From poetry to prose - Oxford University and an African boy.

This evening I went for a nice long run... It took me about an hour. I ran in the rain. I left the gate of Christ Church, turned left and ran down St Aldates street until I hit the end of town, then I ran towards the A40 until I found the Thames Park walkway. I ran along the Thames, and then wound my way back into town. It was dark and raining the whole way. It was great!

This was the closing run for my time here in Oxford. It has been a remarkable week! I have grown and been challenged - yet I have also learned that the African voice can be heard, and that in fact many are eager to hear it. My paper was extremely well received. As a result I was asked to serve on the international Editorial board for the Epworth Review.

As I ran I thought about all the wonderful people that I met, but also about what I am going back to in South Africa. Some would know that I have faced the temptation of taking up a post overseas - there have been some offers. It is tempting I'll admit. But Africa, and in particular Southern Africa, is where I am called. I look forward to being back at John Wesley College. I look forward to seeing our wonderful students, being with our incredible staff, and seeing all my friends and family at Bryanston Methodist Church. My bones are filled with the nutrients of African soil. (I added the graph of my run on 2 Jan 2009 - here's the software and equipment that I use: Polar S625X)

Wikipedia states that prose is distinguished from poetry "by its greater variety of rhythm and its closer resemblance to the patterns of everyday speech". I am turning from poetry to prose - from the poetry of Oxford to the prose of my wonderful life. Both are rich, both are filled with meaning and depth - but my life in South Africa has more rhythm (like most African things do), and it is closer to what is normal for me (it feels like a comfortable conversation, rather than a carefully constructed speech).

Tomorrow I attend the last of the Sytstematic Theology working group sessions, the closing banquet in the evening, and then on Tuesday I make my way into London to visit Wesley's Chapel in City Road (and in particular Jenny who is the minister there - herself coming from Botswana). I fly out late on Tuesday afternoon.

Of course, I am only home for 6 days and then I leave for Malaysia... But that's another story....