Week One: Day Two Yesterday evening was cold. So very cold. We shivered as we sat in our studies on what used to be the ground floor of the Vicarage. The church boiler is broken; there’s no money for a new one; and it was icy.

The Vicar came upstairs to the Vicarage flat.

Shivering.

He spotted an unfinished bottle of mulled wine still sitting on the shelf, waiting to be warmed and consumed.

I sat on the sofa, shivering still, glad of the radiator at my side – and gladly too held out my hand to take the steaming ruby liquid. It should be Pimms right now, I thought, the warmth of the hot mulled wine seeping into my chilled blood.

The second (small!) glass slipped down easily too.

Comforting, defrosting, soothing.

The Vicar left for PCC. My daughter called me on Skype and I laughed to tell her of the Mulled Wine.

- but you said no alcohol, she accused me. In your blog, getting ready. No alcohol!

So I need reminders.

I need accountability.

I’ve started a chart. With ticks as I have no gold stars to embellish it. There will be gladness of heart to see each square as positively done.

Maybe a reward for a week’s worth of YES?

And the memory is physically with me today; after half an hour on the powerplates yesterday I have aching muscles in places I had forgotten I had muscles.

A good reminder to carry with me all day.

I need a reminder of the Lord as well.

A verse from the morning’s readings, to learn and to carry and to dwell in as I walk and travel?

I’m glad I bought a useful little pack when in the States.

And my Gratitude Journal.

Time to start again properly on the second thousand.

It feels like a new beginning.

Each day is a new beginning: we get to start over.

Praise God that He makes that possible!

Lamentations 3:22-24 (NLT)

The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease.

Great is his faithfulness;  his mercies begin afresh each morning.

I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance;  therefore, I will hope in him!”