I am very proud of my niece, who is part of Nottingham youth dance company. She is just about to start proper ballet school, so all the very best Elizabeth- my very favourite niece… ( I had to have a think then to make sure that she is my only niece!)

Lily and her company were dancing @ the Edinburgh Festival this year, and I have just been looking at some photos of them performing in the street.

I am no dancer. I am six and a half feet tall and almost as wide. People who can dance have a gift that is beyond my understanding, but through watching these talented young people, I am learning to appreciate the power of bodies moving to music- the ability to convey emotion, beauty, even truth.

The Bible too is full of references to dancing. Dancing as worship, dancing as celebration, dancing as a kind of childlike innocence, and dancing to ensnare and entrap.

Dance on then Lily. It will always be a joy to come and watch…