BEAUTY IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER, ISN'T IT?

Greetings from East Lancashire,

As a lover of the traditional seaside holiday and after being brought up on the delights of Bognor Regis, Brighton by the sea and Butlins at Pwllheli, I decided four years ago to find the Frost family a traditional seaside resort that we hadn't had the joys of discovering before. After many hours trawling the Internet, going from Cornwall to Somerset, Devon to Suffolk, Dorset to Dover I struggled to find that special place that would live long in the memory and make us smile as we reflected on a special summer vacation.

This picture below is where I booked.

This place is Jaywick. If I had taken the trouble to look on Wikipedia I may well have established that Paradise it was not! In fact Wikipedia reads like the worse Tripadviser review you could possibly imagine.

It read " Jaywick was originally intended as a holiday resort for Londoners. Many of the houses were poorly constructed and were only intended for short-term holiday use". and,   "According to the Indices of deprivation 2010  the village is the most deprived area in England". 

So there you have it four years ago I had booked a a caravan in Jaywick the most deprived village in England. Of course  I had no idea and I remember as we stopped for our "long journey" picnic in a area of outstanding natural beauty, Colchester! my enthusiasm for the weekend was  well, still very enthusiastic! As we packed up our sandwiches because of a light to very heavy drizzle we headed for the resort determined that the sun would soon be upon us. I recall putting on radio 5 live on as it was the opening day of the football season only to discover Burnley FC were three down after just seven minutes of action.  I refused to be down hearted as I Put my windscreen wipers on full blast to cope with the brief downpoor of Biblical proportions which only lasted for  about 6 to 7 hours !   As we drove through the traditional resort of Clacton Upon Sea, I honestly recall seeing an advert for Britains last remaining Circus with animals! I was unsure if I should be mildly impressed or deeply outraged. I decided to leave that for a rainy day, of which there would be many!

So we left Clacton and quickly picked up signs for Jaywick, and that, "reaching destination" excitement had taken us all in a moment of giddyness and joy, and as we turned slowly onto the Promenade we saw in front of us Jaywick Amusement arcade happily name Slots of fun.

Below is an image of Jaywick Amusement Arcade, Slots of fun!

Strange as it may seem we weren't amused by Jaywick "Amusment" Arcade !

And so we continued up the prom to observe some of the local accommodation.

Your probably getting the drift, that our choice of holiday was maybe a little ill informed and not the prettiest part  the British coastline had to offer.

      As we gained entry to our Caravan this was our view of the local land mark, 

To this day I have no bloody idea what it is!

I remember slumping in my 6 birth standard caravan saying to my dear wife "What have we done"? I remember being devastated at bringing my family to possibly the most dreadful resort I have ever seen. I decided to visit the local shops.

These were the local shops !

These really were the local shops. So I found the next local, local shop!

This was the next local, local shop!

The freezer was bare except for some Happy Shopper sausages and some Birds Eye Fish Fingers, I bought them with Milk, a loaf of bread and a Mcvities Syrup sponge, I just couldn't go back empty handed.

It was as you can imagine a difficult period of my life. 

At least we had the beach to look forward to the following day!

This was the beach.

So there you have it, Jaywick by the Sea, a true story, no less !

When I reflect on this holiday It makes me consider a number of things, The first day of  this trip almost convinced me to get in the car and head back to Lancashire and spend our weeks holiday wallowing in self pity at what a disaster it  all was. But by the end of the week I recall driving home after having really great holiday. You see the old "it's what you make it" kicked in and we made it a great holiday, We went to the Clacton Carnival, we went to Colchester Zoo, which was fantastic, we found a summer Fete, where I bought a book on Christianity and paid over the odds for four Cornets and a chocolate Magnum!  We went to Colchester Swimming Baths where they had great slides and a practical car park! We had one day of sunshine so we spent  it on Clacton Beach, the kids dug holes and paddled in the sea, we had fish and chips and went on the Peer. Trust me we had a great time.

The second thing that I reflect upon is how much fun and enjoyment can be find in the places you least expect it. By the end of the holiday we had grown fond of Jaywick, it made us chuckle every time we returned from a trip out, and still now we laugh about this "gem" by the sea.

It also makes me think about my future Ministry, Many people suggest a nice "leafy lane" parish would be nice, A beautiful chuch, where people are queueing up to be married, there is little crime, a nice community and all that, but in fact I,m not so sure. First of all I think all churches are beautiful, there is something unique about them all but also something they have in common is they are places where we can meet God in the sharing of communion.  I don't know where my future ministry lies, and I may well end up in that "leafy lane" environment but if God chooses to lead me and my family to somewhere a little less pleasant on the eye then so shall it be.

