Comments on: At God’s Convenience https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/ In the midst of life I woke to find myself living in an old house beside Brick Lane in the East End of London Sat, 06 Apr 2024 18:59:46 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0 By: Guillaume https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/#comment-1564374 Sat, 06 Apr 2024 18:59:46 +0000 https://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=199012#comment-1564374 An inspirational piece, indeed! In answer to CR’S query, I will side with Andy’s view, and I will further state that we have a duty to fall upon our knees whenever we are faced with the obligations due to our fellow men as well as those due to ourselves.

One of the greatest yearnings of life is to tender the hope we may relieve our fellow men in the times of their distress; how much greater that obligation, just how sweeter, when that need meets with our own requirement for fulfillment.

In such moments, no matter how fleeting, we find we take within ourselves a great substance, spiritual, mystical, sweet and fragrant. This great gift from above permeates existence, the memory of which gives the future cause for hope, hope that we may ever function as a repository of this relief.

How wonderful this place you describe so well in words and pictures!

]]> By: Peter Coles https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/#comment-1555276 Tue, 05 Mar 2024 10:23:24 +0000 https://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=199012#comment-1555276 Dear GA

This has to be one of your best blog posts! Thanks. I’ll definitely pop in when I’m that way next (went past it yesterday in fact). Looks wonderful. Thanks for the inspiration and information.

Peter

]]> By: Patty https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/#comment-1554625 Sun, 03 Mar 2024 02:15:15 +0000 https://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=199012#comment-1554625 I love everything about this post!

]]> By: M D West https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/#comment-1553957 Fri, 01 Mar 2024 14:43:05 +0000 https://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=199012#comment-1553957 There was a downside to the introduction of the water closet….the Thames was ruined ( ‘ The Great Stink’)…. Bazalgette’s embankment collection sewer project gave temporarily partial relief but hard surfacing of roads and continuing building and carparks in the 20thC made mixed rainfall/ sewerage overflows into the Thames a weekly occurrence by Y2000 requiring the £4bn+ Thames Tideway relief tunnel construction which still won’t offer 100% overflow protection when open (2025?)
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thames_Tideway_Tunnel

]]> By: Antony R Macer https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/#comment-1553946 Fri, 01 Mar 2024 13:50:49 +0000 https://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=199012#comment-1553946 The most excellent piece of writing on a most inspirational subject. Just a wonderful thing to start my day with. You did a fantastic job on portraying the life of John Wesley as well, with the sort of details that are unforgettable. Well done!!!
Tony

]]> By: Cherub https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/#comment-1553922 Fri, 01 Mar 2024 12:00:29 +0000 https://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=199012#comment-1553922 When the council renovated the museum and gallery in my home town, they decided to restore the original public toilets rather than replace them. They truly are grand, like sitting on big thrones. The building was gifted to the town by the Nairn family who made and sold linoleum flooring that was shipped all over the world (the company is now owned by Forbo of Switzerland). It was built along with a war monument to commemorate men from the town killed in WW1, the Nairn family lost a son.

]]> By: Bernie https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/#comment-1553560 Thu, 29 Feb 2024 22:46:44 +0000 https://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=199012#comment-1553560 As is the case all too often, my contribution to this post can only be to bemoan the ignorance that allowed me, in my teenage years, to pass by Bunhill Fields and miss the splendidly historical connections brought to us by the Gentle Author. Alas and alas! Woe is me!

]]> By: Marcia Howard https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/#comment-1553413 Thu, 29 Feb 2024 19:01:29 +0000 https://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=199012#comment-1553413 Of course, I’m very tempted to say “what a crap post” but I can only say with enthusiasm “what a truly fascinating post”. I have seen similar urinals inside the Victorian Loos in Rothesay during a trip to Scotland a few years ago, where the tiles on the walls and floors are also amazing. On another occasion, although only able to go into the ‘Ladies’ Loos at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace prior to visiting an exhibition in the Queen’s (now King’s) Gallery, the tiles in there also blew me away. I’ve always loved ‘quirky’ and have a book by Lucinda Lambton called ‘Temples of Convenience’ (published 1995) which I immediately took off my bookshelf to see if the above gets a mention. LL very kindly signed it for me after going to one of her talks during a festival I was attending. Well worth getting hold a copy if you can. Keep up with the posts, they frequently brighten up my day!

]]> By: molly guenther https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/#comment-1553400 Thu, 29 Feb 2024 18:10:42 +0000 https://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=199012#comment-1553400 Thank you, very interesting

]]> By: gkbowood https://spitalfieldslife.com/2024/02/29/at-gods-convenience-i/#comment-1553345 Thu, 29 Feb 2024 14:32:14 +0000 https://spitalfieldslife.com/?p=199012#comment-1553345 As well as repairing that cracked basin! Such a beautiful and well preserved ‘palace of convenience’ should never have grubby towels or cracked basins. I abhor having to face the present day toilets which often have broken doors, trash on the floor and not a bit of paper on the roll! Thanks for those excellent photos and story.

]]>