I spent a fair amount of time recently putting together an application for a charity placement so I was absolutely delighted yesterday when I received confirmation that I’d been shortlisted for one of the available places. According to their website, over 11,000 folk applied to the Vodafone Foundation World of Difference scheme last year (which I first mentioned in this post), so I’m chuffed to have made it to the final 750!
Basically, the foundation funds 500 UK placements in the hope that the recipients will ‘make a difference’ to their chosen charity. As much as I get a whole load of satisfaction out of volunteering, I couldn’t afford to devote 15 hours a week for a four month period doing it. So, the idea is that the foundation pays the charity to ‘employ’ people for a short spell who would love to have a go at doing more for their chosen charity; it’s not a huge amount of money you’re paid, but it would be enough to allow me to justify sacrificing some of my ‘work, work’ time to doing more for Strathcarron Hospice.
The application process involved: coming up with a proposal of how I could ‘make a difference’ to Strathcarron; presenting it to the Hospice for their approval; then presenting it to the foundation judges in the form of an online submission. There was also an option to submit a supplementary video and, as I figured it was important to use every possible option available to make the application stand out from the other however-many-thousand that the judges would be sifting through, I wrote, recited and recorded me reading a wee poem about my plan to help the hospice. (I know it sounds naff, but I guess it kind of worked!)
So, some time during the next few weeks: my referees will be contacted; the hospice will be contacted (to check that they’re fully behind me working for them); and I’ll be contacted for a telephone interview (Help ma boab!). Then I’ll be told, anytime up to the middle of January, if I have a place. Once I know whether I’ve made it or not to the winning 500, I’ll be able to say more about what I’d actually be doing at the hospice, but I don't feel right about doing that till the placements have been awarded.
Suffice to say that the jist of my proposal would involve bringing ‘A Myriad of Music’ to the hospice, so it just seemed fitting that music has featured a lot in what’s been making me happy over the past few days. One of the things I miss most about the kids being away from home is the ‘sound’ of them being around the house. So, singing along with Gemma, as she was pottering about at the piano on Saturday afternoon when she was home for a flying visit, was just braw. I started secretly recording her with my phone – I’m obviously biased, but I just love to hear Gemma play and sing – and the wee video below is us giving it big licks with one of the songs that we love to sing together (I’m giving it my best shot with the low harmony that I’ve been taught at choir in the background! Hope I'm not infringing on Annie and Jane's copyright!). Me and Gemma would never make it on X Factor (thank goodness!), but the pleasure we get out of having a sing-song together beats all the fortune that that that kind of fame could bring!
So, that was the first thing. Then, I had choir last night. We’re full in the throes of rehearsing for our concert at Stirling’s Albert Hall on the 10th of December (have I mentioned that before?!) and last night the band that’ll be accompanying us came along to practise. I absolutely loved it. Aw man, I could’ve stood there singing all night. And, one of my favourites of the night was the one that Gemma and I had been playing around with on the wee video; Coldplay’s ‘Fix You’. It was the first song I learned with the choir, and it’s one of our family favourites. Just seemed so apt that it was so awesome last night.
Lastly, Alex and I are heading through to the Playhouse in Edinburgh tonight to see ‘We Will Rock You’. In a similar vein to the real Queen having two birthdays, me and Alex have two anniversaries; the 28th of June (to celebrate the day we got married) and the 29th of November (to celebrate the night we started going out – 31 years ago today!). So, what better way to round off my ‘Myriad of Music’ weekend than going to a musical that celebrates the music of a band that I love with the man that I love!
I'm feeling quite brave posting this wee video, I think I'm a bit carried away with the excitement of the past few days! No doubt I'll regret it tomorrow and pull it off the blog, but, in the meantime, here's me and Gemma making some noise (with no pictures to go with it)!
Tuesday, 29 November 2011
Sunday, 27 November 2011
Being lucky
Another busy week’s nearly over and, in the light of something that I was reminded of on Thursday, it wasn’t down to good luck that I had a good week; it was more likely because I’d been willing to explore new opportunities!
My pal Linda had asked me if I fancied going along to a Psychology Conference in Edinburgh. I didn’t have much time to look at the gumph but I said I’d go as (a) I’d noticed that one of the speakers had written one of my Open Uni text books (b) because I thought it would look good on my CV and (c) because even if the conference was rubbish, I knew I’d enjoy spending a day away with Linda! The idea that I might be inspired and thoroughly entertained had never even crossed my mind - but I was...and I had a blast with Linda into the bargain.
