Dear Friends,

Organisations, like individual men and women, live most happily when they are reconciled with all that has happened in their past, fully aware of all that is happening in the present moment, and fully open to whatever might happen in the future.

But it takes a time, energy and a lot of hard work to reach that moment when we can all sing ʻSummertime, and the living is easy…ʼ.

As a church we are not quite there yet, but a lot of things have happened recently which might make life easier as we move into the future.

Last summer we had negotiated the sale of the Vicarage. In the last few days we have signed the preliminary documents for the purchase of a new chaplain’s flat, just along the road from the present Vicarage, and also signed a compromis de vente to buy new office premises, which should be built in two years. In the next two weeks we hope to conclude an arrangement for temporary office accommodation in premises owned by the Catholic Church, near the Kirchberg. In the autumn we hope that we will be in our new premises.

In the meantime many other changes are taking place.

Felix Rusere, who generously volunteered 18 months ago to take over as Treasurer from Sarah Parkhouse, has had to step down because of pressure of work and the imminent increase in his family commitments. We are very grateful to Felix for giving us so much of his time, and we look forward to celebrating, with him and Maina, the birth of a new brother or sister for Naomi.

Chris Vaudrey has agreed to be Treasurer for the next few months, and to oversee the transition to a new financial system, which should make things easier for all of us, but especially for future Treasurers. We are very grateful to Chris for accepting this role, not least because he has done it before, and he knows what to expect.

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We are also auditioning for a new Music Director, and have a few candidates for this very important post. We hope to appoint in time for September.

It’s impossible to plan the future: all we can do as human beings is to prepare for it with faith, hope and love (I Corinthians 13). This is not just a religious formula, it has apractical application and political as well as personal dimensions. Faith is not only (maybe not even) about intellectual belief, it’s about being confident and motivated to step into an uncertain future which will be different from the past. Hope is about our willingness to embrace our deepest yearnings, and to move to fulfil them, in the confident faith that these deepest desires are planted within us by God. We discover and reveal love when we open ourselves to the possibility of living in solidarity with people who want to share the future with us, including complete strangers wanting to find a safe haven from the dangers that beset them, as well as economic migrants like ourselves.

As Luxembourg takes up the presidency of the EU in a few days, I had the privilege of taking part in a government briefing for European church agencies and the next day participated in the official celebrations of our National Day. The briefing, by a very senior civil servant, focussed on technical issues in finance, economic policy and immigration control, but it was marked by a very keen understanding of the direct impact of these issues on ordinary people caught up in different kinds of crisis in and around Europe, not all of which are being reported in the press. The next day as I listened to the speeches of the Prime Minister, Archbishop Hollerich and Grand-Duke Henri, and heard these same themes being echoed in their reflections on Luxembourg’snational identity, and I found myself both moved and deeply glad to be here (and even more determined to keep learning Luxembourgish).

We are a small faith community, part of a minority language group in a very small European country, which nevertheless has a big role in international affairs, not least because of its financial expertise. We are part of something larger than ourselves. Tiny though we are, we have a contribution to make to building up the common good. Let’s pray that we can continue to live and work together so that people everywhere, and all kinds of life, can flourish on Earth, our common home.

God bless you, and all those whom you encounter on your travels, this summer.

Chris Lyon.

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Announcements

CONFIRMATION – 10 May 2015

The Bishop of Gibraltar in Europe, the Right Reverend Dr Robert Innes, confirmed Jessica Bauldry, Neo Roloff, Christian Saeijs, Nerys Vizard and Robert York on 10 May (see photo on next page).

FUNERAL – 12 March 2015

Leslie Thomas Corke (13 June 1924 – 9 March 2015)

BAPTISMS

Rebekah Naomi Louise Haggart – 12 April 2015

Melina Sandra Lowther – 18 April 2015

BLESSING OF MARRIAGES

Gary and Inna Gray – 15 May 2015, in Grosbous Church

Frank Kerschen and Katy Sinclair – 30 May 2015 in Clervaux Church

Please save the date:

Potluck Harvest Lunch on Sunday 27 September

(after the 11 am service)

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Growing into Faith

Being at two Confirmations recently (my nephew, to whom I am godmother, and my son, Neo) made me think of Faith and how we, nowadays, grow into Faith.

While scripture, the sacraments and Church teachings are at the heart of faith, they may not always bethe best point of departure for the faith journey of the young. The seed of faith must be allowed to take root and grow at its own pace.

