麻豆约拍

A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with Harry Baker

Good Morning.

Next week I am leaving the country for the first time in two years. From a teenage pilgrimage to the home of Slam Poetry in the United States, to studying maths on a year abroad in Germany, I have always loved the way travelling pushes you out of your comfort zone and broadens your mind. With my work I have been lucky enough to perform all over the world, from Dubai Opera House to a friend鈥檚 garden shed in New Zealand, and have always appreciated the people and places it鈥檚 enabled me to see as much as the performances that took me there.

Yet In more recent years it鈥檚 been a tougher decision. The guilt of the carbon emissions of flying began to outweigh the thrill of being halfway round the world having just watched three films back to back on a tiny screen. I began to be much more intentional about the trips I said yes or no to, and then when the pandemic hit that choice was taken out of my hands. Suddenly everything was online and I could perform for an International school in Hong Kong from my front room, even if it meant getting up at 4am to do so.

What this means is that the last time I did leave the country was on the leap year in 2020 to see Stormzy performing in Paris. Train and gig tickets combined were cheaper than his big London shows, and the memories of that night got me through many a low moment in lockdown. It feels only right that what finally takes me abroad again is cramming four of us in a car to go and see Dua Lipa in Belgium. What a time to be alive.

God thank you for this wonderful world and for the hospitality of strangers. Thank you for adventure and the excitement of going somewhere new, as well as the memories and insights we can bring back with us. Thank you for those who are fighting to save our planet, and as our awareness grows I pray we remember the power our individual and collective choices have to do the same.

Amen.