This is a note to thank you all for your help and friendship during the last 20 years.
You might have heard that the Paterson’s have just sold their apartment in Javea. It only took 23 days to find a buyer and the last 12 days in it were spent in a rush trying to sort and pack 20 years of our life in Spain! We actually flew out to Javea on the 1st October and it was due to health reasons that we thought it was time to try and sell – not knowing it would be so quick and leaving us without time to see friends and all the congregation members before we left! Although the contract has been signed, the new owner still has to complete the purchase and go to the Notary as she needs to obtain a mortgage but we’ve put the conclusion of the sale in the hands of our ‘power of attorney’ – Miguel who was the lawyer who took us to the Notary 20 years ago when we bought it! This is not a ‘goodbye’ though and depending on health have already agreed to come back and rent an apartment in the same block and on the same floor at Urbatenis in the Spring!
Historically, when we arrived out in Spain in 1998, it was just after Robin had taken retirement from his last parish and met up with James Williams who said he needed help but at that time I was still undergoing treatment but we agreed to go out in early January 1999 to assist him! In those days it was always two services in the mornings and either Orba Parish Church at 5.30 p.m. or Calpe also at 5.30 p.m. that was before it became the Parish Church and some of you may remember that it was freezing in the winter. Then there was the service at the Benidorm Clinic on a Thursday morning so life was pretty hectic. After the first 12 weeks and taking 19 services we realized that we were being called by the good Lord to help with the ongoing ministry and decided that if we could afford it we would buy a small ‘bolt hole’ to lay our heads on our own sheets and pillows! The result was our acquisition of our wee apartment in Urbatenis in Javea which we loved as Robin could sit and do his sermons in his study looking out onto the blue of the Mediterranian, and from the naya looking across up to the Jalon and Benitachelle!
We did not take on residencia as we wanted to remain with the Scottish Medical set-up in Perth so just stayed there for the maximum 183 days in a year. At first we would drive/ferry out and when that became very expensive we bought a small Escort car which was fine except in not having any aircon which come the warmer months I did not like. We finally upgraded to our present car which does have aircon so then our trips became easier just flying out from Glasgow to Alicante. The car has been left with very good friends so that we shall be able to use it – sadly Robin is now over the age of 80 years old so cannot hire a car!
It’s only been in the last few years that we have not been down to Calpe or La Fustera and of course there are more Chaplains to handle the work load! Robin has mainly been taking services either in Denia or Javea but we are still very much involved in helping on the pastoral side what with elderly members who can no longer make it to church and we’ve been blessed in being able to keep in touch with so many of the congregation members – even some who have returned to their families in the UK.
I might add we only returned to Scotland last Tuesday and after the Advent Service on Sunday he was asked to take the last service of the year at All Saints, Glencarse so he still will have his ‘feet’ under the altar in the Diocese of Brechin and he’s also licenced in the Diocese of St.Andrews. He always says you can never retire!
Could I please ask you to give our kind regards to anybody in your congregations that remembers us – our last Sunday was spent with our ‘family’ in the church in Denia!
May we wish you all a Happy Christmas and a very Peaceful and blessed New Year – hopefully you will see the Patersons again next year. Julia and Robin