Category Archives: Viewpoint

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The blessing of children

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We were at a christening recently – a Danish christening. We couldn’t understand a word but warmth and blessing filled the church. The pews on both sides were filled with the families of the two babies being christened, each family surrounded by its share of friends and godparents, with many of them bringing along children of their own.

Mayhem you might mutter … but it wasn’t. The mood was settled and quiet, and  the children calm at its core. Over-disciplined you might suggest, but we could see no sign of that. Aha! On screens you say. But you’re wrong. They weren’t, or at least not that we could see.

If there was any secret it seemed to be that everyone was happy to be there. So was the priest. His eyes shone with pleasure from start to finish, and he tailored his address to suit both the parents and the children in his audience.

The service lasted about an hour, and then we headed from the church to lunch, and still the mood held. In fact gentle calm seemed to reign until the sun went down.

Perhaps I was missing something. Perhaps the sample for my non-scientific assessment was too small. Perhaps it was too selective … although the parents and families of the two babies being christened didn’t even know each other. Perhaps it was just the luck of the day. Perhaps.

But I’ve come away thinking that the Danes have a way with children, and it works. What is it? I’m not sure but it seems to include a lot of love, a lot of family support, a lot of good nurseries, and a lot of parental leave for both parents.

Must be worth a try.

Copyright Georgie Knaggs & The Phraser 2023

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In praise of pubs

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Leaves falling, storm threatening, and a venture into a valley unexplored in search of a pub – we’d been given the name and not much else.

It was mid-week and quiet when we pushed open the door, but a few of the regulars were in and others coming and going. We found a corner, and ordered some lunch. There we sat, like strange stones in a new river watching its life flow past. It was still and peaceful – a proper quiet pint. A place to be.

On the way out we spoke to the man on the next door table savouring the last of his pint.

“Great place this.”

He nodded.

“Sad we’re losing so many of our pubs, our real pubs.”

He nodded.

“Places like this feel like they’ve got proper roots.”

He nodded, then added: “Won’t know what they’ve lost until it’s gone.”

We nodded.

Copyright Georgie Knaggs & The Phraser 2023

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“For those in peril on the sea …”

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Storm coming in tonight. A taste of what we’re told we’ll see a lot more of.

Standing on the gnarled Cornish coast, looking out at rocks that have been eroded by storms for centuries beyond centuries, is so humbling. The drama is everywhere. Not parading itself, but just there – evidence of the power of nature and its consequences.

Now it seems that nature’s power is growing, or channelling in new ways, with the consequences becoming more widespread. It is bigger than us, and it’s changing its patterns. The knowledge is unnerving. Bad enough on land. How must it feel to be at sea? These words keep coming to mind “… for those in peril on the sea …”

Eternal Father, strong to save,
Whose arm hath bound the restless wave,
Who bid’st the mighty ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep;
O hear us when we cry to Thee,
For those in peril on the sea.

The hymn was written by William Whiting (1825 -1878). It’s said that he’d experienced danger at sea first hand, so when a boy at the college in Winchester where he was master, grew anxious about crossing the ocean, Whiting wrote what would later become this hymn to help calm the boy – a prayer for him to hold on to.

I can’t imagine that Whiting had any idea how apt his words would sound two decades into this millennium.

Copyright Georgie Knaggs & The Phraser 2023