大象传媒

From the Reverend Kate Bottley:

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There are lots of things I love but two of my bestest and favourite things Chris are a bargain and nostalgia, and this week I found both in my local charity shop. Hiding amongst the funky fondue sets and the old LPS deep in the bric a brac corner was something I had always wanted, unopened, never been played with 鈥楽pirograph鈥�. Do you remember those little plastic wheels and discs that fitted together, you put a biro in a little hole and magically make beautiful patterns on the shiny paper, ok it鈥檚 difficult to explain, but take it from me, they are amazing, I had one on my Christmas list for most of the early 80s but never did get one. And here it was, brand new still with the instructions and mine for 拢6. I couldn鈥檛 get to the till quick enough.

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Once I got it home though and the rush of a bargain and the joy of nostalgia died down I bit, I was left feeling a bit melancholy. I wondered what the story was and why this brilliant toy had been left unopened and unplayed with for nearly 40 years, it鈥檚 destiny and purpose unfulfilled.

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This weekend just gone up and down the country there have been ordinations, women and men stepping up and stepping forward to dedicate their lives to serving their communities, the church and God, answering a call and following their vocation. I know how they feel, that mixture of excitement and nerves, getting used to wearing the dog collar for the first time, but the overwhelming sense of having found your thing, your purpose, what you were meant for. It鈥檚 not easy and vocation often takes some searching out, but like a rare charity shop bargain, it鈥檚 worth finding. Because I do a fair amount of funerals and it鈥檚 my job to put together a service full of memories, it鈥檚 never easy to find just the right words but honestly, the hardest eulogies I have to write are the ones where I have nothing to say.鈥�

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So, I鈥檝e unpacked the Spirograph and played with it non-stop, and even though I suspect some of the pieces will go missing and I can鈥檛 now sell it for twice the money on an auction site, my new toy has finally found its purpose and got to do what it was made for. And that feels great. I wonder what bargain I鈥檒l find in the charity shop next time.