St Marys Church in Redbourn

Wednesday 22nd June - 2022

Hello loyal followers,

The other day I mentioned to a few of you that I would be attending Church with my landlady, it came as quite a surprise to many of you & deep down I can understand why.

Some of you even mentioned that I must have ulterior motives. Never...

I could not pass up the opportunity to attend St Mary’s Church, this ancient Middle-Age Church right here in Redbourn, only a couple of kms down the road from my AirB&B.

St Mary’s Church dates from around 1110 AD & is thought to be built on the site of an earlier Saxon Church that pre-dates this time. The building you see today is a Grade 1 listed Church & the oldest parts are the aisle pillars on the North side of the building & the tower. It continues to be a place of worship & prayer.

When my English landlady asked me if I would like to accompany her to the Church service last Sunday I declined her offer at first (I thought that the ceiling may cave in) then after serious consideration I changed my mind & agreed to tag along with her.

(Photo above) Toward the completion of the service you can see my landlady Kate in the yellow jacket, taking her communion.

Where else on earth was the “Squire from the Shire” ever going to have this opportunity to attend such an auspicious occasion to attend a service in a Church that is only 912-years young.

As any good ‘Trolly-Dolly’ worth his salt would do, I offered my expert experience to help with the tea & coffee service afterwards. Little did they know that I have served tea & coffee all over the world at 37,000 ft in a piece aluminum tubing.

Sunday’s weather turned out to be absolutely magnificent, what I did not know was that on such beautiful days they conduct the service out doors in the meticulously maintained grounds of the Church.

(Photo above) In this photo you can see the table already set up before the congregation arrives.

For over 900-years people have come to this place to pray, to seek peace, to sense God’s presence, to sit, to think, to christen their children, to marry their spouse or lay a loved one to rest.

I must say that I was truly humbled by this sacred space as a stopping point on my journey in life on “Warbo’s Magical Mystery Tour” this year. And just in case you were wondering, yes, I did make a donation at the contactless donation point at the main door.

That my friends is all she wrote this time around. Stay tuned for the next “adventure before dementia”.

Stay safe & look after each other.

Cheers

Warbo