Below are some excerpts from recent magazines...
Write a Prayer
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if:
lots more people came to Mass;
lots more people came to help with events;
lots more people wanted to visit the housebound and sick;
lots more children came to Parish Angels, Parish Pelicans and Parish Doves;
lots more children came to children’s liturgy;
lots more people read at Mass, were altar servers; kept our churches beautiful;
and if there were lots more people in our churches, there would be less of a problem in raising money to pay off our debt.
Is this a dream or a fantasy?
No, because we have a God who loves us and answers our prayers, and the Holy Spirit can inspire people.
So we invite parishioners, adults, teenagers and children to write a prayer to God
the Father, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit – for our parish.
Some will be used in the bidding prayers, some published in the next issue of this magazine. Please hand into Father Maher or email to enquiries@westvalecatholics.co.uk
WHAT WOULD WE DO WITHOUT ANGELS?
We journeyed to France on Tuesday 25th
September. The main reason for our trip was to attend
the Welsh v Fiji Rugby match on Saturday 29th at the
Beaujoire Stadium, Nantes. Our destination was La Baule
and our French friends very kindly allowed us to stay in
their small ‘Summer Let’ cottage in La Baule, close to
Le Pouliguen, the twin town of Llantwit Major.
Journeying south through Brittany we planned to visit
another of the places associated with St Illtud, an
itinerary we had followed on our previous visits to
France. This time it was to be a place called Ploerdut.
The large church there was in the process of being
renovated and the workmen were reluctant to let us in.
We intrepid Welsh travellers pleaded our case and
ventured into the church despite any dangers we might
have met. However we were disappointed to find no
historical evidence of St. Illtud at all. A short stop
at a local bar for much needed refreshment followed,
where a friendly landlady, (who incidentally was from
Chippinghaml! ) directed us to the nearby crossroads
where a sign should point the way to the chapel of St
Illtud. Sadly the chapel had long been demolished and
the only indication of the site was the road sign shown
below.
Pic.1: Jimmy, Mair Griffiths & Author at the
Crossroads
Our first stop-over was to be spent in Carnac.
When we arrived, due to a massive restructure of the
roads into Carnac, we had great difficulty in driving to
our hotel. Very frustrating for we could see the hotel
but could not access the car park. This presented a
problem in that Jimmy Griffiths, being a semi invalid
was not able to walk the distance.
This was the moment when the first of our guardian
angels came to the fore. The gardener at the hotel
agreed to drive Terry a 5km. circuitous detour back to
the Town Hall, where we had left Jimmy and Mair sitting
in our car. We then proceeded in convoy to follow the
gardener on the reverse route! Our hotel stood at the
base of a 6000 year old Megalithic tomb or tumulus.
Perched on top of the burial mound was a chapel
dedicated to St Michel, illuminated at night but only
open to the public one afternoon a week Subsidence being
the reason for this restriction. We were one day too
late!
Pic.2: Picture of the Tumulus and Chapel of St.
Michel, Carnac
On now to Le Pouliguen / La Baule where we spent the
next two days meeting up with old friends who as well as
entertaining us, helped us to book our train tickets to
Nantes (I’m afraid my French isn’t that proficient) and
arranged to meet us on our return from the game. More
assistance from our Guardian Angels! Saturday 29th Sept.
dawned bright and fair. Every thing was going to plan
and suitably attired in our red jerseys, Welsh caps and
carrying two enormous flags we arrived at the Nantes
stadium.
Pic.3 ‘Welsh Supporters’
Anyone who might have read the front page of our local
newspaper, ‘The Gem’, dated the 11th. October will know
what happened next. For those who missed the report,
poor Jimmy took a tumble on entering the stadium and it
was later found he had broken three ribs! We escorted
Jimmy and Mair to an ambulance with the aid of some
excellent paramedics not to forget several mounted
gendarmes. It was now close to kick-off and the mounted
gendarmes formed a ‘V’ and proceeded to part the
exuberant crowds now entering the stadium. Enclosed in
the ‘V’ were the paramedics, gendarmes and Jimmy in a
wheel chair. One French wit commented, ‘It is like
Moses!’ Jim insisted that Anne and Terry must not miss
the match and so we proceeded to find our seats and
watch the game.
Sadly, Wales lost but Fiji deserved to win. After the
match we tried to locate Jimmy and Mair, only to be
informed that the British Consul was arranging for them
to be taken back to Pornichet, the base for the Welsh
Team. Hywel, Jimmy’s son, a physiotherapist for the
Welsh Team would then be able to assist his father.
Knowing our friends were in safe hands we proceeded to
Nantes Station to return to La Baule. Our train would
only take us as far as St. Nazaire on the return
journey, so our friend Brigitte was to meet us on
arrival St. Nazaire and then drive us back to La Baule.
On our arrival, she and our friend Annie Breton were
there to greet us; Annie’s husband Michel having driven
all the way to Nantes, a good hour’s journey by car, to
return with Mair, Jimmy being ensconced in Nantes
Hospital, very aptly named, Hotel Dieu, God’s Hotel!
Pic.4: Mair at the Hotel Dieu’
Michel and Mair returned to La Baule at midnight. The
following day, Sunday, Michel came to take us to his
home to enable us to telephone an insurance company and
the hospital. This took most of the morning and then
after taking us for lunch, he drove us back to Nantes
Hospital to see Jimmy and to arrange for Mair to stay in
the Holiday Inn close by the hospital. When Terry was
booking Mair into the hospital a woman sitting near to
reception introduced herself and offered to help. She
had once taught maths in Llantwit Major Comprehensive
school! That evening Mair, anxious and tired remained in
her room. During the evening the lady’s family had dined
in town and on returning visited Mair with a tasty
supper. Another ‘angel’?.
The insurance company would arrange to fly them home the
following day. Michel then took us back to Le Pouliguen
to have dinner at Brigitte’s house with Veronique and
Annie. During the meal the girls toasted Michel and
wished him a happy feast day for the day before. Of
course the 29th September was Michelmas, as we used to
call it. Now it is the feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel
and Raphael. What would we have done without our very
own St Michel and his band of angels! We arrived home
safely on Tuesday 2nd October, which coincidentally was
the feast of our Guardian Angels. What could have been
more appropriate? This set me thinking about two hymns
that we used to sing when I was a child. Do any of our
readers remember them I wonder? Sadly I think that the
Angels are neglected nowadays. What a shame. They appear
in so many forms and guises as we found out on this
visit to France.
Guardian Angel from Heaven so bright,
Dear angel ever at my side,
Watching beside me to lead me aright. How loving must thou be
Fold thy wings round me, O guard me with love, To leave thy home in Heaven
Softly sing songs to me of Heaven above. To guard a sinful child like me.
Beautiful angel my guardian so mild,
Tenderly guide me for I am thy child.
Anne Rooney
