Zetland Park Methodist Church Pastoral Letters
‘The revitalised route’
The rattle of a regular service train had long since
passed into history. The rails were rusting and the track
bed was fast disappearing under a deep covering of foliage.
The axe had long fallen on this rural line, and all that
was left for many a local villager, who had been served by
this link, were memories, and they ran deep.
Some of the track side buildings were still in their
original place, but their ghostly appearances only served
to both deepen the memory and sadden the heart. As the ever
more used road criss-crossed the once vital artery, there
was a stirring among a number of people which lead to talk
of a memory becoming reality once again. At once those
privy to the conversation, begun to raise all sorts of
objections, and money was THE most important. There was
never any lack of enthusiasm, but ---- when the chips were
down, the 'faithful few' carried the torch.
As time moved on, as it does, the dream for many became
something that was increasingly pushed to the back of the
mind, and any talk of 'restoration' became the butt of the
local pub's clientele jokes, and beyond. Oh yes, there were
occasional references to the 'dream' in the local rag, but
that was for those who in the view of the majority, had
little else to do with their time and effort. 'Pouring
it all down the drain', was but one example of the
comments being made.
But for the 'few' who remained enthusiastic that 'dream'
was always the main topic of conversation when they met,
and that was often. Gradually something wonderful began to
happen. It was as though the old caterpillar that had crept
along for years was beginning to undergo a change. Small at
first and to many little or nothing at all, but to those
who were REALLY involved, something WAS
happening!
Support for the long-planned project had started to be
gathered for other folk who 'had heard about the project
and had become interested'. The enthusiasm of the few
had begun to 'rub off' and the project took on a 'new
life'. Yet it was so far removed from the original idea of
running railway that few on the periphery saw any hope at
all. But the story and the enthusiasm spread because those
who were involved 'were bursting to tell the story of
what could be, and involve others in the vision'. For
that is precisely what it was, 'a vision of how the
railway could service and re-new the communities along the
dale'. It was not going to be 'just a railway', but
rather an integral part of the life blood needed to keep
that part of our beautiful country, not JUST alive, but
REVITALISED!
I rode on the first part of that railway recently and was
utterly impressed by what had been achieved. It does not
possess the scenic grandeur of NYMR, but Wensleydale
Railway Company has given back the possibility of a
revitalising of communities economically, socially as well
as a tourist attraction. There is already talk of an
extension to a nearby large town. There are plans to link
to great north/south main lines with a cross link through
the dale, but above all there is the fulfilment of a dream
which was not allowed to die by those who truly believed
it. Who knew in their heart of hearts that that self-same
vision would provide something far beyond the original, and
in that they trusted completely. It was not without pain
and effort; time and sacrifice, but today the seed has been
sown for something that goes beyond mere revival.
They did something 'in a different way'. They saw
possibilities that were beyond the understanding of the
original Victorian engineers and planners, and they took
hold of that 'new vision' which was founded on the old, but
NOT held back by or through it. The 'old' was a
springboard; the new was allowed to flourish and has
enormous growth potential.
I believe that as a Christian community we too have the
potential to do the same as these modern-day railway
pioneers. We too can build on the foundation of the ones
with the original visions, but not be hide-bound by it.
Thus we can begin to relate to what the community needs
today and not continually provide on a well-worn plate a
meal that is less than palatable for today's consumer. We
need to look beyond the sight line of our Church based
community and realise that there are templates for action
already provided by the secular world into which we can
more than fit and make our own.