Administrator and taker of occasional services
I am writing this in the middle of another heatwave and know I have not been alone in sometimes finding it too hot to cope with on those very hot days; even so I loved the relatively cool mornings and evenings. For most of us the weather is a topic of conversation, delight and occasional frustration; it can aid and frustrate gardeners in equal measure but long term it will not affect our general health or livelihoods.
Hot weather can be life threatening for those struggling with acute and long-term illnesses. Some figures suggest that our overstretched hospitals have been as full in the hot spells as they were during the peak of winter. I hope the autumn weather provides some welcome relief and rain with little extreme weather and no flooding.
As a result of the hot weather some crop harvests have been very early, others such as root vegetables have been very badly affected by drought. On the face of it early harvests sound like good news. However, many farmers are saying that their crop yields have been reduced by the exceptionally dry weather.
Tom Lancaster, land, food and farming analyst at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit said this a few weeks ago:
“Climate change is already having a devastating impact on UK farming and our collective food security, pushing up shopping bills and leaving many farmers at the end of their tether. Although it’s too early to tell what the true impact will be of this record-breaking dry spring, we know enough to conclude that it will have had a negative impact. All eyes are on the next few weeks’ weather.”
The dry spells have continued and any rain we have had has been ‘the wrong kind of rain’, falling as torrential thunderstorms on dry hard ground. This brings a ripple effect for all of us as higher food and production costs are inevitably passed on to us. Modern farming and increased food imports mean we have a wonderful array of fresh food in our shops and markets. This can easily shield us from the effect of the weather, but we are just as reliant upon a good harvest as any previous generation.
Harvest is an important celebration; this year our Harvest Festival will be on Sunday 5th October in All Saints at 9.30am. It is the festival where we give thanks to God for the beauty and bounty of creation, our food supply, for farmers and all who work in food production, delivery and distribution.
God bless
The Revd Caroline
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