THE CAT & THE PEANUT - NO SORRY- 'THE PIGEON'!

There I was the other day , 

having a quiet splash, 

when out of the corner of my eye I saw a most disturbing sight -

paw play card

SO - what does a peanut sound like?

Good to start the blog with something light hearted but it really isn't a time when we can forget that fellow human beings are in such trouble

A Sudanese refugee in Calais with blankets donated by the Worldwide Tribe  
Photo - The Worldwide Tribe

Syrian refugee child Ahmad Ali 2, leans on his mother Etaim while she holds his sister Hanadai outside their tent at an informal tented settlement near the Syrian border on the outskirts of Mafraq, Jordan    http://mashable.com/2015/09/03/refugee-crisis-how-to-help/#35PpXE8LYOkX -  

more stories, more helplessness, it doesn’t matter whose fault it is, these children don’t deserve this!

So….what can we do, what can I do? Look locally to see who is collecting emergency supplies and help them - www.supportrefugees.org  First for Calais, then camps further afield. They have a list of foodstuffs and general items they need, and of course donations, helps pay the petrol to get there!

Here are some people that are doing something good...........

“We’re not politicians, we don’t pretend to have all the answers, and we’re not charity workers. We’re just normal people from Kent who want to help our fellow human beings with their basic needs,” says Jasmine O’Hara, a member of the Worldwide Tribe in Calais, a grassroots social activist group set up in response to the migration crisis.

http://www.theguardian.com/voluntary-sector-network/2015/aug/14/calais-migrant-how-grassroots-groups-are-helping

MORE GOOD NEWS.......

Greek vacationers rescue Syrian man after 13 hours lost at sea

 http://edition.cnn.com/2015/09/04/europe/greek-couple-saves-refugee/

Sandra Tsiligeridu was cruising back to the Greek holiday island of Kos with family and friends last Thursday when she spotted something out of place in the sea up ahead.

A pair of hands appeared to be waving at her from the deep-blue waters of the Aegean Sea. There, bobbing up and down in the choppy waters, was a half-conscious man clinging desperately to a lifejacket. "He was so weak that he couldn't even stand or walk," she recalls. "The only thing he managed to say was that he was from Syria."

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QUOTE - "The love of our neighbour is the only door out of the dungeon of self." (George MacDonald)

How wonderful a hug is when we're afraid and lonely! Have you given a lonely person a hug this week?

Open Doors

AND EVEN MORE GOOD NEWS.........

Did you see the story of Jed on TV - 

Dog Jed finds new home after being overlooked by 14,000 people

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tees-30797141 

Jed, a seven-year-old lurcher, had been with the trust in Sadberge, Darlington, on-and-off since he was four months old.

After they saw an appeal on the BBC website, Jed was given a new home by Ian Woodcock and Elizabeth Marsh.

The couple said he was settling in "really well" with the family and they "absolutely adore him".

"We are really looking forward to the future with Jed. After so long without a home we can't wait to make 2015 as special as possible for him."


GOODBYE FINESTRAT!

geogblogcostablancawordpress.com

For those reading this and who know Second Chance, the sad news is that the shop in Finestrat village, open since June 2003, has had to close. This shop high in the mountains overlooking Benidorm in Spain, and manned by ex-pats couldn't get enough volunteers recently.

I worked there myself for 2 years almost 10 years ago and remember the fantastic views and the fashion shows we had around the swimming pool at the Orange House where once over 200 people came.

Many thanks to Jan and her team for keeping it going for so long and for Polly and Steve for setting it up. (The shops in Alfaz and Albir and still open and would love to see you).

theJesuschick.com

Finestrat was certainly one of our treasures. Jesus talks about people finding treasures, one of them being the joy of peace with God. That’s what becoming a Christian is about: deepest needs met, deepest longings satisfied, deepest hurts bandaged, and a future and a hope unlike any other. It all adds up to joy!

If your faith is grim and your life bleak, let God put some of this wonderful happiness back where it should be. If you have not yet trusted in Jesus as your Lord, grab this precious pearl today. (Matthew 13.44-46 & commentary)

I'm putting this blog out early this month and hoping to publish every two weeks. The idea was to make it shorter and more frequent (shorter, it doesn't seem to be!!) Please - keep in touch!

God bless, Tracey