As i mentioned in yesterday's post, i took a wee holiday from work last weekend and headed down the West coast towards Prestwick.
i lived in Prestwick for almost four years whilst at uni, working part-time with young people in a local church (the one whose steeple you can see in the above photo) to coincide with my studies, but this was my first visit in over 15 months. It's a strange feeling to be a tourist in a place you once called 'home'.
i stayed in the church manse with the minister (my old line-manager) and his wife, who were thee most accommodating hosts, and it was instantly like being back with a second family. i spent most of the weekend dining out and catching up with people: lunch with the minister & his wife on Saturday afternoon, dinner with a friend (and old youth work volunteer) on Saturday night, breakfast with the Bible Class kids on Sunday morning and dinner with the youth group on Sunday afternoon. Phew!
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Excuse the multiple chins! |
It was an absolute delight to reconnect with everyone again. We keep in touch over Facebook and Twitter, but nothing really beats a good natter over a cup of coffee! It's scary to see how much the young folk have grown and changed since i moved away (babies who were born in my last few weeks at work suddenly toddling and speaking to me; primary school children now at the academy and suddenly looking grown-up) and slightly surreal to think that the young woman in the photo above, who was a secondary school 1st year when i started working with her, is now in her 1st year at university. It makes me feel quite old.. but it also makes me pause and take stock of what a privilege it is to be able to invest in young people's lives and journeys. Wowee!
They had a fancy dress party on Sunday night which was jolly good fun..
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Can you tell what they're meant to be? |
..and then i finished off my long weekend with more tea and chat in Prestwick, and coffee with a good friend in Glasgow before catching the train back to the frozen North East.
It was such a lovely weekend.
Must remember not to leave 15 months between visits next time!
1 Comments
Brilliant time you had!
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