It was still Thursday March 12th as we made our haphazard way to Emmanuel College from the Fitzwilliam museum in Cambridge. There were a few more stops to include in our travel journal. These were not your normal tourist stops.
It was nice to see some signs of Spring arriving soon.
It was about a half a mile walk to St. Andrews Street from Trumpington.
Don’t forget to look up!
Someone called Emmanuel College the “Seedbed of the English Reformation”.
“I have set an acorn, which when it becomes an oak, God alone knows what will be the fruit thereof.”
– Sir Walter Mildmay replying to Queen Elizabeth I on the founding of Emmanuel College, Cambridge in 1584.
We were curious as to whether we could see that quote written somewhere on campus and we got some information from the porter’s office that was a wild goose chase. But while heading to the area where said quote was to be found we made another discovery.
St. Andrew’s Street Baptist Church.
The church was all locked up so we couldn’t go inside. That was a disappointment.
1855 Josiah Chater records that Charles Spurgeon came twice to preach at St Andrew’s Baptist church, 6th April and 8th August. “Agnes and I heard him and liked him very much indeed: he gave an excellent sermon.”
Charles Spurgeon is a favorite of mine and of many others as well. “The Prince of Preachers.”
On our back roads walk to our lodgings we passed the King’s Street Brewery and decided we’d return there for our dinner.
One more Fish and Chips meal in England.
This back roads walk also helped us choose where we would enjoy breakfast on Friday the 13th, our last full day in Cambridge.
It is the sweetest experience to be doing my regular shopping in town and having these two find me in the store with a big hug! Simple but a very special joy for me.
It is also so sweet to enjoy flowers that pop up year after year that I had no hand in planting!
We had a wild thunderstorm come through on Friday morning! We had lightning and thunder and a good soaking of our planters. I’m happy when God does the watering for me!
During our heat wave which is continuing this week it was a good exercise to finish this summertime puzzle.
On Saturday afternoon, JJ had a Taekwondo exhibition at Yep Kanum Park.
It was time for the Yep Kanum Park Celebration in Colville, the celebration will bring neighbors and visitors together from July 17-19, 2026, for a vibrant weekend of activities. Attendees can enjoy live music performances, local artisan markets, food vendors, and family-friendly events. This year’s celebration promises to be a wonderful celebration including performances by musicians, local artists, a classic car show, a youth baseball tournament, a pickleball tournament, and plenty of entertainment for all ages.
JJ gave a demonstration of his kick that split the wood in two. I have a video of that but I’m not able to share it here.
On Sunday after church we enjoyed the finale of the World Cup with Spain defeating Argentina. I’m one who has enjoyed every World Cup soccer game despite the teams I was cheering for coming up short. We were rooting for Spain in the end and were happy for their accomplishment.
I’ve been following ‘Drew Cooks‘ on Facebook and we enjoyed two of his recipes on Sunday.
Blueberry biscuits were very good. We also enjoyed chicken thighs in the crockpot with a soy sauce, brown sugar, green onion, garlic, and ginger. Delicious!
Our area is experiencing wild fires with smoke making our outdoor spaces unhealthy. We can identify with those of you on the east coast experiencing smoky skies and hard to breathe air. Praying for our firefighters!
Last and least, it is always fun to spot these frogs in our yard, as long as they stay in the yard!
How was your weekend and what does this new week hold for you?
God of our fathers, whose almighty hand
Leads forth in beauty all the starry band
Of shining worlds in splendor through the skies
Our grateful songs before Thy throne arise.
Thy love divine hath led us in the past,
In this free land by Thee our lot is cast,
Be Thou our ruler, guardian, guide and stay,
Thy Word our law, Thy paths our chosen way.
From war’s alarms, from deadly pestilence,
Be Thy strong arm our ever sure defense;
Thy true religion in our hearts increase,
Thy bounteous goodness nourish us in peace.
Refresh Thy people on their toilsome way,
Lead us from night to never ending day;
Fill all our lives with love and grace divine,
And glory, laud, and praise be ever Thine.
On Thursday March 12th we reached our furthest destination on Trumpington St. in Cambridge, The Fitzwilliam Museum.
We could have spent a lot more time in the museum but there were about 100 elementary+ age children who arrived and it was hard to work around them in the different exhibits. They worked on projects sprawled on the floors and we literally had to try and not step on them. The noise level was not pleasant, either. Thankfully we saw some favorites before the rooms were taken over by exuberant youth!
Note to Self: Go to museums as soon as they open in the earlier hours or at night.
On Fridays my posts will include verses that stood out in my readings from the Bible during the week. One, two, three or maybe more. If you have a verse/verses that you read during the week and would like to share, leave it/them in the comments and I will add it/them to the post. Let’s continue to dig deep into God’s truth.
The verses that you share are appreciated and so encouraging, I’m thankful for them and for each of you!
Psalm 56:8-13
You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me? I must perform my vows to you, O God; I will render thank offerings to you. For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.
From Leonard:
Psalm 118:24
“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
From Vera:
Psalm 59:16-17 ESV
“But I will sing of your strength; I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning. For you have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress. O my Strength, I will sing praises to you, for you, O God, are my fortress, the God who shows me steadfast love.”
