Giving the Volvo a Proper Outing Today I gave my trusty old Volvo 2.5 a proper workout, driving across the country via Cirencester and eventually returning home via the M5, making a journey of 258 miles. The Volvo is at its best on long journeys. Once it gets going, it seems perfectly happy to continue for hours, and I have to say I rather enjoy the experience of driving a car that has been...
I really have difficulty understanding the two-tier system in which people who come into our country uninvited, sometimes with standards of behaviour rather different from our own, appear to be treated with deference. I really don't care what religion people follow or what their background is. They could be two-headed aliens from Mars for all I care. But when you enter another country, you...
This morning I attended a Remembrance Sunday service, an occasion which always gives me cause to reflect not only on the enormous sacrifices made by previous generations, but also on the rather troubled world we have managed to create for ourselves. There is something about Remembrance Sunday that encourages us to stop and consider matters which, during the ordinary course of our busy lives, we...
Today I found myself reflecting on King Charles III and wondering how history will judge his reign. Will he be remembered as a thoughtful moderniser, or as a monarch who, despite his good intentions, weakened the traditions he inherited from his mother? My central concern is not that Charles lacks intelligence, compassion or sincerity. Rather, I fear that he is more concerned with making the...
It is a delight for me to listen to this man who keeps on delivering original material. I love his voice and his unpretentious manner. Youtube is not all bad, by any means. Summary of a discussion between Greg Braden, Aaron and James, June 2026. The discussion centres on the belief that human beings possess an extraordinary spiritual potential which has been recognised by ancient traditions but...
I was brought up knowing nothing other than life as the son of a Church of England vicar. This was London in the 1950s and 1960s, when my father was vicar of St Andrew's Church in Guildersfield Road, Streatham. From about the age of ten, I was expected to sing in the choir and attend the Sunday services, of which there were no fewer than four: 8 a.m. said Communion, 9.30 a.m. Choral Communion,...
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Inspired by Samuel Pepys’ Diary 1633-1703
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