So here I wait, at the bus stop in Banbury for my friend K to arrive. Better late than never let’s hope. So far the 1045 Stagecoach from Fenny C has failed to arrive. Apparently they do cancel without much notice. At least she was able to find out from The Wharf Inn that the 77a Johnson bus may leave at 1135. They didn’t tell her it was a different bus stop but luckily I had rung to ask how she was getting on. If all else fails she’ll get a taxi but they have to come from Banbury out to Fenny C so take a while. At least it’s summer daylight hours so we can travel until quite late if necessary. This is canal time! My day started late. At least, I was awake 0400 until 0600 so by the time I got back to sleep I didn’t even hear my phone ring at 0840. The first I knew it was 0945! Still, I feel well rested and ready to face the challenges of the day ahead. Without R to hold my hand it’s a test of how capable I really am, not only to get the boat from A to B but also to instruct K as to what needs doing. There’s a lot of locks ahead of us and as far as I am aware K is a total novice!
A bit of ‘while the cat’s away’ going on. After R left on the train back home yesterday, within ten minutes I had found a charity shop and purchased not only a new summer hat to shade me from the sun whilst on the helm, but a blackout white curtain that will be perfect, with slight alteration, as a projector screen and privacy blind at the bow of the boat on the new cratch. Our other screen was 4″ too narrow to totally cover the window and fits far better at the foot of our bed! I can also now seamlessly move movies from one end of the boat to the other! All for the princely sum of £3.
My other transgression was to buy a few new plant pot holders and some more flowers to brighten up the outside of Naomhòg. I’ve always been a terrible gardener – the task of keeping a large garden under control is too much for me. However plants in pots suit me much better. R rightly says they get in the way of the mooring ropes but that’s a small price to pay for a bit of colour!
We started the day yesterday checking out the nearest water tap in case I needed to fill out drinking water containers. A boat was filling up and we chatted to the friendly couple who even invited us on board for a cup of coffee – let me recommend Morrison’s coffee bags! He has been boating annually for years with friends he met at the Christian Union when he was a student. One of them bought a narrowboat and so he has been on many of the more southern waterways. It was so lovely to be on the receiving end of ministry, to have our story heard and then prayed for. It made me realise this is a two way journey. I believe God wants us to help those we meet and chat to but equally sometimes we are in need of encouragement and God appears to be putting people in our pathway to help us. All out of the blue and unexpected. Jo and Hi had unexpectedly met a young lad yesterday by a lock, who looked extremely dejected. It transpired there were problems at home due to his parents following different religions. They felt they were in the right place at the right time to help him just by listening and being non judgemental.
Returning to the boat having seen R safely on the train home I opened the hatch, forgetting I had a ‘tea and chat’ sign visible. A chap outside said he didn’t want the tea but gave me a chocolate eclair sweet and stayed to chat for ten minutes. I thought that very kind of him and it was interesting to hear how he lives on his boat whilst running a shop in Banbury picture framing. He has a longterm mooring on the canalside but it’s quite a tough way of life as you get on in years. The mod cons we take for granted in a house all have to be sorted and replenished by hand and foot. I’m realising that in good weather it is so much easier but the winter months are hard for those living aboard full time.
NarrowboatTLC 