6/6 - In everywhere we look!

What I did:

I did it! I woke up at a little after 4am and headed out to the station at about 4:30. If you were wondering at all if I am really dedicated to this project – there is your proof. But I actually really enjoyed this part of the day. Like I have said, it is about a 30 minute walk to the train station. This time was probably one of the most peaceful I have ever experienced in my life. It was a nice cool morning, with light that just kind of glowed all around. The one thing that dominated over all others, though, was the singing of the birds. So many birds were all singing, tweeting, chirping. It was really great. But it made me wonder, why are they singing? What do they have to sing about? I came to 2 conclusions: 1) They were intimidating the many poor worms that were about to be devoured. 2) They are just happy to be alive. Since I can only relate to the 2nd, and their singing made me want to join along, that is what I am holding to.

I made my train, the connection via underground in London, my connecting train in London, but then my connecting train in Birmingham got cancelled. Some train malfunction or something, but they had 6 or 7 guys standing around the train looking into the front cabin for a while. So, I got the next train, and I was actually not that late. Don’t let this prevent you from ever taking public transportation if you travel over here, it really is great in my opinion. Then I had to catch a bus. I was definitely not going to walk, because on the ride over it had started to rain (which it did not stop until I got back to London) and it was really cold. Later, when I was out in it a little more, I found that it really made me feel like it was late October. So anyway, I knew which bus I wanted, and got there and figured out I could take another route too, but could not flag down the two buses that came by for that route, so I went with the bus I had looked up, which came a little later and took me close to the place. I then had a nice short walk up to the site. It was in a somewhat rundown part of the city (I was in Telford) at a place called Springfield Christian Fellowship. At first I didn’t know if I was at the right place, but I walked in and recognized the signs and stuff. I got signed in and ready to go.

I talked with the lady who signed me in for a while, who I think is named Rachel. She was nice and interested (as everyone was) in what I was doing there. I got some nice warm tea and talked to a couple from nearby who were there because of follow up to a training thing they had done. They were nice and wound up in all the sessions I went to. I also realized quickly that everyone was very knowledgeable about the whole fresh expressions movement and very much on board with it. The first session I went to was about a church called Little Fishes. It is a church that has been around about 2 years, specifically geared toward very young pre-school aged children and their parents. It was interesting, although not really my thing. Still, it is cool to see all the different forms church is taking on over here.

Then we had some worship time and lunch and I talked to a few more people who were there not running a session or booth. Then I went to my second session with a guy named Keith who leads a youth congregation called alt:church. This was really interesting to me because of my own interest in youth movements in church. He had a lot of really great stuff to say, and he has definitely been doing this for a while and has dealt with a lot of really “tough” kids (he claims to have the narcotics ann. number on speed dial on his mobile).
After that I decided to skip the last session and just walk around and talk to people who were at their exhibits. I talked to another set of leaders of a youth church and I talked to Keith some more (he was also interested in the emerging scene in America, which I may not have been the best person to answer for). Finally I talked to a guy that I have already contacted to meet with later in my stay. It was all great and I finally got to put some faces to the people behind the websites and get connected with a lot of the active fresh expressions of church in the area.

We closed with some meditation led by my new friend Pall, and then the couple I met at the beginning offered me a ride to wherever I needed to go. I accepted and they took me back to the train station. Now I had booked in advance and specifically selected certain train times, so I still had about 3 hours to kill (we got done a little early). So, I walked over to the shopping center (which was very much what I would call a classic mall). I walked around and quickly realized it was Saturday as the whole place was packed, especially with a bunch of punk teenagers (I use that word as strictly and loosely as you can imagine). So, I walked and sat, and bought some food and sat. I killed a lot of time and saw some really interesting people. Then I walked outside some (although it was still raining – this is when I thought of the October thing for some reason – it just seemed like the typical weather for going out to pick a pumpkin from the patch or whatever school related Halloween field trip I took years ago). They had a nice little pathway around what looked like a big garden or something that was partly closed, but I went around the open parts. It would have been really nice in good weather, but nevertheless it was nice respite from the mall scene. I found some interesting stuff here too. Then I went back to the mall and through to the train station. I waited my last half hour or so there before the train would arrive (which wound up being delayed of course), but I got back into London on time and transferred through back to Fleet with ease.

It was a long, but very enjoyably and invaluable day.

What I learned:

Window seat does not necessarily imply that there will be a window. I got my tickets early this time since it is cheaper that way and they asked if I had a preference for window or aisle, so I put window, because I like to see the countryside as we fly past it (all the funny little sheep). But I got to my seat (only some of them were reserved) and there was no window! Needless to say, I did not sit in any of my assigned seats today.

There are a lot of abandoned, broken down buildings all along the train lines.

I saw a real train – with steam and the wheels that are connected by a big arm and stuff. The workers at the train station were taking pictures of it with their camera phones. Lol.

I finally realized (at least one reason) why railroads have seemed so significant to me. I was just thinking about how amazing the original trains must have been in their day and must have seemed like a way to “instantly” or at least more quickly than ever connect people to each other. A connectivity or network that they never had before. And it is that same connectivity or networking (only in a modern, more digital sense) that is the basis of my research on globalized impacts on church.

Madeley is pronounced with a long ā.

I’d go so far as to say that people over here are either really really into church, or really really not. I know that is a crude generalization, but I have not seen the lackadaisical approach to church that is pretty prevalent in America (going just to go, just filling a seat or an obligation, kind of a luke-warmness that knows what is right and what to do but does not exert the energy to actually do it). I know that is also a crude generalization but at least you can’t deny that it is happening to some extent.

I now know why people here laughed at me when I said that I like English weather a lot, especially compared to Texas weather (although I still maintain that it is better overall).

I need to learn how to be more concise in my blog posts. I think they are just getting longer. I say this not only for your sake as my reader, but also for my sake as a writer. It is taking me longer and longer to do this everyday.


Haha. Just confirms my previous thoughts about machines