Giants and (Nissan) Bluebirds

In 1975 Sir Isaac Newton wrote, “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants”.

Throughout my whole school life from age 4 to 18, James was probably the single biggest influence on me outside of my family. He gifted me my first football boots and football kits… as well as the gift of nurturing my support for Liverpool Football Club.

Being five or six years older than me, he had excellent clothes and toys that were bequeathed to me on a regular basis. An Italia 90 England tracksuit was peak ‘bequeathing’.

As a kid, I saw him as a type of older brother through school and church life. James dressed well, had cool haircuts, was a great footballer, artistic but more than those things he was deeply compassionate and an advocate for those weaker than himself.

James was my spiritual mentor through my latter high school years and throughout college. He would take me on adventures in his (red) Nissan Bluebird to art galleries, gigs, and talks. We would exchange handwritten letters, he’d give me books that he thought would help me in my Christian life. When James settled in Chichester permanently we didn’t stay in touch … but James was one of my giants.