Rev Helen James

13/03/2026

Another great post from Hugh - I love living on this “hill hill hill”

Did you know that Bredon Hill in Worcestershire means "hill hill hill" - in 3 languages within the same name? The "Bre" or "Brey" means a hill in Brittonic and would have been used before the coming of the Anglo-Saxons who, probably thinking it was a name and not a literal description, added their Old English "dun" for a hill or big mound, the name also being applied to the nearby village of Bredon.

Later on the word "hill" arose from the Old English "hyll" which was then added to the first two terms, giving us "hill, hill, hill" in three different languages of Britain.

11/03/2026

David Whyte’s poem The Journey - so beautiful. ✨

THE JOURNEY

Above the mountains
the geese turn into
the light again

Painting their
black silhouettes
on an open sky.

Sometimes everything
has to be
inscribed across
the heavens

so you can find
the one line
already written
inside you.

Sometimes it takes
a great sky
to find that

first, bright
and indescribable
wedge of freedom
in your own heart.

Sometimes with
the bones of the black
sticks left when the fire
has gone out

someone has written
something new
in the ashes of your life.

You are not leaving.
Even as the light fades quickly now,
you are arriving.
..
THE JOURNEY
From 'David Whyte: Essentials' and 'The House of Belonging'
©1996 David Whyte & Many Rivers Press

09/03/2026

The spring flowers lift my spirits. I’m entering a second week of tonsillitis and a chest infection. Rest … hydration … reflection and purging. 💦

I’m not feeling that “fire horse” burst of energy but welcome it when the time is right. 🐎 🔥

Resigned yet hopeful, I share Donna Ashworth’s words with gratitude. Hang on … better times are coming.

Almost...
This is the home stretch.
The beginning of the end.
The light is ahead of us, quite literally.
Brighter, longer days full of spring, warmth, laughter, the promise of new life and more freedom.
Victory.
It’s coming.
We have almost made it through.
We can finally leave this winter behind.
Not long now.
Hang on.

04/03/2026

“Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise.”
- Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

Photo: Burnham on Sea by my brother-in-law, Mike

24/02/2026

Glorious 🌼 daffodils ☀️

🌼

23/02/2026

Exciting ⬇️

LONG AWAITED ARCHEOLOGICAL WORK TO BEGIN AT THE LEGENDARY SITE OF MERLIN’S TOMB.

It has just been announced that preparatory work is to begin immediately at the site of the ancient Marlborough Mound in Wiltshire, southern England, paving the way for new archaeological investigations. Something that I have been advocating for many years. This is happening much more quickly than expected. It is rumoured that something of importance may already have been discovered, compelling an accelerated schedule.

Local legend claims the bones of Merlin are buried there — a story reflected in the town’s Latin motto, meaning “where now are the bones of the wise Merlin”. Standing 62ft tall, Marlborough Mound is the second-tallest prehistoric mound in Britain, after nearby Silbury Hill, and is thought to have been reused for the burial of high-status individuals around 1500 years ago—the very time Merlin is said to have lived.

Wiltshire Council has granted Marlborough College permission to remove a number of 20th-century structures built into the side of the 4,000-year-old mound, including a carpentry workshop, toilets, and plant rooms. The buildings will be dismantled slowly, with archaeologists present throughout.