in. Five years ago, we were pushed into silence, now we choose it when the world gets too noisy.
With every blessing for a joyful and peaceful Eastertide,
Mandy
Harston Annual Parochial Church Meeting and the electoral roll
The Harston Annual Parochial Church Meetings will be held in church at 6.30pm on 20 May.
We have to renew our electoral rolls this year and so all members of all churches are asked to complete a form available from church or from here: www.parishresources.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Application-for-Enrolment-Electoral-Roll.pdf
Completed forms should be returned at least two weeks before the APCM to Joy Richardson
Coffee and Chat
7.45pm, Thursday 1 May
at 10 The Limes, Harston
Discussion on chapters 9 to 15 and the additional reading on pages 99 to 110 of Samuel Wells: 'The Heart of it All'
Deanery Event
The Real Mrs Thatcher
A Talk by Sir John Coles
Whittlesford Parish Church
7.30pm, Friday 2 May
Sir John Coles: Private Secretary to the Prime Minister for foreign & defence affairs from 1981 to1984, a period which saw the Falklands war and negotiations with China on the future of Hong Kong. Sir John later became the Permanent Under Secretary at the Foreign Office and Head of the Diplomatic Service.
Tickets £17 (to include a glass of wine) on sale here.
Plant Sale
Harston Village Hall
Sat 3 May, 10.30 - 12.00
Fine selection of annuals, perennials, vegetable plants and more grown by local gardeners.
Plant contributions welcome (please bring to the Village Hall on Friday from 3.00pm)
Delicious coffee available at Better Brew.
Food Hub
Wed & Sat 11.30-1.00pm in Harston Baptist Church email: harstonfoodhub@gmail.com
Harston Community Foodhub has two separate sections that operate in different ways and have different aims.
FOOD BANK
The ‘Food Bank’ provides emergency food support to residents of Harston and the surrounding villages (mainly Hauxton, Foxton, Newton, Haslingfield, Barrington and Shepreth). It is part of a network of food banks that operate in South Cambridgeshire. Bags of non-perishable food are made up using food donated or bought with donations. Support from the food bank is intended to help people through a crisis.
FRESHFOOD LARDER
The ‘Fresh Food Larder’ distributes fruit, vegetables and bread and is part of an initiative that helps to avoid food waste. Donations of surplus stock are picked up from local supermarkets and farm shops by volunteers (often the night before) or brought in by local growers. Whilst much of the food is collected by people visiting the food bank, food from the fresh food larder is available to everyone no matter where they live or the circumstances they are in.
Trumpington Memory Cafe
Every third Wednesday of the month,10am-12 noon at The Pavilion, Paget Road, (opposite Anstey Way), Trumpington, Cambridge, CB2 9JF
Run jointly by Trumpington Parish Church and the Rotary Club.
A place where people with varying forms of memory loss can visit with their carers and support each other and have fun. Call 01223 840268 to book a place and please give your name(s).
Free admission to Ely Cathedral
All electoral roll members are eligible for a free pass to Ely Cathedral. If you would like one, please fill in this form and ask Mandy or a churchwarden to sign it. You can then present the form at the Cathedral to get your pass.