Very sorry about that, if you’ve tried to look at the blog recently I have just found out that I had broken it, it is however now fixed again, as an apology please enjoy the video below.

written by Simo

This week myself and my colleague from the Baptist Church are taking assemblies in the local secondary school, Monday was cancelled due to exams, so yesterday was our first one. The theme we have is peer pressure, we start the assembly with me being hand cuffed and talking about how pear pressure can trap us and that whilst sometimes it can be good quite often peer pressure is a negative influence as I talk about this Stephen (my Colleague) pokes me with a stick while suggesting several things I might like to do, all good fun (for him). The idea is that I then talk about the need to break free from peer pressure, however yesterday I failed to get out of the cuffs, I don’t know why I just could not get out and in the end had to get the keys out of my pocket (not easy with hands cuffed behind back and keys in front pocket) and then get Stephen to let me out. This morning I practiced a couple of times before the assembly to make sure it didn’t happen again. WE arrived at the school and went through to the hall to wait as usual but no-one turned up, we got up to leave and discovered that the hall we had walked through to get to the gym where we do our assemblies was being used for a different year group assembly so we couldn’t get out that way. The only trouble is that was the only way through to the gym block without going out of the building, but because no one had come into the block yet the other exits from the block were still locked Trapped again! We eventually got rescued when a PE teacher turned up.

written by Simo

This week, the theme of the week for my sons class is clowns, so yesterday afternoon I went in to talk to them a little bit about the history of Clowning and do some clowning for them. I personally am more of a Jester than a clown, although to be awkward I refer to myself as a fool (yes I know thank you for that!) But like a Jester I tend not to paint my face (this is for 2 reasons,1. I am lazy 2. a painted face can be quite scary for little children). However my performances tie in a bit of clowning, a bit of illusion maybe some balloons etc. So yesterday I talked with them a little bit about the history of clowning and the different types of clowns. I showed them some of the props I use, including stilt trousers and several of my hats + wigs etc, did some juggling a couple of little magic tricks and then got a couple of them to come up and have a go at making balloon dogs. It all went very well, I had a great time and I think they did too, I finished up by making about 30 balloon dogs in around 20 mins so they all had one to take home while they tided up ready for story time and did some work sheets I had prepared getting them to think up their own clown names and design their own clown faces.
I have to say it was such good fun I think it is something o could offer more widely if I had the time to do it!

written by Simo

Just been reading through a drama script one of my volunteers has written for our pathfinder led service on Sunday, we are doing the story of Lazarus and retelling the story through 4 short dramas. The dramas have been written in a modern context and it just struck me and made me laugh when I got to the bit that read

Do you have any spades? Let’s dig him up.

But I suppose that is the equivalent of what Jesus was saying when he asked them to ‘roll the stone away’. I don’t know why but I had never thought of it like that before, it never seamed that bad Jesus asking them to roll the stone away but how would we react if we had just buried a relative a few days ago and then Jesus comes along and says “get the spades lets dig them up? Would we have the faith to do it?

written by Simo