The premise of the conference was to enthuse and encourage folk not only to study psychology, but also to emphasise the importance of weeding out the ‘bad science’ approach. In other words, encouraging the psychologists of the future to properly test their theories and produce sound evidence to back up their conclusions. It was aimed primarily at A level students, so Linda and I fitted in perfectly well as we could easily have been one of the accompanying teachers...! We watched and listened to various presentations by some fairly eminent psychologists, all of which I thoroughly enjoyed, however my favourite - by far - was by Professor Richard Wiseman. Do you know the guy I mean? I’d heard of him, but couldn’t quite place him, then, when he started his first wee spiel, I thought I recognised him from the telly. Well, it turns out that he’s pretty well-known. He’s got a massive following on Twitter, Youtube and that kind of thing – but I think I recognised him from his time on ‘Tomorrow’s World’! (I know, I’m really showing my age here!)
Anyway, he’s really entertaining in the way that he presents his work – probably because he’s a magician and illusionist as well as a Professor of psychology. Some of Derren Brown’s latest batch of telly programmes, ‘The Experiments’ were actually based on Richard Wiseman’s research. It kind of bugs me that more emphasis isn’t placed on the fact that Brown’s ‘ambitious sociological experiments’ (his own words) are all based on hypotheses that have already been devised, tried, tested and proven in controlled experiments by qualified psychologists, before he decides to turn them into prime time glossy entertainment shows. But, I noticed that Professor Wiseman was an advisor to the production team, so I guess he must be OK with the way the programmes were presented – and I suppose they do introduce the ideas behind the research to a much wider audience.
Back to the conference; one of the presentations that Richard Wiseman gave on Thursday revolved around his experiments on ‘luck’. He’s scientifically shown that there’s not really such a thing as ‘good or bad luck’. The people who call themselves lucky are much more likely to be the kind of folk that’ll grab opportunities as they arise; they’ll go for it, try new things, take chances, have a wider view of what’s going on round about them (so are more likely to see opportunities that present themselves) and will have more of a ‘cup-half-full’ approach to life. There obviously has to be some element of chance involved, but he showed that you can significantly increase those chances if you have a more positive state of mind, be more sociable, live in the moment and grab any opportunities you do encounter. I just thought it was brilliant to witness someone getting across to a young, impressionable audience - in not only an engaging and entertaining way but also backed up with hard evidence - the merits of not sitting on your ass waiting for good things to happen to you, or doing the opposite and being too focussed on one long-term goal.
I definitely got my attitude of ‘try to make the most of what’s going on around about you at the moment, and the future is more likely to be brighter’ from my Dad. Which is a bit ironic as I was ‘unlucky’ enough have my Dad snatched away from me by a heart attack when he was only 57 years old. But, one of the things that’s always given me a bit of comfort is the knowledge that my Dad made the most, and looked on the bright side, of most of his days. Even the shitty ones. He always tried to look for the positive slant on things; he was usually cheery and he taught me that life’s very much what you make it. If you’re not happy with the way things are in your life, try to change them. Now, I know that’s a bit simplistic and idealistic, and there can be a whole stack of reasons why it’s not easy to do that. I’m certainly not brimming with happiness every moment of every day, and sometimes it’s really difficult to see the silver lining. But, it’s something I aspire to do – and it’s something I’m delighted that my kids seem to have grasped. I love that they all try to make the most of what’s going on at the moment. They don’t let the long-term goal get in the way of enjoying the present day (at least they try not to). It’s like that common ‘pushy parent’ thing. If you keep harping on at your kids that they have to be the best in school, or in their sport, or in their dance class or whatever, they might well accomplish all of those things; but they’ll probably have a pretty miserable journey on the way - and will probably still be miserable once they’ve reached those goals. On the other hand, if they’re leading well-rounded lives, being sociable, being praised for making an effort and finding new things that make them feel good, they’re possibly more likely to succeed – maybe not in the thing that their parents wanted them to, but they’ll hopefully continue to be generally happy.
Oh dear, this post has turned into a bit of a dis-jointed ramble, but I actually find it quite difficult to put it all into words! I think I’m basically saying that Richard Wiseman’s presentation was brilliant because he stood in front of me and expressed what goes on in my head when I think of my ideal way of approaching life. Try to make the best of it – it can be really crap sometimes, through ill-health, losing someone we love, losing a job, running out of money, ocht, a whole multitude of things – but, if we can somehow manage not to give up, and be open to any new opportunities that might come along, all the shitty things might just be a wee bit easier to deal with – we’ll hopefully experience a change in our luck! It won’t work for everyone, or every situation, but it’s the way I like to try to be. There are times that I do find it hard to see the sunshine through the rain, and at those times good family and friends (or anyone else that can lend an empathic ear!) can be invaluable. But, just as Richard Wiseman has proved beyond doubt, optimism plays a vital role in turning things around and most of us do have the ability to change our mindset. If you go looking for a change in luck, you’re much more likely to find it.
