The last 36 hours has zipped by in a bit of a whirlwind and I have hardly been able to catch my breath.

The retreat ended and we made our way to Bishopscourt for lunch before then moving to the cathedral. By this time the nerves were at a height as we gathered and robed in the crypt. We then prayed and processed outside and entered the cathedral through the west door.

It was an amazing sight standing at the top of the stairs and seeing the encouraging faces of my family and friends. As I looked around the cathedral I was truly amazed by how many people had given up their Saturday to support me. It was incredibly moving and quite difficult to hold back the tears.

The ordinations service was around 2 hours long although raced by from where we were standing/sitting/kneeling. For each of us it was a very special moment when Bishop Michael laid his hands on our heads and ordained us. Our retreat conductor suggested at this time we thought of Jesus ordaining us as well, which made the event very powerful.

We had a party after at Terry and Jo’s and again I was struck by the number of people who turned out – I was truly humbled and felt very privileged. So many people said so many kind things and I have so many thank you letters to write!

I just need and want to say thank you here for all those wonderful people. You were and will continue to be an amazing encouragement. You are great friends and it was amazing that you shared this with me.

As I look back over the last day and a bit, I must admit I have asked a few times ‘what on earth have I done!’ I can’t pretend to understand fully what has happened, or what I have taken on, but I guess that will become more understandable as I start this new journey.

No doubt there will be some photos flying around soon – Dennis wins the prize for posting the first which you can spot via his facebook page! … errrr cheers mate!