Mood lighting

I carried on taking shots of Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs this afternoon. I really want to have some pictures to remember our time here by. It's been a really muggy day and towards mid-afternoon there was a big storm. This made for some excellent natural lighting effects in the shots I managed to take. I've also been experimenting with some shots taken at a bit of angle. I'm not quite sure if I've overdone it or not.

Tonight was the penultimate Sunday service we'll go to at the Barge. Reality kicked in a little more as we were leaving. A few people won't be around next week, so this will be the last time we'll see them before we go. I almost got a bit emotional. I think as each goodbye happens it adds a little more pressure to the emotional dam. At this rate I'm going to be a right mess next Sunday.

I met up with Chris, Jason and Ed for the last ever boys' reading group before church (Ian sadly couldn't make it - so we used a handy draught-excluder dog as a proxy for a photo). It was not to discuss a book this time but just to pray together one final time. It really has been such an encouragement to grow in Christian brotherhood with these guys over the past couple of years. I've never really been a part of a group like this before, focussed on support and encouragement and accountability, pushing each other on to serve the Lord in every part of our lives. I cannot urge those of you out there for whom this would be appropriate to get together with a few friends, pick a book to read a few chapters of a month, and then meet up once a month to discuss the book, how it applies to your lives and presents challenges to you personally and as a group. And then pray together. God has given us our Christian family for a reason, you know. Use it. And be used by it.

Finally tonight, after a long day packing, taking photos, meeting the boys, going to church and saying some more goodbyes, Vitor came over to watch the Copa America final. Brazil v Argentina. A big, big rivalry. Vitor left happy following a surprise 3-0 win for Brazil. I was glad I could watch a Brazil game with him. It kind of completed the circle after taking him up to Blundell Park to watch Grimsby back in April.