Tom and I have had busy time of late. This being the school holidays, there has been a lot of time to fill in. Yes, a lot of time indeed. In the last few days we have seen The Pirate Movie, been swimming at Springwood pool, spent time gardening at two properties, played Monopoly and Risk, backyard cricket and shopping. Tom complains the moment boredom sets in, which is often. I tell him quite straight-facedly that boredom is a part of the human condition and that adapting whilst young is to his advantage. He is unimpressed. I ponder whether the faster rhythms of modern life, so often and tediously written about in the self-referring media, is making Tom and his peers boredom averse. I tell him that the gaps are important, the spaces where reflection and quiet are possible. Still unimpressed. I guess being six lacks subtlety.

And when you think about it, it is the gaps, which matter so much with faith. Prayer, meditation, reflective reading and thinking all happen in the spaces between whatever else is happening. I have had a lot of time for gaps in the past four months and often it has been a painful, lonely experience. But there have also been times of joy and communion. And overwhelming thanks. What can I say but to be grateful to God for the chance to experience difficult times, in spite of the obvious emotional cost. That cost is small though compared with the great gains that can come, invisible as they may seem to others.