Curate scales new heights
On Saturday May 7th, I abseiled down the side of the Europa hotel in Belfast, to raise money for Fields of Life, a charity with which I went to Uganda in 2007. FOL works to change lives, by providing clean water, health education, schools and hospitals and by funding outreach and income generating projects - and I have seen at first hand the difference it can make, to communities, families and to individuals. I am pretty terrified of heights, so abseiling was a huge challenge for me - I needed to raise a lot of money to make it worth my while!
I must be honest and say that I don't know that I have conquered my fear of heights. As those who were there on the day will know, I was still shaking long after I came down and I have vowed never to do something so mad again!
For those who have asked, yes, I did use a rope (ignoring the person who told me that a 'real' curate could jump without a rope) and yes, I was terrified all the way down - not least because 'the first shall be last,' and a mix-up over gloves meant that I was the last of the group to abseil, and so had to watch nervously as the others stepped one by one off the roof of the Europa.
But that meant there was a moment of rare humour as the next group arrived on the roof. They took one look at me in a clerical collar and panicked at the thought that abseiling merited its very own 'chaplain on the roof'...
I was hugely heartened, not just by the amount of sponsorship raised, but by the St Mark's parishioners who came in to support me on the day. They had to shout and cheer at a number of black-clad distant figures before the right one came down the rope!
Thank you to everyone for your support, prayers and sponsorship. I have raised a final figure of £1546 for Fields of Life, money which will go a long way and make a big difference in East Africa.
Revd Lynne Gibson