Easter Monday Pilgrimage

I absolutely love the Easter Monday Pilgrimage - Easter wouldn't be Easter without it. J and I worked out yesterday that Tabitha has been every year of her life, all eight of them! Jemima, of course, can say the same thing - I seem to remember last year she was making me feel very very sick. She slept through the whole thing; I think it was a bit hot for her!

It was a bit different to normal, in that we processed out not in. I like gathering in the Abbey to eat our picnics and spotting as many people as possible. We know people from lots of parishes in the diocese - Potton, Dunton, Biggleswade, Hatfield, Welwyn as well as all the other Bedford ones. We never seem to be able to whip up much enthusiasm for it here, as most of the families seem to like to be away for Easter, or to have the day at home. So usually it's just me, J and T (and now of course J). The last two years mum and one of her friends has come, and then maybe one or two more. I would love to do it properly one year, and set off on Easter Sunday afternoon, camp over night and arrive by foot on the Monday.

It was a great message from the Bishop of Hertford, asking us to go out as pilgrims and really show Jesus' love for everyone we meet, and I left feeling very enthused, although I wish they could have waited to sweep up before we'd finished processing (and having the sub dean hurrying us through was a bit of a mood killer too if I'm honest). I'm wondering if they'll stick to this format or change it back for next year!