So we need to cultivate first an open disposition in young people; it will be the ‘good soil’ for the things of the spirit. This openness is evident in curiosity and wonder. Its simple expression can be the request, ‘Tell me more!’ Jesus invented his parables to surprise and to open the imagination. The gospels tell a story of slow learners whose imaginations were closed against seeing God in the man Jesus. But when imagination blossomed in the Resurrection, the unthinkable became thinkable, and faith emerged as living conviction.

Next comes decision. Today faith has to be a free and personal decision, where an individual states his or her belief in Christ. Past generations may have made such a decision only implicitly and socially, but now it has to be explicit and personal.

Lastly comes difference. In the past, it took courage to be an unbeliever; now it takes a high level of courage to be a believer. To be a Christian means resisting dominant but ambiguous values. This does not mean being negative or fundamentalist, but courageous and wise in discerning good from bad.I am glad that all the newly confirmed came to the right decision and know that Christ will make a difference in their lives.

Congratulations to Jessica, Nerys, Rob, Christian and Neo … and may God always walk with you.

Rani Roloff

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Church meetings

The 2015 Annual General Meeting, attended by 33 Church members, was held on 22 April 2015 at the Sœurs Franciscaines’ convent in Belair, starting at the earlier time of 7 pm in a bid to finish beforethe nuns’ ‘curfew’ of 10 pm. The Chaplain reviewed the year and highlighted some of the challenges currently facing the Church. He reported that, after lengthy negotiations, a new ‘conventionʼ had beensigned with the Government in January, the procedure to sell the Vicarage was under way and, fortunately, the imminent demolition of the Konvikt Chapel had been postponed for at least two or three years.

The new Treasurer, Felix Rusere, presented his report with the aid of coloured ‘doughnut-ring’ charts for ease of comparison, and the 2014 accounts, audited by Michael Chamier, were duly approved. Catherine Allen and Chris Vaudrey stepped down as Churchwardens at the end of their six-year term of office and the Chaplain thanked them for all their hard work and support. Simon Norcross and Philippa Seymour were elected as their successors. The two candidates for two vacant posts on the Church Council, Victoria Hodgson and Gerd Gebhard, were duly elected; a further Council member would be co-opted later on to replace Simon Norcross for the remainder of his term of office as member. The Chaplain thanked the outgoing Council members, Cheryl Fisher and Philippa Seymour, and welcomed the new additions to the Council as well as the new Churchwardens.

At the Council meeting of 6 May, the new members were thrown in at the deep end with a lengthy discussion of how to proceed with a potential purchase of apartments to serve as office space and accommodation for the Chaplain once the Vicarage was sold. A new communications policy was approved (see below), as were the amounts of spending requiring approval at various levels. As regards the search for a new Music Director, the Music Group had drawn up an advertisement and jobdescription, and also had two potential candidates.

COMMUNICATIONS TO THE PUBLIC

— POLICY

All communications in the name of the Anglican Church of Luxembourg should:

1. consciously reflect the tone, attitudes and values of our Church, which are open and inclusive;

2. be clear, appropriate and correct;

3. where possible, include the Church logo;

4. not contain commercial advertising of goods or services;

5. have the agreement of the Communications Committee as to the most suitable means of communication;

6. comply with local data protection law and the laws on photographs and privacy protection.

7. In the event of doubt whether a proposed communication complies with the above policy, the Chaplainʼs decision is final.

For details of the procedure for publishing on behalf of the Church in public media, including Facebook, the press and the internet, please contact the Anglican Office, office@anglican.lu.

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The Jambange Project

Ken Johnson, an Australian co-founder of the Jambange Project, was present at the Church Fair this year. The Project (seen here with Kenʼs co-founder Mohan Govindasamy and some appreciative novice monks), was supported by our Charity Committee in 2013. It seeks to supply medical, economic, educational and other resources to the village of Rimbik, in the Darjeeling District of West Bengal. It borders the state of Sikkim on one side and Eastern Nepal on the other. Geographically in India, it is culturally Nepali. It is five hours’ drive on a mountainous road to Darjeeling, where the nearest medical facilities are available.

The project was launched in November 2008, with the purchase of land and construction of a centre for volunteers. Visitors and volunteers then began to turn it into a clinic and community centre. With the help of Australian funding, they provided water tanks for the villagers, successfully reducing water-borne disease in the area. As news began to spread of the water-tank programme and plans for the clinic, monks from the village and people from outlying areas starting coming in for assistance. Funding last year enabled the Project to buy a portable dental chair and supplies, and pay for a dentistand assistant to service the dental health of many children from the region, most of whom had never had dental treatment before.

