{"id":14839,"date":"2024-05-02T17:05:00","date_gmt":"2024-05-02T16:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/?p=14839"},"modified":"2024-05-02T19:38:48","modified_gmt":"2024-05-02T18:38:48","slug":"days-out-churches-st-johns-parsons-drove","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/?p=14839","title":{"rendered":"DAYS OUT\/CHURCHES: St John\u2019s, Parson\u2019s Drove"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
Heaven on Earth!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Well, well, well! Three Holes*\u2026 etc. (as my Pa was\/is fond of saying).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

* Also a local place name!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I had an unpleasant experience with a member of the Hillbilly class of these Flatland Fens, earlier today. Left me literally brooding on murderous thoughts. Not nice!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyway, shortly thereafter, I passed St John\u2019s, Parson\u2019s Drove. I had one last delivery to make. So I made it, thereby finishing my shift, and came back to the church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This little photo essay is the result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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It also occurred to me, even as I passed the church, that if I stopped there for a spell, and took my usual brace o\u2019 snaps, wondered around outside, and maybe even looked inside, if poss\u2019, it might mellow my troubled angry soul.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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First off, it\u2019s a glorious sunny day. Which made photographing the forget-me-not strewn (so apt!) graveyard pure bliss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Beautiful Old Rectory.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Gorgeous tulips, at The Old Rectory.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The church, like so many nowadays, is locked. But a short walk across the road, and a lady living at The Old Rectory (itself utterly delightful) has the key. And what a key!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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That\u2019s what I call a key!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Inside the church it\u2019s quite austere, and fairly bare of Popish ornament. But, like so many Parish churches, it still manages to be both magnificent and yet calming. Grand and yet homely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The font.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The tower.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Nice tower roof details.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Proper fortress type doors.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Nice niche.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Bricked up whitewashed window.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Looking down the nave.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Beautiful roof.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Mammon in Holy Places!?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Seating for the faithful.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Nicely aged brickwork.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The altar.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Has God vacated the premises. Or is it instead we who are now absent? My love of old churches grows, the more I visit. But how can they be maintained without the religion that created them?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Old pump-organ.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Fab\u2019 floor.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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View from the altar.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Pulpit.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Pretty windows.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Nice seating area.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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What windows!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Love the lopsided window!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Fab old table.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Wonky window.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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So picturesque.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Proper Victorian paving.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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More lovely roof timbers.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Fab old table.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Lovely carving.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Legs eleven.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Through the Gothic Window\u2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Worn pavement.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Back to the graveyard\u2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Still stunning.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Returning the key.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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View from Rectory to Church.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Lovely little house\u2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Apple Crumble Cottage!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I kind of get ahead of myself, in the gallery above. But rather than break up what I\u2019ve already done, here is another chunk. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then, around the back\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What a beast of a building.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Back door.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Fading faces\u2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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\u2026 beard disappears.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Bricked window.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Front door.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Another bricked window.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Tower pano\u2019.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Back to the graveyard.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Many stones.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Crazy skull!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Bricked up\u2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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\u2026 windows.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Beautiful; life n\u2019 death.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In a strange and rather selfish way, this may be the perfect time for someone of my bent to enjoy churches. If they were thronged with the faithful, it\u2019s ruin it all, for me. And even if they\u2019re used fir secular ends, once even another person intrudes in the kind of solitary reverie I\u2019m enjoying right now, the spell is broken.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Well, well, well! Three Holes*\u2026 etc. (as my Pa was\/is fond of saying). * Also a local place name! I had an unpleasant experience with a member of the Hillbilly class of these Flatland Fens, earlier today. Left me literally brooding on murderous thoughts. Not nice! Anyway, shortly thereafter, I passed St John\u2019s, Parson\u2019s Drove. … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “DAYS OUT\/CHURCHES: St John\u2019s, Parson\u2019s Drove”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paGwUa-3Rl","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14839"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14839"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14839\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14925,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14839\/revisions\/14925"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14839"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14839"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14839"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}