Take the time to stop and connect

MANY years ago I went for a day’s walk to nowhere.

It was a fascinating journey into the now and here of me, my senses, the world around me and the people who shared that exploration.

I wonder how often we allow ourselves to just be and connect with what else is present. Autumn is a particularly rich season for such experiences.

Autumn is also that reminder of change and loss, our annual reminder that time is not under our control.

As a priest, it is my privilege to serve the needs of those for whom dying and death are their now and here.

At funerals, I may see a packed church or crematorium and I sometimes wonder when those mourners last spent their nows with the ones they come to remember.

May I suggest that as we consider the Christmas card lists and the round robin review we stop and take time to talk, to phone or call, to connect.

Loneliness can be a serious threat to health and we have the power to use something as simple as the here and now to make a difference.

It’s all a matter of perspective — are we going nowhere or are we living in the now here?

With every blessing for how we choose to spend time.