You can cram a lot into it though and the activities of the last two months have been wide ranging, serious, hilarious, frivilous, family, friends, fellowship, food, worship, grilling out, swimming, surfing, cycling, driving and laughing. A lot.

As our two kids gazed into the Atlantic the other weekend, hot on the heels of a weekend on the Gulf of Mexico coast, it was hard to explain that heading in an easterly (ish) direction from where they were standing, and several thousand miles was their home country, perched on the northern edge of Europe. Small world.

A year ago I made mention of the terrorist bomber being released by the Scottish Government from prison ‘to die’. The repercussions of that action are still reverberating and the story won’t go, nor should it, as there is so much remaining unknown to those of us who make up the general public. I had always wondered how one man could have made the whole thing happen, and still do. Anyhow, the release has impacted the reputation of Scotland and Scots as the diagnosis on which his release was based is clearly now wrong. But medics are highly educated guessers, right? My own mother beat the cancer timeline she was given by a country mile, simply through wanting to live and faith.

So with our annual musical production of ‘Brigadoon’ now firmly in the sights for a mid September delivery, the libretto and score along with prep for the stage and scenery are all work in progress. The team which gathers to deliver this every year is an incredible portfolio of talent, patience (lot’s of that) and drive, all for His glory and it is a real pleasure to be part of it. Brigadoon coming 15th-17th September and report to follow. If you want to go just ping me.

That notion of a ‘team’ was also the topic of conversation when I spoke to the guys at Reproducing Churches Broadcast Network (www.reproducingchurches.com)  and was interviewed about the work I do in business and how it might be applied to the operations and working of daily church. I’ll give more details of the podcast in due couse, but the morning was a mix of hilarity and serious discourse, all filed in my mind under ‘happy time’. Billy Mitchell is a cool, quiffed, bespeckled, designer looking type who helps support, by the use of ‘spanx’, (check out Google) those who plant churches thanks to his patience, calling and expertise. He is also very funny, and that probably goes back to his Scots heritage, because as Mike Myres used to say on Saturday Night Live, ‘if it’s not Scottish….’ (check it out on YouTube). He is a friend.

Then step forward JC Dukes, the Jase, the big guy, big daddy, extraordinary dad, husband, brother and cool dude. Who ever though an pastor and author could be so hilarious. I’d like to get him together more with Bryce and Sandy and just record their conversation. The podcast is one to look out for and listen to, and I dare you to keep a straight face. Jason and the team at WFC walked through a series called ‘Summer Love’ and it was great for us to be in on that through the summer. Our kids were on the same message through Josh and Kelly and the awsome help team the Compass Kids have there. Any kids group that has my son sign a contract that has as its number 1 item – ‘I promise to be thankful for what I have and not for what I don’t have, trusting God to meet my needs’ is top notch.  As a special thanks we say so long to the friends at WFC, see you real soon.

We’ve had a lot of friends and family in town over the summer too and in every way each time was special. Summer 2010 goes into the album with a great vintage of memories. Of course there were some absentees and we hope they will be part of summer 2011.

So how do you finish the piece that finishes the summer, and return to warmer clothes and log fires. It’s easy, I say I love you and thank you to Sheena for making it all hang together, for being the glue in the gang of 4 that we are, and my kids for loving me inspite of me being me and being dragged off on things just when we are about to……oh have to go, conference call time.

Summer 2010 Credits.

Sheena, Cameron, Fiona, John, Leza, John, Craig, Jason, Jen, Caleb, KG, Abbey, Ella Ella, Noah, Dindy and Jake and their mom and dad, miracle whip, Jimmy D, Tommy, Billy Mitch, PSL Crew, Clermont Crew, Jimbo C jr, Michael, Tampa Rays, NY Yankees, Kenny, Gregor, Audra, Alex, Olivia, Douglas, Karen, Robyn, Josh & Kelly, The Coopers School of Surf, The Watson’s, The WFC band, Gary, Chuck, The Albers crew (esp Jaq), House Blend Cafe (thanks Ryan), Jim&Judy, Barry, Beverley, Evan, Darcey, Millie the dance champ, and Mrs W. The McGinn’s, Pinellas garage, Zotz garage, mall at millenia, the Y, Lake Highland Prep, Apple, the invented venti iced decaf  soy vanilla latte. Barnes & Noble, Lego, Ghirardelli’s, Houston, WFC and absent friends.