Ed.

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Charlie—another view

In reply to Edward Ojoʼs piece (ʻWould Christ have been Charlie?ʼ—Spring 2015 issue) on the attacks in France in January, my response is simply that the ʻJe suis Charlieʼ campaign after the attacks was not so much in support of the content of the magazine, but in outrage at the deliberate attack on one of the cornerstones of French, and indeed, Western society: freedom of speech. The attacks had a real impact on life in France and caused a great deal of reflection in French society. For example, many students in schools in the cities refused to take part in the minuteʼs silence as we werenot, for example, honouring the dead in Syria in the same way. To say ʻJe suis Charlieʼ was not to side with Charlie Hebdo so much as to side against terrorists.

Many moons ago, I was an au pair in Nancy to a quite right-wing, extremely Catholic family. I am still in touch with them and spoke to Madame in the days after the attacks. She was horrified, but stated that she was definitely not Charlie. In fact she had, just before Christmas, been into her local newsagent to complain about the cover of the Christmas edition of Charlie Hebdo. The shopkeeper told her that she had every right to be offended, but that free speech meant that he had every right to stock it. Her response was correct and moral and within the law. What happened in Paris was not.

Charlie Hebdo is a rag, but it is legal. France is not a religious state and we have very precious freedoms, here and in the West in general, that must be defended from radicalism. A few days after the attacks, when France was on high alert, Anna phoned me from school to tell me that there had been a shooting in Thionville and that she was therefore not allowed to leave the building. I donʼt know if Christ would have supported the ʻJe suis Charlieʼ campaign, but I think that, as a response to an atrocity, He might approve.

I think the Christian response should be a fervent hope that good will come out of a hideous act of violence.

Siân Crisp

Roots down, walls down

There are moments in life when the penny drops so forcefully you can almost hear it. I had one such moment in a Scottish church a few years ago, in an Advent service jointly arranged with the local Transition Town group. We were focusing on John the Baptist, the voice calling from the wilderness: ʻMake straight the way of the Lordʼ. And it struck me that people are often reluctant to learn from hippies and outsiders, whether Biblical prophets or modern-day ones. For just as John was calling

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Israel to look to its roots, I felt suddenly that the Transition Town volunteer was offering our church the same thing: a calling back to true community.

For those unfamiliar with the Transition movement, a little background may be necessary here. It began around 2005 as an emerging, grassroots response to the problems of climate change and peak oil. Peak oil is the point at which its discovery and extraction ʻpeaksʼ, and our oil-dependent society is left to search for the ever-diminishing supplies in more dangerous (for example at Deepwater Horizon, where an oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico flowed for three months in 2010) or environmentally damaging locations (such as the tar sands in Canada, the countryʼs fastest growing source of greenhouse gas emissions). The International Energy Agency says this ʻpeakʼ occurred in 2006.

Transitionʼs founder, Rob Hopkins, was previously a teacher of permaculture, an approach that looks at the radical interconnectedness of all aspects of an ecosystem, for example the way in which nutrients (such as nitrogen) taken from the soil by one plant can be put back by another (such as clover). Hopkins took this ecological heritage, and radically broadened its focus to the ecosystem of community life.

I have had a life-long fascination with ʻcommunityʼ. The word carries an old-fashioned romantic ideal of the ʻgood lifeʼ and still retains a kernel of warm feeling despite massive over-use. It has progressive potential, and can mobilise and inspire us to act, but also force us to rub up against different views and personalities —to work it out together. Over the last few years Iʼve become particularly interested in communityʼs potential to rescue us from our three-fold trap of debt—living beyond our means ecologically, financially and spiritually.

A virtue of necessityAnd it is here that the Transition Town movement is most crucial, leading us from a way of life relianton oil to a low-carbon future. Since Totnes emerged as the first example in 2005, there are now over 1130 registered initatives in 43 countries: including islands, neighbourhoods and even a university as well as towns. In each case the community has come together to embrace practical projects that reduce our negative impact on the planetʼs resources, be that the development of a community orchard, a scheme to insulate housing blocks or even the creation of alternative currencies or local non-cash skill and time-sharing.

The need for this movement is moral but also, with only a finite supply of oil running out, practical. As Rob Hopkins puts it: ʻClimate change says we should change, whereas peak oil says we will be forced to change. Both categorically state that fossil fuels have no role to play in our future, and the sooner we can stop using them the betterʼ.

