It’s hard to believe that it’s been three weeks since the wonderful Greenbelt Festival! We’re already back into our routine, and so much seems to have happened since then.

But before it all gets committed to long term memory, I wanted to reflect on this year’s festival, especially as it was my first time with two children!

But first, I’d like to wind back nearly 30 years to infant school where we used to sing hymns from.memory, without hymn books. One of my favourites had me singing loudly ‘and I’ll lead you all, wherever you may be, and I’ll lead you all in the dance settee!’

‘Dance settee‘ made perfect sense to 5 year old me, because it conjured up images of me and my sister jumping up and down on the sofa with squeals of delight, when we thought the grownups weren’t watching! I imagined Jesus joining in on the dance settee, full of joy and laughter.

Even with two children to think about, in the mud and the rain, my dance settee cup was full to overflowing by the time we’d finished Greenbelt, and I’d like to tell you why.

Dance settee feeling as the children ran in between the flag poles and the ukulele band played on the first night.

Dance settee feeling as the apple sauce from my pork roll spilled out and landed splat on my jeans.

Dance settee feeling when a full complement of Grandparents helped entertain, watch and push S&A all around the site.

Dance settee feeling when the kids loved having a bath in the shower at the hotel, because Mum remembered to pack her mini paddling pool.

Dance settee feeling when I managed to grab 5 minutes with Sophia and we did henna on each others hands.

Dance settee feeling as the children played with the clay mushroom art installation for an hour.

Dance settee feeling when Nathan and our best pals arrived for Sunday, along with a tin of delicious chocolate cake.

Dance settee feeling when a Greenbelter offered to carry my tray of Roaming Rotisserie potatoes to ‘wherever I was going’ because I was pushing the pram through the mud, potatoes balanced on the handle.

Dance settee feeling as a Nun approached, offering the children a dip in her bag of beautifully crocheted toys.

Dance settee feeling when Sophia gave the volunteers sweeties as we arrived on site each morning.

Dance settee feeling getting chatting to the lovely lady from Tropic.

Dance settee feeling as everyone ran for cover from the rain, and Sophia said ‘yay, please can I go out in my wellies?!’

Dance settee feeling when the sun shone for communion on the amazingly dry ground on Sunday morning.

Dance settee feeling as voices raise in praise at Beer and Hymns.

Dance settee feeling when Dad loved tots Bengal dancing as much as Sophia did!

Dance settee feeling when Sophia made friends in the craft tent, and they all decorated a car made of cardboard in stickers.

Dance settee feeling as I walked Aidan up and down a quiet spot in his pram, trying to get him to nap, and catching the eye of other parents of little people doing exactly the same thing.

Dance settee feeling as the children felt confident to wander a bit further away than usual, and I felt relaxed enough to let them.

Dance settee feeling pulling up on Friday morning to find we were right next to a friend from college.

Dance settee feeling as Aidan’s rainbow stripe shorts slowly got grubbier and he lived his best festival life!

Dance settee feeling as Sophia got into singing this very song, and insisted on singing it multiple times a day for the next week.

Until 2028, Greenbelt! May your cups be full, may your August bank holiday 2027 be fun, and may you dance, whatever it looks like, wherever you may be.