http://the-truths.com/2014/01/14/tribe-africa-birth-date-child-counted-born/

Do you know someone who has had - 'one of those years'?

All they want to do is to get this year over - and that could be because of all sorts of reasons… a bereavement, one stroke of bad luck after another, whatever the reason, Christmas can be a time that magnifies how we are feeling.

Last year I put on a 'Blue Christmas' service. It lasted for about 40 minutes and was reflective in nature, especially for people who may have found that the outer jollity of the season only increased their inner sense of loss and loneliness. We sang Carols and marked Christmas - but in a reflective way. Those who came for that first Blue Christmas Service said that they'd be back this year too.

If this seems to chime in with the way you might be feeling (or someone you know), then why not think about coming along… If however you're reading this and live too far away, then why not check to see if there are any churches in your area planning the same sort of reflective service this Christmas?

A Blue Christmas Service

Tuesday, 17 December at 7:15pm

St. Catherine's Church, Crook

Yvonne Caruthers, Professional cellist writes...

This question has as many answers as there are people onstage. Each player thinks his/her instrument is the best/most important/ hardest, which is why they've devoted so many hours of their life attempting to master it. A lot of conductors think their role goes way beyond that of leadership ("yes, your Grace"). The admin folks convince themselves their jobs are most important: raising money, selling tickets, maintaining the concert venue.

I believe one thing it's easy to lose sight of is that everyone involved in an orchestra needs to check their ego at the door (this rarely happens, for all the usual reasons that any team finds).

Conductors often forget that we performers are merely human. We make mistakes, but most of the time we really try to do our best, even when we are given challenging working conditions or extreme tempos. Players have to remember that a conductor's comments shouldn't be taken personally, even if they sound that way. Admins would do well to invite input from the folks onstage, but that rarely happens.

In truth, a modern day orchestra is a well-oiled machine, with many moving parts. When everyone in an orchestra feels convinced of what they are doing and the direction they are taking, it is a fantastic experience. When the organization is floundering, it quickly becomes a collection of competing desires and egos - not a pleasant place to be. Vince writes…

If you're interested in adding your view - then sign up for Quora on http://www.quora.com

Yesterday we watched a film that my wife and I both really enjoyed. What's it about - we have no idea :-)

It's a film with a breadth of scope like very few films I've ever seen. Literally, one minute we'd be watching a storyline from the nineteenth century and the next scene we'd be whisked into the twenty-second. After the 2 hours and 50 odd minutes were over and the credits began rolling, you then began to realise that all the main actors each played around six characters…

Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving, Jim Sturgess, Hugh Grant…

The Film?

Cloud Atlas… 'everything's connected'

Our Ribbon Service is for anyone who has lost a loved one and would like to remember them before God. The invitation is to bring along a ribbon of a colour of your choice (about 12" long) with your loved ones names written on it.

During the service, there will be an invitation to drop your ribbon into a bowl and when our Church Christmas goes up for our Carol Service on 15 December (6pm) it will be decorated with all your ribbons. You're more than welcome to then come along and take a photograph or two.

Here is a photo of last years tree…