The ideal of the fully localised community is both the means and end of the Transition. But defining our borders should not prevent us from looking beyond them for our true context. In fact, paradoxically, the closer we focus on the local, the more we begin to identify the radical global interconnectedness of which we are all part. How do we travel? What supply chains does our food rely on? Where and in what are our banks and pension schemes investing our money?

These subtle aspects of community can open us up to the whole world. On the surface, things can look so simple and separate—but permaculture calls us to dig deeper and see the connections beneaththe soil. Our communities are formed both from the heritage we find there, and the biography we bring to them. They are much more than people; they also concern the spirit, memory and sense of place. When we ignore our wider interconnectedness and only focus on the surface, we end up with a regressive shoring-up of our community boundaries that can help us feel safe—but can also exclude others. In this view, ʻgated communitiesʼ, or the oxymoronic job title of ʻcommunity enforcement officerʼ, represent community in name only.

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What the Church can learnSo what could the Church learn from the Transition movement? Well, most obviously there is the challenge for those of us living a lifestyle ultimately beyond the means of the planet. There is the call to wake up and smell the black stuff—not coffee, but oil, which feeds our addiction, and lubricates our whole way of life. Whether itʼs in our dependence on the car, or a food-supply system that needs oil at nearly every stage, or the pesticides used to grow our vegetables, or that well-earned short-haul break to relieve the stress of working too hard, or in nearly every product we use in our daily, banal existence, we all rely on oil in some way. These are moral issues the Church should concern themselves with: what are our carbon emissions doing to the poorest and most vulnerable? But rather than leave us feeling depressed, guilty and powerless, Transition also offers us a practical response—one the Church can embrace wholeheartedly.

Indeed, there is something in the Transition vision that rings very true with the early ideal of Christiancommunity. The oft-repeated verse in Acts 4:32 tells us that the first Christians held everything in common: ʻNo one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they hadʼ. Iʼve lost count of the number of times Iʼve been told this is pie-in-the-sky dreaming, an admirable aim but not intended for the modern world. But Transitionʼs aim is precisely this: collective responsibility for shared assets, from community orchards to renewable energy schemes. How ironic that it takes a movement from outside the Church to raise these ideas into goals and beginto work towards them, however slowly and surely.

Nobody would claim these are easy ideals to work out in practice. Itʼs not easy sharing, or working for something in the knowledge that there may be free-riders. How community-owned energy schemes monitor and control the use of this electricity is notoriously difficult. Do you share apples from the orchard to the hardest workers first, or give equal numbers or quality of fruit to those who have barely worked at all, as Jesus seems to advocate? It takes quite a bit of faith in the humanity of those round about you, and that is what participants in Transition are aiming for. This is community without the state, or community without communism.

Time to catch upWouldnʼt it be strange if it took an outside organisation to help us live up to these ideals in the 21st century Church? Perhaps this is an example of what Rowan Williams was getting at when he talked of renewal coming from the margins: ʻThis is where the unexpected growth happens, where the unlikely contacts are often made; where the Church is renewed (as it so often is) from the edges, not the centre. We need a positive willingness to see and understand all this—and to find the patterns and rhythms and means of communication that will let everyone share the benefitsʼ (Archbishopʼs Presidential Address to Synod, 2003).

Though fashionable these days to have a go at the Church, in fact as an institution, as a collection of inspired individuals, itʼs been well ahead of the game on key issues like slavery, as characters such as Wilberforce could tell us. Josephine Butler would have something to say about it on womenʼs rights. But on ecological issues, it is lagging behind. It has yet to offer a powerful, persistent and prophetic critique of consumer capitalism.

There are exceptions—from A Rocha to recent encyclicals from Pope Francis—but given even the mildest predictions for our environmental future, I believe it is time for the Church to recover its radical edge. Graham Crayʼs catchphrase on ecumenism—ʻRoots down, walls downʼ—is useful here.Can we as a church community be humble and hospitable, and secure enough in our grounding, to reach out beyond the traditional walls and learn something from outside?

Gerry Taylor Aiken

(Updated from an article that first appeared in Third Way magazine.)

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Walking in the light of God

On a fine Ascension Day morning, a total of 27 adults, 10 children and a new-born baby assembled atthe home of Elaine and Rupert Birch in Schuttrange. New for this year was an invitation for the parents, carers and little ones from our Lions and Lambs toddler group to join us and this proved to be a successful venture.

The Revd Andy Markey opened proceedings with a short open-air service ending with the appropriately-named traditional South African hymn ʻWe are walking in the light of Godʼ.

