EDITORIAL

Suddenly it’s Summer... Well it will be sooner or later. At the time of writing (mid-late May) the weather forecast is threatening snow! Probably not here, but quite possibly further North. This is due to the variability of the Jet Stream, the weather system that flows eastwards at very high altitudes, and can keep cold air trapped over these islands for weeks at a time. However, things change, and it may well be hot and getting hotter by the time you read this.

We had a lot of rain earlier in the year, and this has caused things to grow and flower early. This includes St. Giles Churchyard, and shortly the gardeners who maintain this will cut the weeds back again. However the Church of England encourages parishes to let their churchyards grow: lots of wild flowers in Spring, and indeed St. Giles has a riot of colour at this season. It’s not called God’s Acre for nothing. The gardeners are asked not to mow the flowers down till May, so that Nature can flourish. But families are expected to tend to their own graves, and where there is no family left, this can sometimes lead to a rather wild look. We had a family with connections to the Black Horse come back from the South Coast to meet together and to tend their graves. It was a privilege to welcome them back and let them into St. Giles.