Nov. 24thوووو Aaron Peter Milles
ووووووووووووووووووو Katie Marie Wright
Dec. 8thوووووو Georgie Amelia Hurst
Nov. 19thووو Patrick
William Peppiatt, aged 89
وووووووو 23rd وووEdith Prior, aged 95ووووووو
ووووووووووووووووو Lionel Taylor, aged 82و (Service in Hillingdon Hill Chapel, followed
by burial).
وووووووو 29thوو Barbara
Joyce Pocock, aged 75
Dec.و 2ndووو Ronald Dabbs, aged 77
ووووووووو 6thووو Margery
Ethel Whitlum, aged 78
ووووووووو 13thو وEdith Anne Price, aged 97
ووووووووو 19thووو Francis Bewley Pim, aged 90ووو (Following a service in St. Giles‰
Church).
ووووووووو 20thوو Paul Graham Burrows, aged 33 (Interment at
Northwood Cemetery following a service
وووووووووووووووووووووووووووووووووووو ووووووووووووووووووووووووووووووووووووin St.
Giles‰ Church).
Jan.و 3rdوووو George Findlay, aged 86و
(Following a service in St. Giles‰ Church).
ووووووو 8thووووو Pearl English, aged 87و (Following a service in St. Giles‰ Church).
ووووووو 14thووو Doris Smith, aged 90
Burials of Ashes
Jan. 15thوووو Ronald Dabbs
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On a Saturday morning in January more than thirty of us gathered
at the United Reformed Church to speak together to someone of whose presence we
were not aware by any of our physical senses. We were - as you will have
guessed - praying to God, through Jesus, because we know in a spiritual way
(which is just as real as a physical sense) that he is present with us. Jesus
said, "Where two or three come together in my name, there am I with
them."
و
It can be a bit overwhelming
to think that you are actually speaking to God in front of other people, and
that he is listening, but we quickly found it a very natural thing to do. Some
prayed aloud, others silently, adding their "Amen" to the spoken
prayers. We asked for God's help in all that we seek to do together as a church
for him, because we know that without his help we can accomplish nothing that
he regards as worthwhile. We prayed for the community in Ickenham, and for some
of the major concerns we have about the world today - e.g. famine, the threat
of war. We prayed for young people and for those known to us in particular need
- and for many other things. Two hours, broken into half-hour sessions, went
very quickly.
و
Not "News", you
might think, that Christians should meet to pray. Or it might confirm some in
the view that we are an odd lot at the U.R.C. (I should add that they pray at
St Giles' as well!) But perhaps we need reminding that we can meet with God in
the middle of Ickenham and ask him to be at work among us all. He mustn‰t be
ignored! And you don't need to be a minister or some kind of
"special" Christian. Simply come to God through the way of salvation
from sin by faith in his Son Jesus Christ, and you can know him and the
privilege of sharing in his work among us all.
و
With best wishes for 2003.
Richard
Coin Mountain Coffee
Morning is on Saturday 1st February 10.30 a.m. to 11.15 a.m. in
the U.R.C. Hardwick Room for informal conversation or private discussion in the
Minister‰s room.
‹Cٹ CREATIVITY - THE MODEL RAIL WAY
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I have a model railway. In fact, I have had one for quite a long time. It
is 00 gauge and occupies a space of some 12 feet by 6 feet. But that is the end
product. To begin with, it was only an idea.
و
I spent a
lot of time planning the layout. Basically, it consists of two overlapping
double track circuits with trains disappearing into tunnels at the 6 foot ends
of the layout and then re-appearing as if from nowhere on the opposite side.
There is provision for trains to switch from one double track to the other.
There is a bay platform for local traffic and a branch line. There is even a
level crossing with gates. I eventually decided that this was it, just what I
wanted. The planning process was over. It was the first and a very necessary
stage in the life of my model railway. I could see that it was good.
و
Construction
could now start. The next step was to make a baseboard. Without a firm
foundation no model railway can exist. I decided on chipboard. Rigid enough but
minute screws could still be put into it without too much trouble.
و
Then, of
course, the track had to be laid, complete with plastic underlay. A mammoth
task, particularly as the curves and gradients had to be carefully calculated.
The curves had to have adequate clearances and the gradients not so steep as to
overtax the ability of a locomotive to haul its train up. Point motors had to be attached to points and
buried under the permanent way. I was still satisfied with progress to date.
But the
whole layout was still lifeless. It required power.
So a
transformer was needed to convert the AC supply to 12 volt DC, and a control
panel had to be put together. Then there were yards and yards of wiring for
each of the four main tracks and separate wiring for each point; controllers to
regulate power input to each track, and switches to work each point.
The layout
was now complete but it was still unclothed. Scenery was necessary to cover the
tunnels at both ends of the layout and tunnel mouths had to be constructed.
Stations and signals were required. The hole in the middle of the layout had to
be filled with a model village. There was also a barracks with troops on the
march.
Finally
locomotives and rolling stock had to be acquired. Without them there would have
been no point in the whole exercise. There were many different models to choose
from. Diesel electrics, a high-speed train, Pullman coaches, steam locomotives
some of which even simulated the emission of smoke: وPassenger trains and goods trains. A wide
diversity of possibilities.
The model
railway was now up and running. It worked. I have had four different trains all
operating at one and the same time. There had been six essential stages in the
development of the railway from planning to final operation. When I reviewed
the entire process I could see that it was good - indeed very good.
و
After that
I thought I was entitled to some time off.وو
To be continued next month
Robert M Forrest
