Keswick woman
16/07/24 18:34 Filed in: Personal
I travelled by train and bus to Keswick to start a walking holiday as Ariane. Over the next three days I will be tackling groups of fells (known as ‘Wainwrights’ after the author) in the North Western Fells area. The forecast is mixed, but I’m going out anyway. This is the first time ever that I can spend days on end as Ariane.
Keswick: River Greta looking SW towards Swinside
I was planning to travel as Ariane as well, but I had to leave home this morning at around the same time as my family so that wouldn’t have been feasible. Going in boy mode was probably for the best since I had a large suitcase and all the trains were very busy. But I was able to get changed as soon as I arrived at my guest house. It’s about a mile east of the town centre.
I was soon outside again and walking into Keswick on a delightful paved track in the national cycle network along the line of the old Keswick to Threlkeld Railway. I like Keswick. It’s the perfect base for the northern Lake District. Walking through the busy town centre, and shopping, felt completely normal. No one took any notice, apart from one man who told me I looked fabulous. I thought that anyway but it was nice to have independent verification.
I checked the local culture. No concerts tonight, the cinema is not a film on my bucket list, and the theatre is sold out (today’s performance is Brassed Off, about the Grimethorpe Colliery Band and featuring a real brass band). So it’s a quiet evening in for once.
As it happens Keswick is currently hosting the annual Keswick Convention. This has been running since 1875. Three weeks of Bible preaching and mission. Billy Graham and John Stott have headlined in the past. The organising group is Keswick Ministries. Their main priorities, forming a value statement, are hearing God’s word, becoming like God’s Son, and serving God’s mission. This year the theme is Resurrection. Their keynote speakers are David Gibson, Andrew Sach and Vaughan Roberts.
I thought, is this an event for Ariane, particularly if torrential rain makes being inside a big tent more attractive? So I checked their website to learn about their LGBT policies. In my experience, if a place is LGBT-friendly, they tell you so, and if it isn’t, they say nothing. This website says nothing. So maybe the only people experiencing Resurrection are the straight guys and gals.
Also today: following last week’s coffee and conversation with the Revd Dr Ayla Lepine at St James’s Piccadilly, I’ve contacted the Revd Tina Beardsley, a trans Christian priest and writer. She seems quite famous in the trans Christian world even though I hadn’t heard of her before. Her writings encourage churches to be inclusive and look after their trans members. Her support work seems aimed at trans Christians who have experienced rejection in their home churches. I’m more fortunate than most. But I am still hoping to meet her and learn from her.