Northern journey

The blog has been on holiday to North Yorkshire and your blogger has returned suitably refreshed  after a relaxing week in God's Own County that included visits to some favourite haunts such as Whitby (left), Scarborough and York, country walks, a ride on the North York Moors Railway, a few good books, and the world premiere of a new Ayckbourn play, premiered, like all his plays, in his home town of  Scarborough.

I'm pretty much a dyed-in-the-wool Londoner, but we met in the fair city of York, and we have often returned to that city and county over the years. 

And for the third time we stayed at Rivendell, run by York Uni friend, Ange, and her friend - Janet - a quiet woodland oasis, just outside Pickering right - highly recommended - just google 'Rivendell breaks'

But our thoughts kept returning to Redhill where a dear friend was coming to the end of his earthly pilgrimmage.

Tomorrow I take his funeral service at Holy Trinity.

It will be a hard service to take, one of the hardest I have ever taken, but it will also be an honour and a privilege - what we Christians call a gift of God's grace.