I'm sitting in the South Hill Park cafe, having dropped the dog at the groomers for his much needed trim and tidy-up (the house is covered in dog hair, the Hoover is FULL of dog hair!) I'm not teaching today, and there's an hour to use up before I pick him up again. Well that was the plan, but this time Simon will collect him and bring him here to meet me. You see, we're trying to "Do Lunch" together today, and we've had to come up with a creative plan for how we can meet somewhere for 45 minutes! Hope the weather stays nice. If it starts to rain the plan will backfire, as we're planning on sitting outside (remember the dog?!)
At REAL we've got a lunch break and (new this year) a dinner break. You might like to pop home...or have some space and time alone before the evening, but you also might like to stay out and eat near Bracknell. If so, I'd recommend booking somewhere, and perhaps popping into Wokingham for Prezzo, Pizza Express, Nandos, Cafe Rouge or Zizzi - look out for special offers for these great places! There are also some nice pubs nearby - Peacock Farm in Jennets Park, The Cricketers, or more reasonably - the Golden Retriever. In Bracknell town centre there's the all-you-can eat Chinese, and nearby there's the Harvester and some fish and chip shops and Indian restaurants.
I'd love to hear where you'd recommend too?
Both meal breaks are great opportunities to get together with a friend or two and eat. We've extended the lunchtime break to 90 minutes, so time for a wander into town if you want, or you may prefer to bring some food and have a bit of a picnic either inside Kerith or out (when you're praying for REAL, please remember good weather please!).
How are you feeling about what I've written so far? Excited....Busy making plans....looking forward to it? Or Anxious....nervous....wondering who (anyone?) you'll be able to eat with?
I think you might be surprised to know that many girls do feel really anxious about such things. We all seem to think that "everyone else" is sorted. "Everyone else" has no shortage of women to invite/ be invited by."Everyone else" already has plans.
. Given that "we're ALL feeling like this" why not initiate that conversation, make that invitation, extend your group to include others? Are you a gatherer? Could you organise something? Promise me you'll at least have the conversation with someone?
Courage is required for friendship.
There's risk of rejection, but it's a risk worth taking.
I'm so looking forwards to REAL, and particularly to teaching in two of the sessions, which is a great privilege.
Together, and Friendship are BIG, REAL issues to tackle, but I think we're ready for it - bring it on God!