Christmas

Yes, Christmas can be celebrated in the 21st century!

Iceland

Celebrating a 50th birthday in December isn't easy in England. In Australia it must be easy, but England in winter is no place for hot air balloon rides or garden parties. So I decided to go deeper into the dark with a week in Iceland!

From the moment I was nearly blown from the airline terminal onto the bus this was going to be a wild week. But whether I was bathing in an outdoor geothermally-heated jacuzzi in the dark at 10:30 in the morning, listening to children singing Icelandic Lutheran carols in Hallgrimmskirkja or watching wild horses grazing on a volcanic bog this was an amazing life experience.

Not only was it a fantastic experience of a great country; it also meant that as I stood outside Waterstone's Bookshop in Wycombe with folk from church singing carols this morning what would previously have felt quite cold, dark and wet felt relatively tropical!

I especially like the picture below, which was snapped at 12:38pm at Grindavik on the south coast. If that sun doesn't get up soon it will be going down again before it starts!

Poppy Joy

Take a look at this profound blog. Poppy Joy didn't live long in this world but she's made an impact. And you can only feel humbled by the faith of her Mum and Dad.

http://poppyjoy.blogspot.com/