It was a real opportunity to hear, encourage and pray for the situations we are all in as men, father’s, husbands or whatever season we are in. Kurt spoke from the heart about being intentional with his kids and how he actively goes out to mentor and speak into their lives on regular one to one sessions they all three boys look forward to, in fact so keen are they that getting our of bed before 6am is part of the treat. Great stuff.

We heard about engaging in the messy and how sharpened brave dad’s will get their kids into dangerous agrees of society to live sent and realize the reality of the world. That is a concept most struggle with, when your natural reaction is to run a mile and make it good and safe for your kids. We heard how one dad encourages his son to connect with a friend and be a listener to understand the friend’s journey. That was we are all going as the disciples were. It is actively going rather than in the being.

Hey, we are all learners and linking up with guys like these regularly is a real blessing, because few of us face circumstances that others haven’t.

The absolute and specific breakdown between dad’s and kids, as the relationship dysfunctionality pace increases means we are staring at a generation from now having crazy mixed up circumstances as the ‘norm’. Not wrong, not bad, but the ‘norm’.

The conversation turned from those salient points and to movies with a few having been to see Inception. It is simply one of the most thought provoking films I have seen, and I’ll go back this week to see it again. Without spoiling it, and I couldn’t, the most memorable line was “Everybody wants Redemption”. You should go and see it. Period.

So as the week develops my brother and his family will be returning to Scotland, their journey over, the promise to our mother fulfilled and much fun had by all. Memories now filling up the family folklore memory box.

Cameron’s other friends who are chanter players and aiming or the band in a year or so on full pipes, led the assembled crowd in ‘Will Your Anchor Hold’, an old family favourite of ours and a hark back to the deep relationship with the advancement of Christ’s kingdom amongst boys through the Boys’ Brigade movement. Sure and Stedfast.

So what does one do in orlando this year………simple.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal is a sure fire hit in this family and we anticipate going back again and again to experience the bringing to life of the venues described so deliciously in the book series, and on film (new one coming soon of course).

The long path in through Universal Islands of Adventure builds the excitement as the kids in our group (all four of us) saw Hogwarts coming into view and the village of Hogsmeade, with a dusting of snow, emerging before us.

The lines were long already and it was only 8.30am, so we suggest you go earlier if you want to spend less time standing around. On saying that, the lines through Hogwarts are cleverly managed through various places of interest and classrooms. The portraits are great and we loved Dawn French in her character.

The ‘big’ ride is big, and a mix of simulator and ride – do it for yourself to get the best of it, but we thought it was one of the best rides ever, and on a par with the Simpsons.

The whole ambiance is great, from the decor to the kilted and tartan clad villagers, not forgetting the ATM signposted as Gringots.

HoneyDukes was crazy, and pricey, but well worth standing in line to get in – reminded us of a trip to Abercrumb & Fish in NYC.

The Butter Beer was simply delish – vanilla cream soda topped with a cream head for effect. Four straws and it was gone. We have the mug for memory! Or was I the mug paying $10 for a glass of fizz…..

The queue for the Wand experience was 2 hours and 30 mins – yes 150 minutes for a live show with a small select audience of 20-30 a time.

The Griffin rollercoaster for the smaller kids (height restrictions apply) was quick and prompted much screaming and hands in the air from darling daughter.

So as we left the park at 11am it was getting busier and we can only reiterate going early.

Potter land was very Disneyesque – brilliantly made, with Disney style touches that will make it a real winner. If our friend Helen is reading this she should discard the previous comments and focus on the underlying view that it was very disappointing. Hopefully tha was delivered with as much feeling as required Mrs C. You’ll be here next year!

Merchandising opportunities galore and we have to admire the JKR organisation and how well they have marketed what started as a story for kids written in an Edinburgh coffee shop.

