My car has developed a strange squeak from one of its wheels, and is going into the garage today. As many of you know, I have a history of running older cars, and that, of course, means that there is a certain expectation that from time to time some things will go wrong — more than the usual round of oil changes, changing brake pads and tyres that come with the MOT cycle. Sometimes, however, we are not quite as disciplined as we should be over regular maintenance, and sometimes we neglect to pay attention to niggling noises, or things that have just changed over time.

True for our cars, and, of course, true for ourselves too. We, especially as we age, need to pay attention to ourselves, not only with our own personal MOTs, but also especially when things are not quite as they should be — it is easy to hope that our bodies are still as they were in our 20s or 30s, and that the changes we have experienced are only temporary ones, but we do need to pay attention to ourselves, and properly so.

I am reminded that when Jesus summarised the how we should live, he talked about prioritising how we live before God, but also how we need to ‘love our neighbour as ourselves”. What many people miss by this is that we need to love, and look after ourselves, as the springboard to be able to help others, and self care, and being attentive to ourselves, is a key part as this.

Every blessing

Stephen