The Dock’s Christmas party pics

Massive thanks to everyone who joined us for our Christmas party last week – if you were scared off by the rain (pah!), here’s a few pics of what you missed – abseiling Santas, carols by candlelight, the best fruit punch in the world, and the buzz of being part of a new community celebrating its very first Christmas together:

Thanks to Jeremy at thebigwoodenbox.com for the pictures (and for impressively taking them while also being the sound technician and singing in the choir…)

Is it still raining? I hadn’t noticed

While I am the world’s most stubbornly, hopelessly optimistic person*, even I am forced to admit that the weather outside is indeed frightful – and so A Titanic Christmas will take place according to Plan B – gathering in the Odyssey Pavilion from 5pm onwards tonight.

Everything else will still go according to the original plan – we’ll still have hot fruit punch, plentiful pizza and lots of Christmas goodies; Santa is busy figuring out a way to abseil down from the high gantries in the roof of the Odyssey, and we’ll still gather by candlelight in a darkened Odyssey Pavilion to sing carols and celebrate Christmas as the Titanic Quarter community.  (of all our bright ideas, we’ll only abandon the ‘blazing braziers’ – we’ll try to avoid burning down the house!)

And Life in the Titanic Quarter is still continuing through the dark wet days of winter – a few snapshots of Dock Cafe today as customers shelter from the cold, enjoy steaming mugs of tea and lovely hot potato & broccoli soup, catch up with friends, or with work, or with the sports results, stretching out by the fire as the rain runs down the windows… Cosy, eh?!

So see you later – it takes more than a few rain clouds to dampen our spirits in The Dock…

(*I still do believe that it will stop raining, and probably in time for 5pm, but we can’t set up the piano and the PA system in the rain – so hey ho!)

(** UPDATE:  Ok so it didn’t stop raining.  In fact two days later it’s still raining.  But the world is still a beautiful place.)

A Titanic Christmas

A massive welcome to one and all to A Titanic Christmas on Thursday at 5pm:

 

Just to whet your appetite:  Abseiling Santa Clauses… blazing braziers… plentiful pizza… Carols by candlelight… Fruit punch and mince pies… Gathering round a grand piano in the open air with friends old and new to celebrate Christmas as part of the big and ever-growing Titanic Quarter community.

If it’s a nice crispy winter evening, we’ll gather at the Kit sculpture at the marina in front of the ARC apartments; if the weather outside is frightful, we’ll duck inside the Odyssey pavilion.  Either way it promises to be a Christmas bash to remember!

O Little Town of Belfast

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A beautiful prayer gathering at Belfast City Hall this morning.  After a week in which so many words have been used to blame, boast and berate, hundreds of people gathered in the dawn light to stand still and be quiet… to pray, and weep, and hope.

Fantastic to see it reported as a piece of good news from Belfast on the BBC here.

And on the same theme, I was sent a link to this rewritten carol which I thought was too good not to share (you can find it, along with audio version, here).  Maybe you could make it your prayer for Belfast today:

O little town of Belfast
How will we see you lie
Through anger deep and broken sleep
As siren-sounds go by?
Yet in your dark streets shining
Is still that hopeful Light
Though wounds and tears of fifty years
Flow free in you tonight

O ruling powers together
Pass blame for all it’s worth
While voices ring for flag and king
But few for peace on earth
While fear is born of all unknown
Still gathered up above
As children sleep, the Light will keep
Its watch of endless love

O holy one, in Belfast
Descend again we pray
Throw out all sin, let love come in
And hatred melt away
We would hear the Christmas headlines
Assure us all is well
O come to us, abide with us
And rid our minds of ‘them and us’
O free us from this hell
Our Lord, Emmanuel