From Karen:
Proverbs 16:24
Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.
From Willow:
Psalm 106:3
Blessed are they who observe justice,
who do righteousness at all times!
Our Danube/Cambridge travel journal is creeping to it’s end. On Thursday the 12th of March we managed a variety of experiences. After our tour of Trinity College we popped into Gail’s Bakery for a fortifying treat before we continued. This was a cooler day than we had experienced so far.
After being fortified we continued along Trumpington Street. We noticed that Great St. Mary’s University Church was accessible. There was work on the church tower while we were in town and the main entrance had been sealed off most days. We decided to enter in while we could. The tower was not accessible during our short visit.
.
One of the features of the church when you first walk into the building is the large East window (the stained glass window above the Altar). This was installed in 1872, and tells the story of Jesus’ birth, from the angel’s visit to Mary, to the nativity scene, to the flight into Egypt.
I was taken with the wood carvings on the ends of the pews.
Great St Mary’s has played a central role in many of England’s religious transformations. During the Reformation, sermons preached here influenced the spread of Protestant ideas, while leading figures including Hugh Latimer, Thomas Cranmer and later university preachers addressed congregations from its pulpit.
We moved further along Trumpington and saw the open door at St. Botolph’s church and walked in.
The church is dedicated to Botolph, a seventh-century abbot in East Anglia, who is a patron saint of travelers. The church was built by the long-demolished south gate of medieval Cambridge, through which travelers from the south and west entered the town.
This church had their kneeling pads on display.
Moving along we spotted this bookstore and we would come back to it once it opened.
Pembroke College was open to visitors so we ventured in to check out their Chapel.
Nicholas Ridley was Principal of Pembroke College from 1540-1553 and then became the Bishop of Gloucester. In the Hall at Pembroke (we didn’t gain access) are portraits of Ridley and of John Bradford, a Pembroke graduate martyred in Smithfield in 1555. Bradford was overheard encouraging a younger martyr with the words:
‘Be of good comfort, brother, for we shall have a merry supper with the Lord this night.’
The Chapel is the first building of Christopher Wren, consecrated in 1665. Its new classical style set the fashion for other College chapels and continues to afford a fine setting for Christian worship and music.
We moved on from Pembroke and noticed Little Mary’s Lane.
Back in my thrifting days I came across a set of three watercolors from the 1980’s that I purchased from Goodwill.
It was fun to spot the inspiration of these watercolors purchased years ago.
Our last stop on Trumpington would be the Fitzwilliam Museum and I’ll leave that for another post.
1. “Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability.” Sam Keen
Do you feel less guilty relaxing in July than you do in January? Elaborate.
No, but I would much rather sweat in January than in July. There is less for me to do in January. July is filled with mowing, weeding, watering which makes me sweat. Even if I weeded everyday there would still be more weeding to do. I generally do not feel guilty for relaxing.
Found this welcoming gate on a beach walk way back in 2009!
2. What’s a telltale sign you’re upset?
I stop smiling…
3. July 16th is National AI Day. What are your general thoughts and/or experiences with AI? Have you purposely used it? Does it excite you, scare you, or worry you? What do you see as a benefit? How about something relating to AI you see as a negative?
I haven’t given AI deep thoughts. I probably use it mostly in my google searches for information. I ignore the prompts that ask if I’d like help writing, etc. False information connected to people or misrepresenting images are worrisome.
4. You’re invited to a summer pot luck and are asked to bring an appetizer, salad/side, or dessert. Which category do you go for and what are you bringing?
5. It wouldn’t be summer without___________________.
It wouldn’t be summer without a trip to the beach…
…and Ice Cream.
We’ve had many enjoyable last minute adventures in the summertime.
Lavender Festival in Sequim, 2012. It always happens the third weekend in July. We enjoyed them very much in past summers. BTW: you pronounce Sequim -squim.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
Update from last Wednesday’s Hodgepodge; I did manage to bake some blueberry muffins. I used this recipe. I left off the topping because I stay away from cinnamon these days, our grandson is allergic to it. I enjoyed them even more without the topping because the result was delicious muffin tops with just a bit of crispy edges.
I also liked the fact that this recipe makes 8 muffins, not a dozen.
Update on our A/C: A technician came out on Tuesday afternoon and within 20 minutes our unit was repaired and ready to cool us again. So thankful! Doubly thankful, as we are supposed to hit the 100’s next week!
Working on the last few posts documenting our travels in Cambridge, England. Thursday the 12th of March we walked our feet off in between stops along the way. I booked a last minute morning tour of Trinity College for 10am to start off the sight seeing part of our day.
Our guide was a retired Porter of the college and he entertained us well.
King Henry VIII founded the College in 1546 as one of the very last acts of his life.
The open window is that of Isaac Newton’s Room while he attended Trinity.
The story of Isaac Newton and the falling apple is the famous legend behind his 1687 discovery of universal gravitation. While he wasn’t hit on the head as popular culture suggests, watching an apple fall prompted him to wonder why objects always fall straight to the ground, leading to his breakthrough. Above you’ll see the apple tree planted outside his room. Our guide said that this tree was grafted from the actual tree that led Newton to ponder the theory of gravity.