My wife offered me some real words of encouragement not too long ago, I was pontificating about the future, slightly worried if the Parish we ended up in has a resemblance of Jaywick by the sea, how on earth would we cope. But Sarah put my mind at rest by  simply saying "As long as we are all together, we will be fine". And I take great heart from that, it's a reminder that love doesn't leave you because your in a  a difficult place, in fact it enthuses me that love can sometimes be found in those difficult times and challenging environments, just as it can be found in the more affluent areas of society. It fills me with confidence in God. Love can truly be found and expressed anywhere and anytime.The secret and the challenge for us all is seeking it out and expressing it to one another!

May the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.

love

AlextheAnglican.

Going through the emotions!

Do you ever think you think too much?

I know I do, As I approach a significant milestone in my Christian life, I can't help thinking about the journey I have traveled to this point of my life, I think about school days, friendships, past careers, and colleagues and it seems only a short time ago when I began my first days work as a Van Assistant for Currys Electrical visiting my first customer and struggling desperately trying to a connect a three point plug to a very heavy washing machine. Every time I wheel out a washing machine for a customer these days in my present job, it takes me back to my teenage years where I was very much the "lacky" and did just as I was told.
These days I frequently find myself considering my vocation. Why have I been called to Ordination training, What is it exactly, God wants me to do?  Why me?  Why now ? It creates many emotions, Worry, excitement, frustration, Joy, doubt, confidence, it really does take you on a roller coaster of thoughts.
  I have much support particularly from family and friends, and "the church" has cared for me beautifully, but i find myself frequently being asked by others What made you do it?
I used to say I don't know, after all for a considerable period of time I thought the road of Comedy, was my calling, writing comic material was a real passion, and without being arrogant I was confident it was good stuff, Production companies told me so, I have a brief case full of stuff that I keep tucked safely away just in case I feel the urge to push again and have a go at the "fame game" although at this moment in time I have absolutely no craving to travel down that particular road.
 I often wonder what people think of my Vocation, after all I'm a man of extremes, and some of past blogs reflect what I like to consider is a rather color full life that i'm living. Frequently when people learn of what i'm doing a common response would be "I didn't know you were religous" or "How does Sarah (my wife) feel about it"?
One of Jesus' teaching was warning of the dangers of judging someone, which is something I struggle with most days of my life, but in turn I suppose I must get used to the fact the people will be judging me as I am now, and when I ultimately become Ordained and wear the dog collar through out my working life.
  So lots of emotions but probably no more than any other human being who thinks about life, family, money, the future the past, and I just want to express my confidence in my Faith that keeps me on the straight and narrow.
  Something that nearly always happens now when i,m about is conversation will turn pretty quickly to the subject of God, People will openly express their own position, whether Christian, agnostic, or Atheist, they seem to want to get it off their chest. Which is great, some people share very private thoughts, worries, experiences, people ask me to pray for them which I always do of course. People ask deep theological questions, People sometimes challenge me to convince them God exists. The questions are endless, but I must tell you this, If you have the slightest bit of Faith that God exists, then you must find a way to express that, It needn't be in a Church, but you can pray anywhere, anytime, and get those things that mash your head, off your chest.
Prayer has become one of the most important practices of my life, It is rather tricky to do that in a noisy household and so most of my praying is done on a farm track with my dog Fletcher,(he chases rabbits) where I pray out loud and get it all out, which has been rather embarrassing sometimes as the occasional runner discretely jogs passed listening to me praying about, work, people, life etc. but do you not what? I couldn't care less.
Among all the thoughts I have a clear, conviction that my faith is my strength, I give it all to God sometimes, and boy does that help, knowing that he can take all my burdens, and worries and fears, and then fills me with overwhelming love and encouragement which can hit me completely out of the blue is inspiring stuff.
  So when I,m asked now what may you do this? My simple answer is "God did"!
This normally generates a difficult moment of silence, and we carry on, but yep God did, and that's that.
I encourage all who read this who haven't prayed for sometime, to do so, get some of the anxieties off your chest, give them to someone that will listen in silence but may respond in a way that you never thought possible. You can do it anywhere and at any time, you do not  need an appointment to be with God.
In the words of a comic hero,
May your God go with you.
Alex the Anglican.