Late news just in…..

Darling daughter lost another tooth – now seven in total just before she turns 7 in September.  The smile is still as wide and bright, but changing and a reminder that both kids are growing up. I was reminded of Luke 2:52 the other morning, which was an old memory verse from my time in Boys’ Brigade. It’s now appropriate for my kids.

With a glorious sunny morning and the old bones recovering from a gym session the boys in the family have the NASCAR in Daytona to look forward to this afternoon and evening – we are psyched and excited to be going with friends who actually know what is going on. More on NASCAR soon. Well, as soon as we have a basic understanding of what it is all about – we will be tuning into Caleb’s knowledge bank later.

I was walking with my wife and two kids on a beach last week, some days before the Icelandic island decided to erupt and catapult ash and debris thousands of kilometers into the air. Out of the blue my daughter executed a few cartwheels perfectly and I was smiling to see that all that time in acro and gymnastics has been about something. Then out of the corner of my eye her mum spun around and then did another cartwheel. We all laughed at the girls being little girls as the ‘men’ went on walking and collecting comber materials like shells and feathers. Cartwheels are the girls domain. In short the ‘men’ knew their limitations.

A week later….. then the glacier in Iceland had been blown off and the steam was causing chaos in airline schedules in Europe, impacting much further afield as those in other continents couldn’t get in. We had prepared for a cancellation and then a call from Virgin Atlantic said we were going as the window allowing access to Scotland opened. An hour later we were through security and waiting in the lounge. Two hours later we were prepared for the overnight flight and going ‘home’. A further hour later and after a very detailed explanation by the pilot we were ‘deplaned’, as our American cousins call it, and stood in our pyjamas in a terminal which was earily empty but for 400 or so disappointed (but safe) travellers. We collected our luggage and then returned ‘home’ as the window had truly closed and here we are.

Isn’t it funny, peculiar, that the human race seems to have the thought that we have almost all the bases covered and then something natural, or supernatural happens and reminds us that even though brainpower has created metal tubes with wings full of aviation fuel, and because of the skill of  pilots and groundcrew can fly thousands of miles. But some melting ice (admittedly agrressively melting ice) can stop the ‘globalisation’ world in its tracks and leave thousands displaced, but thanks to modern communications everyone is more informed than they have ever been – almost too much information. I’ve become an ‘expert’ on volcanoes, the geography of unpronouncable names in Iceland, the NATS website, BBC news 24, CNN and the Virgin Atlantic website and call centre (more with the hold message than anyone human).

So it was all rather surreal to hear a human voice as I apologised to the call centre respondent after the 56 minute hold I had endured. Having been greeted repeatedly on the ‘hold’ message by ‘hello gorgeous’ at least 20 times I was beginning to believe that their misguided view might be correct (alright my wife made the call). I apologised to the human because I could only imagine how bad her day had been with thousands of ‘me’ calling for the same unavailable solution (press #8 for a miracle) - to get 4 people on a  flight asap, home.  It simply isn’t going to happen so we will make our arrangements and do what we have to and get there when we can. There will be missed scheduled meetings, a late return to school (the cheers are echoing in hallway still), some upheaval, but not the wrought worry as those camping out in airports near you, or those with no money to find a hotel, or eat and at the mercy of others. If  a flight is cancelled in the US they need only rebook you, there is no safety net for hotel and dinners.

Just at the point where an Election in the UK, and a President making radical changes in healthcare in the US, and unprecedented unrest, war and middle east pressure, the roof blows off a volcano which was dormant for 200 years and last reported in his documents by Benjamin Franklin. Some 30 years after the Independence of America, before Waterloo, and the rise of the British Empire as was.

Just as mankind thinks he has it all sussed and sorted, some vapour, sand, and ash stops the game and if you think beyond the hassle of it all, there is something more meaningful in there. All the meetings in the world don’t matter when it comes to it.

We are hopeful of making it home this school term, but no point worrying about it because there is little we can do to change the wind direction. Perhaps we’ll watch Mary Poppins. Then again that might remind us of bank failures and aside from the Icelandic money going up in smoke, the island has too.

