Author Archives: gdtennant

05/06/22: a kindness remembered 40 years on

In a recent Facebook post, responding to an obituary for the late Simon Preston, I recalled how, in the early 1980s, I was practising the organ at the Royal Festival Hall (my goodness, what a privilege for a 17-year-old!) when somebody appeared silently behind me and started turning pages for me. That person was SimonContinue reading “05/06/22: a kindness remembered 40 years on”

08/05/22: I blame calculators!

The particular reason calculators are on my mind right now is because we’re in the middle of the examination season. My Grade 10 (Year 11) class did one of their papers on Friday with another tomorrow (Monday). For part of their exam I was teaching another class in a room next door which was aContinue reading “08/05/22: I blame calculators!”

01/05/22: getting round Kampala on the back of a boda (2)

About a year ago I wrote this post about getting round Kampala on the back of a boda, or boda boda, a motorcycle acting as a taxi. It is remarkable how quickly something which starts of as completely unthinkable becomes entirely normal. A number of colleagues stop and offer me lifts in their cars ifContinue reading “01/05/22: getting round Kampala on the back of a boda (2)”

24/04/22: book review, “15 ways to a more effective prayer life” by Selwyn Hughes

You may have seen my Facebook post from Speke Resort Hotel, on the shores of Lake Victoria heading towards Entebbe. Not something I’d do very often or for very long but it was very nice, if you missed it, please see below the view from my private balcony: A bit of time off, combined withContinue reading “24/04/22: book review, “15 ways to a more effective prayer life” by Selwyn Hughes”

17/4/22: school is returning to normal!

A very happy Easter to you as we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Hallelujah! With a week off school. Hallelujah once again! Meanwhile, at school there is a very satisfying sense of things returning to normal. Since the beginning of the pandemic, when school has been in session on site, we’ve adoptedContinue reading “17/4/22: school is returning to normal!”

03/04/22: student as teacher – and green pens….

It’s a great privilege at Acacia School that we’re able to split what are already, by UK state school standards, small groups, into 2 for mathematics, which we call ‘core’ and ‘extended’. And I’m really enjoying teaching Grade 7 (Year 8) core, a group of 8 students. They may not find the subject easy butContinue reading “03/04/22: student as teacher – and green pens….”

09/01/22: banana trees are fascinating!

One of the many great joys of spending time in two very different countries in different continents is the sense of awe and wonder at things which would seem entirely normal if one only ever lived in one place. Occasionally this happens going back to the UK, I well remember returning from Dar es SalaamContinue reading “09/01/22: banana trees are fascinating!”

28/11/21: please check out my YouTube channel!

Over the last two days I’ve updated each of the sections on my YouTube channel “A minute a day to pray” and thought it was a good time to encourage more views! I started the channel in January of this year, aiming to put a one minute video up each day with a Bible readingContinue reading “28/11/21: please check out my YouTube channel!”