July 2026

Dear Friends

July has arrived and school holidays will begin soon. The children can't wait, maybe parents are dreading it? I have reached the time in life, much to my surprise, when I have grandchildren, three at the moment. It is wonderful. Jennie and I have raised our four boys and now they are beginning to raise their own children, the oldest of which is three currently. Parenting is definitely a more difficult complicated task for modern parents than it was for us, despite the profusion of amazing gadgets, toys, experiences and technologies now available in the retail sphere.

Charity shops and recycling platforms are a brilliant place to source the stuff needed but the real challenge comes, not in providing the physical stuff children need, but in providing them with the emotional, psychological and spiritual environment that will help them become mature, happy, curious, stable, resilient, compassionate, loving, kind, rounded human beings. Obviously, the example and modelling of life by us, the parents and grandparents, is the biggest factor in this but there is something else I think can get badly overlooked. Boredom! Boredom is a much underrated but essential part of growing up. Why? Because it is the engine of imagination and imagination helps us to develop all sorts of very human qualities such as interests, hobbies, problem solving, curiosity, knowledge, creativity and the ability to make sound judgements and decisions. How can we expect young adults to make sound judgements in their lives if they have never been exposed to situations growing up in which they had to make decisions which had any kind of real consequences? Being entertained all the time does not allow these traits to develop, hence the need to manage screen time and smart phones and not jump as soon as the words are uttered “I'm Bored.”

I remember being so bored at home it drove me and my mate from down the road out of the house to find things to do, to explore, to amuse ourselves with. We had to think about it, plan it, do it, hopefully return safely, review it and improve on it tomorrow if we could and felt like it. Dad was at work and mum was doing her homemaking tasks and it was never considered their responsibility to entertain us all the time or for them to arrange for us to be entertained. We dreamt up many things to do but looking back we learnt massively thorough the freedom we had to do this – a freedom much less easy to find for youngsters today, I freely admit. But put a few children in a parking lot and they will find a way to amuse themselves. It seems to me children have an inbuilt curiosity about the world and life which only needs releasing and letting be, along with others their own age. Over stimulation from outside, delivered entirely by adults or entertainment platforms to simply fill up their time is in danger of stunting children's imaginations, creativity, and sense of self and wellbeing. Time exploring on their own in the natural word is wonderful for this. Yes, as parents and grandparents we are there to supervise our young people, to make sure the envelope of freedom for them to explore is a safe one and age appropriate, but let's not stifle all that youthful curiosity and energy for it is the engine of growth.

As Christians we often reflect on what it means to be created in the image of God. Surely one of the things that makes us so different from the rest of creation is our imagination. Formal education has its place but so do the holidays with time to let curiosity roam free and come to the fore and to be able to develop our own individuality and sense of self, within God's glorious wider creation. In the natural world we see God's amazing creativity writ large. Is it surprising that made in His image we too are fundamentally creative and imaginative beings ourselves? Have a great summer.

Kind regards

Prayer:

Thank you Lord for making us in your image in a world of such diversity and beauty.

Help us as adults to encourage and enable our young people to access their own creative natures and grow up as whole, rounded, stable and happy individuals.

Amen.