Anyway, where’s that lottery ticket I was filling in earlier......
My pal Linda had asked me if I fancied going along to a Psychology Conference in Edinburgh. I didn’t have much time to look at the gumph but I said I’d go as (a) I’d noticed that one of the speakers had written one of my Open Uni text books (b) because I thought it would look good on my CV and (c) because even if the conference was rubbish, I knew I’d enjoy spending a day away with Linda! The idea that I might be inspired and thoroughly entertained had never even crossed my mind - but I was...and I had a blast with Linda into the bargain.
The premise of the conference was to enthuse and encourage folk not only to study psychology, but also to emphasise the importance of weeding out the ‘bad science’ approach. In other words, encouraging the psychologists of the future to properly test their theories and produce sound evidence to back up their conclusions. It was aimed primarily at A level students, so Linda and I fitted in perfectly well as we could easily have been one of the accompanying teachers...! We watched and listened to various presentations by some fairly eminent psychologists, all of which I thoroughly enjoyed, however my favourite - by far - was by Professor Richard Wiseman. Do you know the guy I mean? I’d heard of him, but couldn’t quite place him, then, when he started his first wee spiel, I thought I recognised him from the telly. Well, it turns out that he’s pretty well-known. He’s got a massive following on Twitter, Youtube and that kind of thing – but I think I recognised him from his time on ‘Tomorrow’s World’! (I know, I’m really showing my age here!)
Anyway, he’s really entertaining in the way that he presents his work – probably because he’s a magician and illusionist as well as a Professor of psychology. Some of Derren Brown’s latest batch of telly programmes, ‘The Experiments’ were actually based on Richard Wiseman’s research. It kind of bugs me that more emphasis isn’t placed on the fact that Brown’s ‘ambitious sociological experiments’ (his own words) are all based on hypotheses that have already been devised, tried, tested and proven in controlled experiments by qualified psychologists, before he decides to turn them into prime time glossy entertainment shows. But, I noticed that Professor Wiseman was an advisor to the production team, so I guess he must be OK with the way the programmes were presented – and I suppose they do introduce the ideas behind the research to a much wider audience.
Back to the conference; one of the presentations that Richard Wiseman gave on Thursday revolved around his experiments on ‘luck’. He’s scientifically shown that there’s not really such a thing as ‘good or bad luck’. The people who call themselves lucky are much more likely to be the kind of folk that’ll grab opportunities as they arise; they’ll go for it, try new things, take chances, have a wider view of what’s going on round about them (so are more likely to see opportunities that present themselves) and will have more of a ‘cup-half-full’ approach to life. There obviously has to be some element of chance involved, but he showed that you can significantly increase those chances if you have a more positive state of mind, be more sociable, live in the moment and grab any opportunities you do encounter. I just thought it was brilliant to witness someone getting across to a young, impressionable audience - in not only an engaging and entertaining way but also backed up with hard evidence - the merits of not sitting on your ass waiting for good things to happen to you, or doing the opposite and being too focussed on one long-term goal.
I definitely got my attitude of ‘try to make the most of what’s going on around about you at the moment, and the future is more likely to be brighter’ from my Dad. Which is a bit ironic as I was ‘unlucky’ enough have my Dad snatched away from me by a heart attack when he was only 57 years old. But, one of the things that’s always given me a bit of comfort is the knowledge that my Dad made the most, and looked on the bright side, of most of his days. Even the shitty ones. He always tried to look for the positive slant on things; he was usually cheery and he taught me that life’s very much what you make it. If you’re not happy with the way things are in your life, try to change them. Now, I know that’s a bit simplistic and idealistic, and there can be a whole stack of reasons why it’s not easy to do that. I’m certainly not brimming with happiness every moment of every day, and sometimes it’s really difficult to see the silver lining. But, it’s something I aspire to do – and it’s something I’m delighted that my kids seem to have grasped. I love that they all try to make the most of what’s going on at the moment. They don’t let the long-term goal get in the way of enjoying the present day (at least they try not to). It’s like that common ‘pushy parent’ thing. If you keep harping on at your kids that they have to be the best in school, or in their sport, or in their dance class or whatever, they might well accomplish all of those things; but they’ll probably have a pretty miserable journey on the way - and will probably still be miserable once they’ve reached those goals. On the other hand, if they’re leading well-rounded lives, being sociable, being praised for making an effort and finding new things that make them feel good, they’re possibly more likely to succeed – maybe not in the thing that their parents wanted them to, but they’ll hopefully continue to be generally happy.