The Music Group, comprised of friends and families is very much a large family and this is the first larger scale concert since the full production of Gilbert & Sullivan’s ‘Gondoliers’ in September last year.

The programme was wide and varied with Rogers and Hammerstein fixtures from Carousel, and Oklahoma, along with songs from the silver screen where any sone ever in a film can be sung. The ‘All that Jazz’ from Chicago was showstopping as was the ‘Honey Bun’ from South Pacific, with Honey Bun arriving in blonde wig, grass skirt and coconut bra. He, and it was a he relished the opportunity to sit on his father in law’s lap, and that of our pastor and another friend. His wife, daughter and mother, all on stage, hadn’t been warned and their faces were interesting. In order something like, ‘not  again’, ‘oh dad my street credibility!’ and ‘my son wouldn’t do that’.

All in all it was a fabulous series over two nights where talents shone and people were entertained and left smiling.

For me it was special as my darling daughter (now almost 6 and a half) joined the group for the first time, so with my wife and son made a complete set. That was a red letter moment and will be repeated in September when we stage ‘Brigadoon’.

So what was it all for?

It was about taking risks and demonstrating God given talent as we are urged to do in Mathew’s gospel. Not bury them, because look what happened to that guy.

So it doesn’t need me to point out that the northern part of the northern hemisphere is somewhat colder and has been for longer than normal. The polar bears may be losing the ice caps and the penguins seeing less white fish, but there is no doubt that the current freeze in northern parts of Europe and the US are quite extreme. Perhaps it has been more than a decade since temperatures plummeted in the glass as they have in the last few weeks. New records every day.

Having left Scotland for NY in mid December the Scottish snow arrived behind us, and included the metropolis of London, which is a bit like going to the Cairngorm Scottish moutains in flip flops. It simply doesn’t compute, and all forms of transport ground, rail or air, or skidded to a halt. Then it did what it doesn’t usually do, it stayed. A bit like a friend coming to visit, but finding that they really have no where else to go.

Vacating NY on the edge of a snowstorm for the south it seemed we were surfing ahead of the curve. In Florida the sun shone and the temperatures whilst mostly better than most Scottish summers, in the last week threatened sub zero and locals bundled up with scarves and gloves and looked like they were cold. Holidaymakers from the UK were in shorts and t-shirts. The orange crop was threatened this week because of frost.

Here we are in January and the forecasters (do they forecast or guess in an island like ours) are saying it may last another 7-10 days, and wall to wall media coverage of weather and airport security are the main headlines.

Tonight Gatwick airport is shut and it looks like London and greater London are closing down for another white out as the soft white stuff falls in that neck of the woods. Hopefully it won’t be too fluffy for the tunnel operator this time. In Scotland there is no new snow forecast overnight. It is merely cold on cold.

Anyway all of that is clearly chaotic and challenging for many and there is a seperate debate going on locally about local counciils and how they have dealt with the weather. But this afternoon, to combat transatlantic jet lag, with two children we drove a few miles to our nearert lake, the only ‘lake’ in Scotland as all others are ‘Lochs’, to join others walking, skating and sledging ON the water. We walked on the water to Inchmahome priory on the islet normally reached by boat. The depth of the ice is being measured regularly and a bonspiel (festival) of curling is expected this weekend by the grandly named Royal Caledonian Curling Club so long as another inch of ice is formed. They last had the outing 30 years ago.  Have a look here for more details. It made the Singapore Times, the Wall Street Journal and a host of global newspapers/web outlets.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jan/05/weather-ice-scotland-curling

There was something defining about holding hands with your family doing something that you have never done before and may never do again. Indeed the idea was to let the kids have something to talk about in their dotage that in ‘twenty ten’ they walked on the lake with their parents.

Just this past season our pastor in Florida has been walking and teaching through Matthew’s Gospel and there can be no doubt that Jesus was a leading edge presenter of his time (using the equivalents of sound, acoustics, image and every day applications). In a small boat like the ones used on the Lake of Menteith for fly fishing he addressed a multitude and used the natural geography to speak without the aid of modern sound systems. As we walked on the water (albeit solid) today we got a glimpse of the natural beauty around the trossach hills, like iced carrot cake today, and the sheer joy of stepping out in faith.

