London is such a wonderful city. I have never been here before. We stayed in Westminster at a hotel off the Thames River across from Big Ben. The Tube was convenient and easy to use. Pretty much everything we did was within walking distance. We could easily spend another week here and not even come close to seeing everything we wanted to see in this condensed area.
The whole cars driving on the left thing almost led to my early demise. You get used to looking to your right for a few decades and it takes a while to learn to look left. It takes more than six days at least. Somebody’s foresight of me being here for a week saved my life.
Following directions is a better idea than using instinct.
It’s tough to get a “good morning” out of people as well. After a few morning runs I finally managed to get one out of a fellow runner. He sounded like he was from Georgia. Maybe Florida. I tried a hundred times and I had one success. Kind of like my typical round of golf.
Simplicity
One of the goals for my renewal leave is to embrace a more simple life. London is not necessarily the easiest place to practice simplicity. But progress continues.
Age of Distraction
My morning runs have been without headphones / music. I hear noise from the world all day. Some of it is good noise. Some of it not-so-good noise. Some is just neutral noise. Advertisements, messages, news, etc… We live in the age of distraction. I’m still not able to run too far or for two long, but the quiet time has been great. Just doing my best to listen to God’s nudgings, reflect on life, pray about the past and the present, and dream about the future. The parks here are amazing and I was able to enjoy their tranquility and beauty. The goal is to be present with God and focus on people and priorities in our age of distraction.
Part of the run through Hyde Park
Gratitude and Generosity
We didn’t shop much. Benjamin got an Arsenal beanie and some tea. David got some Kinder Eggs. Instead of using resources to acquire more possessions, I am becoming convinced the time and money spent buying stuff can be used more wisely elsewhere. I have been working on practicing gratitude more and practicing envy less. I have been working on practicing generosity more and practicing jealousy less. On days when I pull it off, I am blessed.
Worship at Westminster Abbey – A Note to Our Building Team
We worshipped at Westminster Abbey. It was a beautiful service. The pastor had great sermon. The surroundings were obviously amazing. My main learning came as a parent. David had to go to the bathroom about half way through the service. I convinced him to delay this event for a while. Soon it became easier to take him than keep convincing him the service was almost over. It appears they have one bathroom in this massive structure. And it wasn’t available because an event was going on. The ushers or stewards or bouncers sent us outside to a nearby structure the church owned. The security guard said the bathroom was unavailable to the public but there was one available across the street at the subway station. We crossed the busy street and found the above-mentioned station was closed for construction. And it went downhill from there. We finally walked to a pub down the street where the proprietor had compassion on David’s maxed-out bladder.
The preacher talked about how God’s table is open to all. They apparently didn’t get the memo about when we welcome little children we welcome Christ himself. Being behind the pulpit and on the stage for twenty years doesn’t alway allow me to see things like this. I have never really sat with my children in worship. Grace means little if it is not accessible — to the little ones, to those who don’t hear well, to those with disabilities, etc…
It is a beautiful church. I can give no report on the quality of the bathrooms.
London Highlights
London is the first of the sixteen cities we will be visiting. We started here because Benjamin loves the UK. We arrived on his 15th birthday. He has given so much to the church over the years. More than people will ever understand. He favorite team is the Arsenal. He loves to watching Prime Minister Questions. He has this obsession with tea. It was so cool: He loved the city and the last six days. What is not so cool is that he now wants to live there.
Here are some of the highlights, in pictures.
The Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty’s Theatre. We sat in the fifth row. It covers themes of anxiety, forgiveness, hope. It was so well done.
Covert Garden is a quirky area of London with dozens of restaurants, street performers, musicians, and thousands of people from all over the world. We spent a couple afternoons there.
Fish and Chips is actually the national dish. This is the version Benjamin and I had from the Laughing Halibut.
The obligatory family photo from the London Eye.
This is an 800 year old chess set at the British Museum. We spent an afternoon there. Could have spent all week there.
Benjamin and I visited Parliament and got a tour of the House of Commons and the House of Lords while learning the history of the UK.
And the obligatory Green Bay Packers photo of David.
