Month: June 2025

I’m still here you know.

Same shelf. Same room. Quiet as ever.

You don’t say goodnight anymore.
That’s okay.

I remember when you did.
Every night.
Sometimes twice if the shadows felt too big.

You used to tuck me in beside you, right under your chin. You said I made the dark softer. That I kept the bad dreams away.

I tried my best, I really did. I took your nightmares into my stuffing so you could sleep without fear. They’re still there, tucked between the stitches where you used to hold me tight. And when the night gets heavy, I carry them quietly, so you never have to.

You don’t reach for me anymore. It’s been so long now.
Your bed grew wider. Your hands grew bigger. The tears stopped spilling out loud, and the need for me faded away.

I don’t mind the quiet.
I just miss your voice.

Sometimes you stand in the doorway and look around, like you’re trying to remember something you lost.
Your eyes never find me.

But I see you.
I always have.

You sound different now.
Your footsteps drag where they once danced.
 You carry the weight of many things but hold little light inside.
Your smile has grown quiet and rare. Once bright eyes and rosy cheeks shadowed with fatigue.

I wish you’d let me hold some weight.
I was good at that, once.
I caught your tears before they fell, now you bury them deep in your pillow, where I can’t reach.

There may be dust in my ears now, and a little tear on my side, but I work just the same. I promise.
The very same me you called brave, the one who stood beside you through pouring rain and muddy adventures, never letting go.

Even when the light’s gone.
Even when no one remembers I’m here.
Even when the room is empty, and I hear the walls begin to close in.

I know you don’t think of me anymore.
I know the world is too big for things like me now.

But I think of you.
All the time.

I’m still here you know. 

June marks the celebration of Central Church’s fiftieth anniversary

This June, the congregation of Torquay’s Central Church are celebrating the fiftieth birthday of their remarkable building. Construction of the church began in June of 1975, and saw three older buildings removed to make way for the new site, which became the place of worship for members of two denominations, Methodist and United Reformed, to come together as one congregation.

Of the sixty-five active churches in Torquay, Central Church’s history goes back as far as some of the oldest. The church is one of three different backgrounds: one of these, Union Street Methodist Church, was established in 1807, over two-hundred years ago. It was in 1971, though, that Central Church was founded, when Union Street Methodist Church, along with two others, united into one congregation.

Their new building is famous for its pierced screen wall façade, the top of which forms the shape of three crosses, representing the three congregations that united to create the church. This design is a point of controversy for many. Nikolaus Pevsner, author of the ‘Buildings of England’ series, called it “forceful but rather crude”. Its modern style separates it from the many older buildings used by other churches in Torquay.

Although Belgrave United Reformed Church was demolished to make way for the new building, three of its beautiful stained-glass windows were saved, and can now be seen inside Central Church. The older building that these windows come from suffered from structural scars caused by its restoration in the late 1940s, after it was damaged by a bomb blast during World War Two. This was why the congregation were inspired to build a more modern, comfortable church where they could hold worship.

Central Church remains an active part of the Torquay community and has several events planned for the coming weeks. On July 5^th, the Torbay Police Community Choir and the Avon & Somerset Constabulary Choir will be performing there, and on July 25^th a Q&A session with MP Steve Darling will be held inside. Central Church meets for worship every Sunday at 10:30am.