Celtic Prayer – Caught Up in Love Edited by David Cole (Brother Cassian), BRF, £12.99 This rich collection of essays, conversations and reflections from 30 members of the Community of Aidan and Hilda distils the ancient wisdom of the Celtic Christians and applies it to the lived reality of contemporary readers. It can be helpful for anyone drawn to explore teachings about prayer from a Celtic perspective. It offers deep spiritual truths woven beautifully with usable prayers, ‘like a piece of Celtic knotwork flowing around the page of an illuminated scripture.’As David Cole writes in his introduction: “Celtic Christian spirituality is about embodying the Divine in every aspect of your life, and prayer is a significant part of that.” Take a walk on the wild side! How neat do we like our gardens to be? Full of manicured lawns, with immaculate flower beds? Well, yes and no. A recent survey by BBC’s Gardener’s World magazine has found that more than half (54 per cent) of gardeners now include ‘uncultivated areas’ in their garden. And some 44 per cent of gardeners have also set up a wildflower area. Certainly, Nature could use a helping hand just now. In 2019 32 per cent of us saw a butterfly in our garden. By 2020 that was down to 21 percent. By 2021, that was down again, to just 16 per cent. Simple tips to rewild your garden: • Avoid chemical pesticides and herbicides, which also kill ‘good bugs’, butterflies and bees. • Tolerate as much mess as you can. Leave wood and leaf piles for hedgehogs and invertebrates. • Set aside some room where grass can grow longer, and wildflowers can bloom. • Don’t pull up all your weeds – they can be a critical source of pollen for bees. 25
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