For our kids the walking on water  might just be tomorrow’s news for school as they go back after the Christmas holiday. For my wife and me it was within touching distance of our whole family being together as we could see the small cemetery where our lost son Matthew was buried. But hey, he is with the man who really walked on water, the liquid stuff…..

Earlier that week we had arrived from snowy New York to a balmy Florida and set about decorating the home here with all things Christmassy. The tree was set and we set out for dinner with the last task of adding the many single ornaments and decorations to the tree when we returned. It is a kind of family tradition to have all sorts of ornaments and decorations we have gathered and been gifted over our time as a family. All of the little pieces have stories attached to them and family folklore too.

We returned from dinner and set about adding the story of our family life to the tree through many little pieces of glass, ribbon, wood and baubles. The music backtrack played favourite carols and songs, old favourites, many poignant reminders of Christmas past and absent friends and loved ones. As we all radiated the glow of the lights and sat back to admire the scene our daughter (now 6 and a quarter) stepped right up to face the tree and unprompted, and probably moved by the moment, sang “Oh Christmas tree’. My wife and I were stunned and delighted and a couple of tears flowed. It was a precious moment to remember as the spirit moved amongst us. Her little face glowed and reflected the light just as those first visitors to the cave where the Christ was born, Emmanuel, (God with us) saw that the Light came into the world.

We celebrated Christmas Eve (my own particular favourite day of the year because of its hope, promise and expectation) with friends at Summerport as we sang carols and songs and listened to the old story from the Gospels that can be and is all too often forgotten or lost in the hubris of ‘Christmas”. The next morning came early, particularly to our son and the day was Christmas Day.

As I write we are in the middle part of the last week of the year, and the scent of cinnamon, orange and cloves is still pleasantly filling the kitchen and lingering like a good friend. These simple elements were a gift from a dear friend and have been fragrantly sharing the Christmas scent we can all associate with this time of year.

Some friends from Scotland are also in our neck of the woods and we have had great times with them. Their presence has also reminded us of the frozen snowy place we call home part of the year and the family and friends we have there. But you know what? It doesn’t matter whether you are near or far, ‘skype-able’, text-able, huggable or miles apart, the same Emmanuel arrived to be near us all.

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year, or as we Scots say a ‘guid New Year’.

This man, who at a young age lost his sight, has been criticised by opera purists on his style and technique. They should pay attention and realise that this is a voice to talk about. His breath control is simply awesome and the legato dreamy. Even in the high tessitura his voice remains strong, robust and sweet.

Forget comparisons with the older generation of the trio of Pavarotti, Domingo and Carreras. I’d argue that Bjorling was better than one of them, and del Monaco would have been something to witness. I was reminded more of Carlo Bergonzi, a ‘tenore’ of some style I was lucky enouugh to see on what was his farewell tour sometime in the early 1980′s.

Here is the point – Bocelli is at ease in both the serious operatic tenor repertoire (the Boheme was top drawer, and to open with la Donna e Mobile must have meant a 2 hour warm up pre show) and the sacred aria set (the Ave maria was simply splendid and Panis Angelicus tingling). He then sang a version of White Christtmas, with “Blue Christmas’ thrown in. This tethered to some italian folksy songs and the set was complete.

This concert ticket was part of my birthday present earlier in the year from my wife who came along with me. She happily indulges my love of the bel canto, knowing I’m really a frustrated singer at heart! Who would be a merchant banker if you could sing….

I had the happy chance of singing with the Joe Loss orchestra once in nineteen oatcake (1998 actually), and it was a brilliant experience (for me, if not the audience) to have that full big band sound behind me.

Now singing with a full orchestra would be something neat……

I have the prospect of a 4am start to catch the first flight out of Edinburgh to Amsterdam and then on to Oslo, the fjord proud capital of Norway, a beautiful country I have a habit of going back to on business, where the people are friendly and the sights at this time of year are spectacular.