The Great Court features the iconic Clock Tower, where students attempt to run around the perimeter before the clock finishes striking 12 in the famous “Trinity Clock Challenge.”
If any of you have watched the movie, “Chariots of Fire”, you’ll remember the great court run, although a central theme it was not actually filmed at Trinity.
The College’s Great Court is famously the largest enclosed courtyard in Europe.
The Renaissance-style fountain in the center of Trinity College’s Great Court was first erected in 1602 and rebuilt in its original design in 1715. Historically supplied by a Franciscan monk conduit built in 1325, the landmark is famous for acting as a washing area for early students.
Overall, this chapel seemed to me, more a tribute to man than God.
The famous oil painting located behind the altar in the Trinity College Chapel at the University of Cambridge is St Michael binding Satan, painted in 1768 by the prominent Anglo-American artist Benjamin West.
King Charles III studied at Trinity from 1967-1970 and became the first heir apparent to earn a university degree when he graduated in 1970. Trinity College, Cambridge, has produced about 34 Nobel laureates, the highest number of any Oxford or Cambridge college.
Trinity was the academic home to Sir Isaac Newton, who lived and worked there for decades, as well as legendary figures like Francis Bacon, Bertrand Russell, and Tennyson.
One of my favorites from Tennyson’s Idylls of the King, King Arthur, on his deathbed voices to his friend some profound thoughts on prayer;
” Pray for my soul. More things are wrought by prayer
Than this world dreams of. Wherefore, let thy voice
Rise like a fountain for me night and day.
For what are men better than sheep or goats
That nourish a blind life within the brain,
If, knowing God, they lift not hands of prayer
Both for themselves and those who call them friend?
For so the whole round earth is every way
Bound by gold chains about the feet of God.”
I’ve come to learn that Trinity had a scholar that I would most be honored to know, Thomas Bilney.
Thomas Bilney first found forgiveness through a translation of the Bible done by Erasmus. As Thomas grew in faith, he studied the writings of William Tyndale, and Thomas spoke out every chance he got—He preached that every man had a right to read the Scriptures in his own language. In 1531, Thomas was burned at the stake.
I learn as much as I can before we travel to a new part of the world. It is more of a general overview with thoughts about what we should see and do. Once we visit the sights and we come home, I learn even more while working on our Travel Journal.
There is always more to learn about any given college or historical site but this is all I’m sharing today. I was happy to have had this tour to start out our day of this and that in Cambridge.
Thank you for traveling along with us as I journal our traveling days.
Summer has arrived in our corner of the world. On Friday evening our A/C stopped pumping cold air into our home. Of course it was after hours which means we won’t be able to schedule a service call until Monday after 8am (today). We have had the windows open and are enjoying the summer breezes. Thankfully the air has been fresh without the fertilizer and other natural livestock scents dominating the air!
Our July views prompt gratitude and thanksgiving to our God who created all things for us to enjoy.
lavender
We have a new umbrella this year and we’ve had to put extra weights on the base even though it’s supposedly a 40 lb. base. Before we added the weight the umbrella had tried to fly away.
Bee Balm
Coneflowers
Hosta
Bluebells or a relative?
Day lilies
The baby swallows have exited their nests and learned to fly.
We have several Quail families roaming our acres with babies, toddlers, and teen quail in tow. They always make us smile. There is always a scout quail that chooses a higher position to warn the other quail of any danger.
Deer have been more sporadic.
Hopefully before the morning ends we’ll have a scheduled HVAC appointment for this week!!
Into the heart of Jesus
Deeper and deeper I go,
Seeking to know the reason
Why He should love me so,
Why He should stoop to lift me
Up from the miry clay,
Saving my soul, making me whole,
Though I had wandered away.
Into the will of Jesus,
Deeper and deeper I go,
Praying for grace to follow,
Seeking His way to know;
Bowing in full surrender
Low at His blessèd feet,
Bidding Him take, break me and make,
Till I am molded, complete.
Into the cross of Jesus
Deeper and deeper I go,
Following through the garden,
Facing the dreaded foe;
Drinking the cup of sorrow,
Sobbing with broken heart, O Savior, help! Dear Savior, help!
Grace for my weakness impart.
Into the joy of Jesus
Deeper and deeper I go,
Rising, with soul enraptured,
Far from the world below.
Joy in the place of sorrow,
Peace in the midst of pain,
Jesus will give, Jesus will give;
He will uphold and sustain.
Into the love of Jesus
Deeper and deeper I go,
Praising the One who brought me
Out of my sin and woe;
And through eternal ages
Gratefully I shall sing, O how He loved! O how He loved!
Jesus, my Lord and my king!
The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b. 
“But I will sing of your strength; I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning. For you have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress. O my Strength, I will sing praises to you, for you, O God, are my fortress, the God who shows me steadfast love.”
From Karen:
Proverbs 16:24
Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.
From Willow:
Psalm 106:3
Blessed are they who observe justice,
who do righteousness at all times!