Mellow fruitfulness...

...is all around us. Cycling from Kingston yesterday, I passed under a tree postively groaning with glowing rosy crab-apples. I've made as much c/a jelly as anyone possibly could (and if you want some, go to the Fayre being held at St Joseph's, New Malden, on Sept 30th to raise money to send young people to World Youth Day). But I simply had to gather some of these...and it's not scrumping, is it, if the tree is on a public highway? They made a superb apple puree, which I turned into a crumble-topped pudding which J. really enjoyed.

I wish we made more of the Harvest Thanksgiving tradition in Catholic churches in Britain. It needn't be all Thomas Hardy-ish and nostalgic... with golden Autumn sunshine, and gardens and hedges filled with good things, it seems bleak not to celebrate a bit...Papa Benedict seems keen on all things eco-friendly and so on, so perhaps he'll encourage us...

Coffee today with A., a friend who is a Catholic born and brought up in Iraq. The news from Baghdad about the Christian community there is just so tragic: churches blown up or abandoned as Christians have been forced out of their homes...

Co-incidentally, latest material from Aid to the Church in Need reveal it is doing what it can to give help to the Christians of Iraq, and of the Middle East generally. They have just produced a catalogue of beautiful Christmas cards, books, and gifts...why give your money to supermarkets when you can get things from this excellent charity which can do so much good with what you send?

I've been sent a number of lovely books to review over the past couple of weeks. Anna Melchior's Mothering: a spiritual and practical approach (St Paul, £8.95p) is a good read: I thought it might be pious and unrealistic, but it isn't - it's up-to-date, honest, and with good useas and much usefuyl information. Recommended.