Norway, being the North country was once tied to Scotland, has had various disagreements about borders and ownership over the years and was over run by the Nazi’s in the second world war. It has been a settled democracy, the home of the Nobel prizes, most notably the ‘peace’ one bestowed on President Obama last week. I had the good fortune of lunching in the Nobel Institute on my last visit, and whilst school children toured around, ate the excellent fish soup. But I digress, and Norwegian food is worth a blog entry all of its own some day.

The Norwegians were beneficiaries of an act of God with the large hydrocarbons found on the Norwegian Continental shelf, and the Barents sea (an inhospitable place from next month until around March). The smart people of Norway held control and bestowed the benefits for the people.

Sadly, the once insulated society of seagoing people who went around the world and are considerd as honest brokers the world over, are now facing the same global challenges of high levels of immigration, economic uncertainty, drug dependency and alcohol abuse. The Central Station area is now less than savoury of an evening and is the key arrival point from the Airport express train (Flytoget) which is one of the best pieces of joined up thinking between an airport some distance from a city centre and the city centre itself. Some local cities in Scotland should take note.

Anyway, the early start means an early finish to the weekend, and saying farewell to what will have been the best weekend in October before we head to Florida in the coming week. It will be nearly hallowee’n by the time we get back, almost November, and the nights will have drawn in as they say in these parts – the evening will start sooner as dusk falls, and when we get back it will be dark by 6pm or thereabouts. That will shorten sooner, falling to 3.30 or 4pm by December and the ‘shortest day’. As the clocks ‘fall back’ at the end of the month the mornings will be slightly lighter for a while and then the pattern will develop. It will be late February and into March before we see longer days again. In Norway it is even more pronounced, so this week will mark the last sunnier visit of 2009 for me, before the dark cold winter sets in and won’t vacate until around April.

I have a precious aunt, a widow, who was married to an uncle, an elder brother of my late mother. He was a guiding light for me through teenage years, taught wisdom and truth, now that I can look back and recognise it. They loved Norway and went there often. I’m glad in some ways to be following in their footsteps. So should you. It is a delightful place.

On the route around the course the children visited staging posts and had a laminated piece of card stamped to show that progress was being made and good order preserved. It was the combination of those things plus the youthful exuberance of the children in getting stamped that led to a fluke accident and my son’s eyeball coming into contact with someone else’s laminated piece of card. Ouch, ouch and ouch! Sharp, painful and unexpected.

His mum was there as a helper, albeit with another group of children, and was able to comfort him in the exceptionally far sighted (no pun intended) first aid facility which in previous years had proved invaluable. A visit thereafter to the optician showed his eyball had been sliced top to bottom and was very painful. Thankfully there was no immediate threat to his sight and the healing process is quick (they reckoned a few weeks) albeit he was patched up (literally) after some antiseptic was adminsitered.

I then received all of this news, or the upsum of it really, via SMS on a train whilst travelling home from London. That was hard, as any of you who have been away from home when an accident with children happens. The information is patchy (that word again) and you feel terrible for not having been there, although that is an impractical thought. As parents we would all rather bear the pain of our children and find it distressing to see them distressed. My wife coped brilliantly well as ever and by the time I arrived home he was sound asleep in pirate patch land.

All is well so far and after a return visit to the optician after the weekend of the flower fairy party, pantomime rehearsals and a sleepover at a friends house, he toddled off to after school soccer none the worse. A piano lesson and homework session later he was heading to bed but asked for a photo of his granny, my mother, who lost her remarkable battle to cancer just over a year ago. He takes solace in the memories of what was a deep and meaningful relationship for him from the day he was born until she passed on to glory. She is still able to comfort and care for her grandchildren in her physical absence because she was present so much in their lives. Those memories are strong.

Our much wanted son and private miracle will be fine, the effects of the eye accident will pass into memory and there may be a faint line on his eye to deal with in life.

As parents we wince and hurt as our children hurt, and I was just thinking about how much more our Creator winces and hurts when we hurt.

Cam, you were a brave pirate and both mum and dad love you very much. Granny does too. XX