First things first

But, before I start on that bit of the journey, there is a very enjoyable preliminary to look forward to.

For a number of years now I have been intrigued and inspired by the life of St. Francis, and I now have the opportunity to visit Assisi to explore some of the places that were formative for him and the orders that he founded.

So, early on Sunday morning I shall fly to Rome, and then by train on to Assisi, and hope to spend a week exploring some of those places for myself.

My hope is to discover something of the inspiration that God gave to Francis, and how that might be relevant to Christian pilgrims today.

Chyandour - House on the Water (Cornish)

For those who might be interested, this shows Chyandour moored at Ellesmere Port on a summer's day in 2008.

What is it with speed?

So, as promised, a bit more of the background to this exploration of journey.

Being an avid narrowboat fan, I got to wondering just what it is that makes some folk whose daily lives usually run at 100mph, choose to hire a narrowboat for a holiday, and travel at 2 - 3mph instead.

Many will speak of the relaxing feeling they get, the lack of pressure &tc., but I want to try and tease out their replies a bit more.

So, to that end, I shall spend some of my time canalside; either helping folk work through lock flights, or may be travelling alongside them in Chyandour, the 57' narrowboat I shall have the use of.

Hopefully, under the sun, we shall be able to have some conversations that will help me in my quest.

Preparation

The plans for my sabbatical are coming together nicely now, and I have had a chance to chat to a number of folk for advice and ideas.

When I have formulated the journeying project a bit more, I will share the ideas I have for your comments.

When the sabbatical starts properly at the end of April, I will keep this blog as a diary, hopefully every day.