Signpost 27 (26 October)

Good afternoon,

We are well and truly in autumn now with the leaves turning, jumpers and scarves being pulled from the back of the wardrobe and the clocks going back yesterday. We hope that Signpost can provide you with a curated list of interesting activities to keep you busy as the nights draw in.

This week's Signpost picks up the autumnal theme with reflections on All Saints' Day, warming recipes and scarf making!

During this week in history, Sylvia Plath was born in 1932 and Hillary Rodham Clinton was born in 1947. The Catalan parliament voted to declare independence from Spain in 2017 and Jonathan Swift published his novel ‘Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World’ (later called Gulliver's Travels) in 1726.

REFLECT

All Saints’ Day on November 1 is an opportunity to remember all saints and martyrs, known and unknown, throughout Christian history. The website www.anglicancompass.com provides an interesting reflection on the prayers associated with All Saints' day here.

CONNECT

At the end of September, “The Bristol Beacon” was announced as the new name of the Colston Hall. You can find out more about why this changed happened and the plans for the Bristol Beacon here.

LEARN

Have you ever tried Arm Knitting? If you haven’t knitted, you can make your own cowl/scarf by using your arms as knitting needles! You might need to buy yourself some wool but here is a tutorial on how to do it.

As mentioned in the introduction, Johnathan Swift published the classic novel “Gulliver’s Travels” 296 years ago this week. You can read the entire book online here. Project Gutenburg is a website dedicated to putting all books online and easily and freely accessible.

As the weather changes, we find ourselves craving food that warms us from the inside. From butternut squash soup and beef and stout stew to spiced toffee apple cake and plum and almond crumble slice, you can view the BBC Good Food top 20 autumnal recipes here.

FUN

If you are still looking for something to make you smile why not read this fantastic article about a man from West Sussex who has raised nearly £5,000 for a homeless charity by drawing "rubbish" pictures of pets.

Please get in touch through our email communityimpact@stmonicatrust.org.uk and let us know how we are doing.

Don't forget that our online services of worship and contributions from the Pastoral Care Team can be found at https://vimeo.com/stmonicatrust.