Hello and welcome to another set of Holy Week blogs! For the past four years (four years?!) I have blogged my way through Holy Week each day. I wasn’t sure what to call this set of blogs. Holy Week Pregnant? Holy Week As A Vicar? Holy Week in a Pandemic 2? Holy Week as a new Vicar with many hormones and little energy, still in lockdown? As you can see, I’ve just opted for ‘Holy Week 2021’ because all of the above are true!

7.33am. That bi-annual panic where you wake up and Google ‘what time is it?’. Is it early? Is it late? Is my phone right? As clever as my phone is, I never quite trust it when it comes to the clocks changing so I have to Google it! Thankfully, it is indeed 7.33.

9.36am. I’ve just gone live on Facebook with the notices for today. I started this a few months ago and it’s just another way of getting information out there. I like it when people comment and say hello! It means that the notices rarely flow, but that’s fine by me.

10.43am. So I’ve just arrived at the cabin for the streamed service. We’ve been streaming worship as together as the three churches in the local area since November and I love it. Most of the things happening this week are joint, which is really great. This morning I am leading the service with a colleague. We will be thinking about Jesus’ journey from Palm Sunday to the cross. It will be a heavy service, but we want to send people into Holy Week in the right way.

12.45pm I’m back home and at my desk ready for the Annual Meeting. I grew up in a church where the annual meeting always took place on Palm Sunday so I thought I’d give it a go and see what it was like from the vicar’s perspective. I think it’s good to get the APCM done nice and early but I’m not convinced that Palm Sunday is the right time for me. It’s not the day itself but the prep. It was such a slog over the last fortnight getting everything ready for Easter and the APCM! I might need to rethink next year.

2pm. Well I’m so pleased that’s over for another year! Off to have lunch before meetings at 3 and 6.

4.53pm. We’re all sorted for going live with our meditations from tomorrow and I’ve had a slice of Biscoff Vienetta. I’m going to do some admin before Lent Study at 6.

8.25pm. I’ve had a great time at Lent Study. We’ve spent 6 weeks working through praying, reading and learning as part of our Rule of Life, and I love how the group has bonded. From it, we might well set up a regular study group at The Good Shepherd which would be lovely!

It’s getting on a bit so I’ve put the tea on. We’re having pizza and wedges. It’s late so I’m going to clock off for the day.

Palm Sunday is quite a unique day in the church calendar. It’s the joy before a week of sorrow. The Bible says that at this point Jesus was at the peak of his popularity. The crowds tore branches from the trees and waved them. They lay their cloaks down on the floor for the Jesus, riding a donkey, to walk on. Imagine taking your coat off for a donkey to walk on! There are very few people I would do that for, if any. The people must have loved him. But in just a few short days, things really changed.

More tomorrow x