I have just read the ‘Article from the Past’ in the inSPIRE Parish Magazine and became rather confused when I started reading references to ‘Big Brother’ in the 1955 January issue of the area churches magazine from which it was taken …

I had to pinch myself to realise that in 1955 ‘Big Brother’ meant something very different – it was a reference in George Orwell’s book 1984 to ‘government’ spying on its subjects – an abuse of its powers!!  If you just google ‘Big Brother’ now rather than ‘1984’ the results are all about the celebrities in a well-known reality show!  How life has changed!! 
Not only do we find new words in our vocabulary but a lot of the old ones have lost their innocence or their meaning has changed irrevocably.   Life changes, and it does not always progress positively!!

However, a new year is upon us and the opportunity arrives for new year resolutions again.  With our changing world, perhaps it is a time to sit back and look at it with fresh eyes and a fresh mind – allow the light of Christ to shine in our darkness and enlighten our thinking.

There is a saying ‘From little acorns mighty oak-trees grow’.  That will never change!  So, as we begin a new year perhaps we could all resolve to sow seeds of love and peace wherever we go.  Part of this would be not to turn a blind eye to injustices but determine to bring justice through love for all.  Bring peace between friends, within families; bring peace through small acts of kindness; ARK (A Random act of Kindness) links us to Noah’s ark which provided shelter for so many at the time of flooding.

It is through kindness and, belief that everyone has love in their hearts even when they cannot communicate it because other things get in the way, that peace is brought.

So, for 2017, bring peace through kindness to those around you.  Don’t underestimate how this can transform the world.  From little acorns, great oak-trees grow – but this is only with the right development conditions!  Justice and understanding is a part of this.

With love Ann