????? Parish Picnic in the Park 2012 ?????

This year our "Picnic in the Park" was not so much a picnic in the park as "Grub in the garden" ..... 

.....and "games on the grass"!





Because the field we normally used in the Botanic Gardens had been flooded and was still very soggy, it was decided, at the last minute to alter the venue and have the picnic in the church Gardens instead!

Sack races were very popular both with participants and spectators!

The egg and spoon was not quite so successful - too much enthusiasm and not enough skill!

I am not sure what Tim is up to - he didn't seem to be able to get the right idea!?!










After everybody had finished eating, some people were beginning to feel cold so it was decided that we would move into the hall for a hot drink!  Nevertheless the spectator sports continued with "The Hat Game" ..... 

..... and boat races!







There was not a huge turn out for this event (probably due to the uncertainty of the weather which, in the end, was pretty good) but those of us who were there had good fun!

WOW - Final day

We spent this morning thinking about "Living Things". We began in awe of the amazing variety of living things. In 5 minutes we had thought of 95 different types and we still had many more in mind.

We all made a "Grass Head". At least it doesn't have any grass yet but we hope, if we keep it moist, it will have in a few weeks time!!! They were quite complicated to make.

We began with an old sock.

Then we found a pair of buttons which Christine kindly sewed on for us - as eyes!

After that we put grass seed into the toe of the sock before filling it with potting compost!

Finally we had to soak our head in a bucket of water - that's our grass head, of course, not our actual head - before sticking a mouth on the front and standing it in a recycled cup!

They look a bit weird but hopefully they will look better when the grass grows!

We also made some milk bottle fish. Annie and Chris squashed the bottles and cut out the tails and we decorated them.

Amazingly, they looked pretty good!

When we had done that,we went into the grounds to see if we could find any living things out there. It was pretty chilly but at least it didn't rain!

We saw grass, trees and flowers and were amazed to see the fungi growing in the grass.

We were not so confident about the bees that we saw collecting nectar from the flowers.

We also found minibeasts under logs - mainly spiders, ants and woodlice!

We finally finished our song and put it together with our shakers, and Sue's flute, in church. It sounded pretty good! Listen out for it on Sunday!!!

We ended the morning with a story that Jesus had told about 2,000 years ago. It was a parable - the parable of the Sower! It can be found in the Bible (Matthew 13 verses 1-9).

We all felt quite sad that this was the last day of WOW but many of us are looking forward to the service at 10.30 a.m. on Sunday.

Whit Sunday Picnic in the Park 2010

Sunday 23rd May saw over 50 St. John's folk, young and not so young, gathered for a picnic and games "in the Botanic Gardens". This was the most glorious sunny day of the summer so far.

Blankets were spread, folding chairs unpacked and a wide variety of food seemed to be being enjoyed by all and sundry.

We played rounders, French cricket and football. Great fun was had with the parachute and, in spite of the heat, some of us even ran races. Many were amazed at the football skills of Clive, Tim and Stuart!

Someone mentioned that an ice-cream van had been sighted and soon ice-creams and lollies were being consumed.

New friendships were made and much muttering of "When can we do this again" filled the air.

Thanks for this Geoffrey. Sorry I didn't mange to get a photo of the Football stars in action. Incidentally there will be another picnic in Hesketh park after the Bicycle Treasure Hunt on Saturday 17th July! (For more information see Rachel or Sally-Ann)

Journey to the Emerald City (November 2009)

Like the story that it portrays the Journey to the Emerald City was fraught with technical and other problems during the final weeks of preparation. However, at the last minute everything suddenly dropped into place, both literally and metaphorically! On the evening of Friday 13th November and the afternoon and evening of Saturday the 14th November audiences thoroughly enjoyed the show. By the end of Saturday evening, the cast and crew, who had all been despondent less than a week before, were elated and felt that they really had done their best. As always, the success of the show was due mainly to Clive, who never appeared to lose faith in the project, however despairing the rest of us had been.
Clive not only conceived of the idea for the show but wrote the script, cast and directed the show. All the cast worked really hard but my greatest admiration goes to Lucy who was always lively, helpful and supportive however anxious she herself felt. Talented, of course she is, but, talent alone is not enough, and she put in at least as much hard work as anyone else.
It is also impossible to overestimate the debt we owe to the talents and experience of Julie Ann who seems to be able to get the musical best out of everybody and magically adapt, merge and mould a miscellany of songs and music into a coherent whole.
The scenery and special effects were very ambitious given the limitations of budget time and space and many people worked all hours to get everything up and running in time.
I feel very proud to have been a part of this production and feel that it is a terrific testimony to the talent, dedication and enthusiasm we have here at St. John’s that this was a totally in house (or should that be in church) production.

Finally I must not forget the people working front of house, not least Joyce who produced a buffet meal for the audience before the Friday night show and ordered and distributed fish and chips to everybody after the Saturday night show.

Well done everybody!

If you missed the show or would like to relive the experience why not order the DVD which was filmed at the Saturday matinee. The DVDs cost £15 and can be ordered from Sally-Ann (Tel. 01704 567663). DVDs done for us by Neil in the past have been excellent but they take a while for him to produce so, regretfully they will NOT be ready by Christmas.

There are a great many more photos from the show available for my "friends" to see on Facebook. If you are not a "friend" and wish to see them please get in touch! Sally-Ann

Preparing for the journey to the Emerald City!

Many people have been working very hard to get ready for this journey which will start this, Friday 13th December. They have been - writing and amending scripts; arranging music; making and gathering props and costumes; building, stitching and painting scenery; cleaning and clearing the stage, repairing broken light fittings,curtain rails etc; devising and resourcing "special effects"; choreographing routines; learning lines; and, of course, rehearsing.

It should be a great show after all that effort so don miss out! To get your ticket phone Jean on 564206. There are only three performances and tickets are going like hot cakes so if you want to be there order your ticket immediately!

If the show is already over when you read this - or you went and would like to relive the experience - you can still order a DVD of the whole show. These cost £15 and can be ordered by phoning Sal on 567663

Safe journey!

Little Fishes May 2009

We haven't heard from Little Fishes for a while but they are still very busy. having fun.

There is always plenty to do and discuss ...

... and there are plces to go.

In fact life is full of ups and downs!