The walkers then split into two groups. The first group headed off on an 8 km-walk through the village and round part of the ʻKatebëschʼ, led by Julia Kelly. The remaining group set off at a more leisurely pace on a shorter walk led by Elaine, returning via the local children’s playground, enabling the younger members of our congregation to have fun and burn off some excess energy.

Everyone then met up again for lunch in the Birchs’ garden, with a delicious selection of savoury and sweet dishes provided by those who attended. Tea and coffee rounded off a successful event with good company and plenty of sunshine.

Elaine Birch, Claudia Granger & Julia Kelly

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Introducing … Nick Jones

Background and life before LuxembourgI can probably be classed as an economic migrant. I was born in Somerset, and lived in Wiltshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire as my Father moved between teaching jobs. My secondary schoolswere in Oxford, and Aylesbury; then since university I have lived in Hertfordshire, Essex and Berkshire, with the moves being dictated by job changes.

The period in Reading lasted over 20 years, during which my wife and I finished raising our four children and I worked initially in Slough, then later in London. The children are now all settled around the UK, three in the North: in Durham, Leeds, and Manchester, and the eldest, with her husband, looking after the family home in Reading.

My work has always been in financial services, and for the most part in software-related support for that sector. I am a specialist in data management, helping to keep track of where exactly all those connected pieces of information are stored. I sometimes describe it as data cartography: providing maps so that it is easier to navigate through corporate information landscapes.

I grew up attending Sunday school and in various forms have continued to be ‘in the Way’ all my life;though that has been expressed through many forms of Church, from Baptist and Pentecostal to solemn high mass in Latin. My involvement in Church life has been varied. I have sung in Church choirs on and off since I was in my teens, but have also helped to run youth groups and been involvedin parish church committees.

Leisure interests then and nowI have enjoyed singing ever since I learned (relatively late, aged 9 or 10) how to do it. Church choirs, college chamber choir, choral societies, Church musicals, and other groups have been a musical thread through my life. For several years I sang with a male voice a cappella group (the Singkers – we would sing and drink, but not necessarily in that order).

Apart from singing, I enjoy cycling – for leisure and as a primary means of transport; and it also givesme opportunities for engineering and maintenance ‘tinkering’ activities that in some circles are

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referred to as ‘fettling’. I have relatively recently started doing a little upholstery too – partly to keep my wife (who is an upholsterer) company on some workshop weeks. On a less frequent basis I enjoy photography, philosophy, theology, and a long list of things that will have to wait ‘until I retire’.

How I found this ChurchThe simple answer is that I did an internet search for English-speaking churches in Luxembourg; but a colleague (who was largely responsible for inducing me to come to Luxembourg) has also worshipped here on occasions while over from the UK.

A favourite hymnOne favourite is ‘Breathe on me, breath of God’ (particularly to the tune Trentham). If I am honest, it’s probably the tenor line that really clinches it for me; but also the way in which the words make the link between a personal alignment with God’s purposes, and a consequent wholeness of being. I find that both challenging and reassuring. It isn’t ‘pie in the sky when you die’; it’s learning to live in eternity from now.

Non-Sunday church eventsCurrently choir practices are my only non-Sunday church activity for a couple of reasons: firstly therehas been too much going on at work to do much else; and secondly I promised my wife when we moved to Luxembourg that I would leave it at least a year before getting involved in any regular commitments outside work.

How Iʼd spend a free dayIf I could get a whole free day, then I would definitely be out on my bike for a long ride, taking in hills, valleys, and cafés. If the evening could then be spent relaxing with good food, singing, conversation and a glass or two of wine or beer, so much the better.

My First Year of Ordinand Training

I am writing this from London City airport, a place which is starting to feel like a second home. I’ve just finished another weekend of Ordinand training with the Eastern Region Ministry Course in Ditchingham, Suffolk, and am feeling weary but grateful for a very stimulating weekend of worship, teaching and dialogue. This weekend we covered the topic of inclusion and exclusion in the Anglican Church; examining barriers confronting women in ministry, issues of racism, and hearing real-life stories of people within the church whose mental and physical disabilities provide an opportunity for compassion and learning within their congregations.

We generally manage to cover one topic per weekend. This academic year I have studied the history and patterning of liturgy, theology of worship, the historical development of the Church of England and global Anglicanism, various approaches to interpreting Scripture and different models for preaching. It might sound something like a whirlwind tour, but it’s more of a spiral curriculum, with elements introduced in this first year of training that will be revisited in further depth over the next two years. I am also simultaneously undertaking a Masterʼs in Pastoral Theology through distance learning at Anglia Ruskin University.

