SHERBORNE School for Girls, Dorset, the independent boarding
school in Salisbury diocese, has traditionally had
no chapel of its own, even though it has a full-time chaplain, the
Revd Rebecca Ayers-Harris (sitting). They do, however,
have a "God Pod" - a wooden shed on wheels that moves around the
school grounds, and has been providing girls of all ages with a
quiet place to ponder, pray, and explore what Lent means to
them.
The Pod can be decorated in different ways, but, at the moment,
its interior has been painted as a beach, complete with sand and
sunrise, by a student from Singapore, Elle Soo. The walls of the
mobile chapel have also been covered with inspiring song-lyrics,
chosen and chalked up by the girls, together with thought-provoking
news articles from the week.
"The girls have been using the space to record their
reflections on a video camera," Mrs Ayers-Harris says, "which are
then regularly made into mini-films that can be sent to all members
of the school community." Grace Longman, who is 14, says that she
has been visiting the Pod regularly. "The God Pod has been a great
place to go when I've wanted space to think, and a little time away
for some quiet worship.
"It's nice to have a cosy corner of the school where you can
reflect on what's going on - not just within your immediate circle
of friends, but in the wider world. It's not every school that has
a mobile place of worship, and, although it obviously looks fun and
quirky as it travels around the grounds, it does fulfil a serious
function in our lives."
