March Madness

March was the strangest month. I've already blogged about the snow - a freak blizzard which brought Guernsey to a standstill for three days.  Skidding into school, it looked as if the worst was already over - just a few grains and a light covering - but then the storm hit. Force 9 winds lashed the islands with hail and snow, which accumulated, in places, in drifts over 8 feet high.
The airport was, of course, closed as heavy machinery struggled to clear the snow.  Fortunately for Guernsey, the airport was already undergoing major work and so the contractor's heavy plant proved to be very useful.
Goodness knows how many trees were uprooted: the total of just the ones which blocked roads was 70, while fallen trees can still be seen in hedgerows or, in one case, fallen across one of the footpaths.
Firewood won't be a problem for a while.
Around the storm, life continued as usual. The pace at school picked up as we struggled to fit in activities before the end of term - sadly, Easter barely got a mention. No eggs or chicks, let alone an acknowledgement of the festival's real meaning.
As well as fitting in our usual church and house group commitments, I enjoyed a fascinating morning listening to a visiting speaker teach on apologetics; we also started teaching a CAP money coaching course; prepared a prayer workshop for Good Friday, with practical activities for reflection; and I contributed a post to another blog site as a guest.
We also caught up with friends, especially from Devon and Dorset; celebrated the school holidays with a fun 'bring and share' and then numerous trips to cafes; and I made the journey over to London for the day, to celebrate my brother's 50th birthday. What a joy to meet up with childhood - and more recent - friends, one of whom I hadn't seen for over 30 years.
And, at the end of the month, wonderful answers to prayer. God is good, ALL THE TIME.
March seemed, before I looked back, somewhat of a 'mini' month. How wrong I was. March demanded maximum effort in every minute.

Snowstorm!

11th March. It started snowing gently in the early morning. We went to school. By mid-morning a blizzard had begun. Children and teachers fled home at 12, slipping and sliding as the snow blanketed a surprised Guernsey.

The wind howled, the snow blew, and whiteness covered the land. And parts of the sea.

12th March.

More snow. More ice. More staying at home. More thumps as snow slid off the roof.

13th March.
It stopped snowing. The sun came out. The snow started to melt. At least 65 trees down in the storm, not counting the 5 Leylandii bordering our garden which gently collapsed onto their neighbours. The daffodils lay where they had been knocked to the ground. Vegetation lay scattered. The earth started to breathe once more.

A brief history of snow.

Catching up on reading.

I wrote this ages ago - at the end of January. Not sure why I didn't post it then...

Being laid up for the last couple of days with what my mother would have called 'a feverish cold' - I refuse to call it 'flu - has at least given me the opportunity to catch up on some reading.  No TV in this house, the radio - even Radio 4 - tiresome at times: that left the Kindle. And a book.
The first book I read has been sitting by my bed for a couple of months. A Spacious Place by Alie Stibbe aims to help "Christian women take stock of the past; re-evaluate the present and look ahead to the future as they face the second half of life and all the challenges and opportunities it will hold."
I was a bit scared to read it.
The second half of life - which, for me, almost means Life After Retirement which is looming within the next few years - seemed, in my mind, to be peopled with Old Grey-Haired women. Yes, I know it sounds ageist, but only in relation to myself. I'm not yet old enough, wise enough or mature enough to fit the category. I'll certainly be old enough one day, but wise or mature enough? I doubt it.
Alie dispelled THAT idea in the first few paragraphs. Immediately, retirement notwithstanding - and she is further away than I am - I gained a sense of excitement. The second half of life is "a time when there is more room for all the things that were put on hold for child-rearing, when some of them, at least, can be rediscovered and begin to develop into their full potential, and a time to think about taking up something completely new."
I read it all in one go. I loved Alie's honesty as she shared her experiences while encouraging me to 'look the past in the eye.' I loved the second chapter: title, Laughing at the days to come. A 'word' my husband gave me when we barely knew each other. (He didn't know me very well. I do love to laugh - often at the most inappropriate moments - but I also have Doom and Gloom capability with the best of them.)
The third chapter dealt with 'Anxious thoughts and offensive ways' and the fourth 'The panini generation'...(you've heard of the Sandwich Generation: women whose lives are sandwiched between 'so-called' grown-up children and caring for ageing parents? Sandwich is too mild a term apparently - not just squashed, but toasted as well. Finally, chapters on work and encouragement that 'the second half of life will afford you the opportunity to be all that God intended you to be.' Fullness of life indeed.
I could go on: but if I did, I would probably just have to quote large chunks of this book: small, just over a hundred pages long, but absolutely packed with wisdom and inspiration. I have begun to reread it slowly, prayerfully, carefully. It will form the core of a morning away which I am organising with a group of friends. Because yes, it's aimed at a particular group of women. But I think that anyone will gain insight and encouragement to take stock and move on, wherever they might be. Grey-haired or not. (I'm hoping she will write the Book of Retirement soon, too. Everyone tells me how wonderful it is but I don't believe them. Yet.)
A Spacious Place: what a gem.