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This method of training, involving six annual training weekends and a one-week summer school, is designed to allow candidates to continue working full-time whilst simultaneously experiencing residential ‘formation’ (church-speak for spiritual maturity) and theological education. As I have a demanding full-time job, I am finding the experience of part-time training to be quite stretching.

While I have managed all of the requirements so far, it has meant some busy weekends, and I have valued Chris’s advice about taking time to stop, be still and enjoy the simple things. I am guessing that by the time I am ordained in June or July 2017 I will also be expert in time management, personal resilience and the East Anglia railway timetable!

I do my part-time training alongside lay readers and ordination candidates from the dioceses within the East Anglia region (Norwich, Ely, Peterborough, St Albans, St Edmondsbury and Ipswich) as wellas candidates from around the Diocese of Europe. It’s wonderful to mix with a very diverse range of people of mixed ages and from different church traditions. Dialogue around cultural and theological matters always affords a range of perspectives and interpretations, which is enriching. We also plan and participate in different styles of services, from high Anglo-Catholic to Charismatic, the idea beingto expose people in training to a broad range of churchmanship. As I get to know my classmates I am developing a network of supportive relationships with others walking along the same path. It has beenparticularly interesting to get to know the candidates from the other parts of the Diocese of Europe and to hear their stories of life and church in Spain, Greece, France, Italy and Austria. Over the next two years I will undertake some work placements in the UK, within both parish and chaplaincy settings, which means getting to know another new culture, a process that I’m enjoying. Despite the long history of Ashes test rivalry, I have found that Aussies are quite welcome in the UK.

I value the support of everyone here in Luxembourg as I undertake the process of training toward ordination and am grateful for the support of Chris, Andy and the Church Council as I take a road lesstravelled, but for which God has prepared me to walk. Please continue to pray for me, as I pray also for the life and witness of the church here in Luxembourg.

Philip Harvey

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Telstar International Scouts are looking for adult volunteers.

If you have as little as two hours a month to spare,

you donʼt have to be a Scout or know now to read a map.

Volunteer at Telstar International Scouts, Luxembourg.

For more information visit www.telstar.lu or contact Rani on 621 181 848 or gsi@telstar.lu.

British Girl Guides, Luxembourg

Are you interested in volunteering your time to help young girls

become the next generation of leaders?

We urgently need adult women volunteers to help with our units.

If you are interested, please contact dcluxembourg@gmail.com

Little Johnny and his family were having Sunday dinner at his Grandmotherʼs house. Everyone was seated around the table as the food was being served. When Little Johnny received his plate, he started eating right away.

ʻJohnny! Please wait until we say our prayer,ʼ said his mother. ʻI donʼt need to,ʼ the boy replied. ʻOf course you do,ʼ his mother insisted. ʻWe always say a prayer before eating at our house.ʼ

ʻThatʼs at our house,ʼ Johnny explained. ʻBut this is Grandmaʼs house and she knows how to cook.ʼ

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Wood carving

A year of Mondays carving away,at the woodcarving class on my leisure day.And now, at last, Iʼve finished her! –named her ʻGirl Riding on a Dolphinʼ.Sheʼs been mounted on marble, oiled and waxed,cleaned up, all polished and shining.

I pictured her at the start, trapped in a block of lime.She had a classic face with flowing hair –Iʼd set her free, given time!

With each malletʼs tap and chiselʼs gouge,she gradually became exposed.Excitement as her shape appeared,though weeks dragged on into a year ...

Having never carved a face,I made a few mistakes.And her hair isnʼt flowing free,like Iʼd thought it would be.

And it was in my thoughtsto put her in shorts,But alas too little wood was leftand, well … sadly, sheʼs bereft.

Sheʼs lucky to have fingers, but theyʼre not graceful or long,And I have to admitthat one buttock is just ... wrong.

But I love my dolphin girl,wouldnʼt have her any other way!Her rustic charm and earthy beauty – what is perfection? Can anyone say?

Well thereʼs half my life behind me and half my life ahead,So can we think about metaphorical carving now instead?Youthʼs idealistic dreams and hopes, I sometimes hear them call,but Iʼve come to love myself a little, foibles, warts and all,And I go to the place where I can be, just mefully known, and fully loved, finally carved free,And wake in the morning, stop for a minute and say:ʻWell, Lord, what shall we carve out, together, today?ʼ

Lisa Dishman

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