Fantastic February

Well, ten days off in the middle of a working month can't be bad. Half term, actually. Lots of reading, getting up late, getting caught up, getting fit(ter) with walks on the cliffs. The sun came out and we managed hundreds of steps and the length of the coastal cliffs over the course of the week.
The dog was happy. Very. Had the whole pack (aka The Family) at her disposal 24/7.
Otherwise...
February was Febrile, Full of cold and sickness, Fearsomely grey and damp.  Fundamentally miserable, yet we found busyness of work and friends absorbing. 
The wintry weather continued with rain and sleet and biting winds and we long for spring.
So now it is March.

Rollercoaster January

When I started blogging a month by month account last year, I thought those twelve posts would form the basis of our annual family newsletter.
I was wrong.
Somehow, when I came to write the letter, I disregarded my twelve little snapshots of life.
And perhaps that was right. Because including all the little details would have been a) boring and b) repetitious.
So recording the little details each month is just for fun. A little time of reflection.
This year beginning was, indeed, somewhat of a gentle rollercoaster. January, named after the Roman god Janus who looked backwards at the old year and forwards towards the new.  Double-headed, double-minded.
The highs and joys of having Cat and Jonny here over Christmas and New Year soon changed to lows as they left.
Norwich isn't the easiest of places to get to from Guernsey.  Auckland, New Zealand, is somewhat further.
Distance hurts.
Then, just a few days later, snow arrived, briefly. Fun. School was an adventure as we waded through the slush and made a huge snowman.
A week of 'normality', then flu hit hard. First the children: how generous they were, as they shared their coughs and colds and bugs with me.
Two days off, drag back to school and a week of weirdness before I started to feel 'normal' again. in the meantime, Richard managed to crack his nose surfing and catch the 'flu' at the same time. Who says men can't multi-task?
Now it's February.
A new month.

Christmas present ideas

Just seen all these wonderful ideas for Christmas presents...didn't get time to make them, but you never know. One year...

End of year greetings...

2nd January has rushed upon me.  Christmas seems such a distant memory, the arrival of 2013 somewhat horrifying.  Time is a mystery.

Back in December I had meant to put on our yearly roundup of news.  Trying to get the balance between (too) brief and (very) boring, i.e. in lengthy and unnecessary detail. Here goes... 

"Woohoo - time for a yearly roundup again! Looking forward to hearing your news, but meanwhile...Pollards' “life at the movies"...

During 2012 we attended Four Weddings and a Funeral: as we enter the season of our friends' and relatives' children embarking on marriage, Angie's mother, aged 88, died in October: she slipped gradually away, gently and peacefully.

The Princess Bride is a story of true love: Cat was a stunning bridesmaid to her school friend Hannah. It was a beautiful Guernsey wedding: gorgeous weather, great fun.

Then there was Love, Actually...yep, Jonny. And the gorgeous Adele. Both of them in Norwich. Lovely to have her visit this year, and we were able to meet her parents while they were on holiday on The Other Island. (Jersey).

In New Zealand, Cat has explored the film locations of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, in between working for Christians Against Poverty. She's popped up occasionally in CAP's own film clips, too.

And for those of you who have come across the wonderful British film Nativity, which features a creative and charismatic teaching assistant- yes, Jonny is presently working as a TA in a primary school.

Richard continues to appear in his own version of Airplane, happily back at work since time off for illness. Fit and healthy as long as he avoids eating wheat products. He is still surfing the waves... (just don't mention Jaws).

Angie is still teaching: at various times she feels as if she could be on the set of Harry Potter /Shrek/High School Musical/St Trinians/. Still enjoying inhabiting the quirky world of children, who manage to make her snigger several times a week. As for The Social Network, our Bible study with a group of friends is a weekly highlight. Angie meets with a group of friends for a regular breakfast slot - not exactly Calendar Girls, but close - some of whom are part of an online Bible study too: the joys of Facebook!

And, of course, through the year it has been great to meet up with friends from near and far, present and long-distant...over twenty years in some cases. We love sharing our home and sharing Guernsey, so please come and see us!

Must Love Dogs. Pickle lives up to her name, quite happy starring in her own dramas at home: adaptations of In Golden Pond; Eat, Chew, Love or The Great Escape.

We spent the hottest weekend of the Summer Holiday camping on Jersey. Then, in October, we enjoyed the warmth of Lanzarote - its stunning volcanic landscape a superb setting for various sci-fi movies.

As for Christmas: It's a wonderful life - Cat and Jonny both came home for a Christmas visit."