Oh dear, this post has turned into a bit of a dis-jointed ramble, but I actually find it quite difficult to put it all into words! I think I’m basically saying that Richard Wiseman’s presentation was brilliant because he stood in front of me and expressed what goes on in my head when I think of my ideal way of approaching life. Try to make the best of it – it can be really crap sometimes, through ill-health, losing someone we love, losing a job, running out of money, ocht, a whole multitude of things – but, if we can somehow manage not to give up, and be open to any new opportunities that might come along, all the shitty things might just be a wee bit easier to deal with – we’ll hopefully experience a change in our luck! It won’t work for everyone, or every situation, but it’s the way I like to try to be. There are times that I do find it hard to see the sunshine through the rain, and at those times good family and friends (or anyone else that can lend an empathic ear!) can be invaluable. But, just as Richard Wiseman has proved beyond doubt, optimism plays a vital role in turning things around and most of us do have the ability to change our mindset. If you go looking for a change in luck, you’re much more likely to find it.
Anyway, where’s that lottery ticket I was filling in earlier......
Monday, 21 November 2011
Lots of things in a busy weekend - and chatting to Des and Jennie!
I’ve got up this morning feeling happy knackered and looking forward to another busy week ahead.
Saturday was spent up in St Andrews with Gemma and Alex supporting Ross in the Scottish Uni Cross Country Championships. He had a brilliant run and I was so proud to see him coming in as a counter for the Strathclyde team – the cherry on the cake was a silver medal for his efforts! Being up there on Gemma’s ‘Uni’ home turf somehow made the day even more special and we really enjoyed spending time with her over a chatty lunch after the race. I was spoiled, having Gemma at home for a full week a couple of weeks ago, and the house has been feeling too empty ever since.
Saturday night was spent in Larbert singing with the choir at a gig to raise funds for Kidney Research. One of the girls in the choir, Pauline, had arranged the evening to celebrate a family success story. Her gorgeous wee niece had received the gift of a kidney from her own Dad - Pauline’s brother - just over a year ago. The night was made so much more special by being able to see a successful result of the fantastic work that renal units do every day. And, aw man, the Bellshill Sally Army Brass Band were playing too. I love the sound of a big brass band, but they were in a league of their own! Honest – they were brilliant! They did spine-tingling renditions of things like the music from Lion King, Andrew Lloyd Webber songs and the most beautiful version of My Love is Like a Red Red Rose. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the hall. I never could’ve imagined that I would write a blog post about how good it made me feel to be sharing a stage with the Salvation Army on a Saturday night! I love life’s unexpected moments of lovliness! Great car-chat on the way home with my buddy, Christine, topped off a fabulous night.
Most of Sunday was spent in front of the computer doing some work for a charity placement scheme I’m applying for, but I had a lovely break from it in the afternoon to sing with the choir at the switching on of the Christmas lights in Stirling. Annie had been told, by the organisers, that only a few people could stand up on the stage so my wee section – the low harmony group – were up there, undercover, with Annie. It felt really weird looking over to the rest of the choir - standing in a cordoned off area outside in the intermittent rain - and just not being all together. As ever, we just all got on with it and Annie made sure we made the best of a difficult arrangement – it certainly can’t have been easy for her, having to coordinate us all while we were spread all around. However, as professional as ever, she just got on with it and made the very best of the difficult situation. We always sing live, with no recorded backing tracks or anything like that, and that can sometimes make things much more testing – especially in an outside environment, or when there aren’t enough microphones provided – but if the Heart of Scotland choir are asked to perform, they perform live. That can make the performance technically much more challenging, but Annie and Jane are never afraid to meet those challenges head on.
It was the first gig that Ross has made it along to. I felt so great when I saw him standing there, out in the rain, looking knackered (he’d had a late night out celebrating the events of the day before with his running pals), supporting his auld maw doing her wee thing. And, he’d really enjoyed it -even with the sound issues at some points during our set - he heard enough to give us a big seal of approval! To round off the excitement, I had a hug and a chat with Des and Jennie!! You know who I mean? They do the Breakfast Show on Capital Radio. Anyway, when we came down off the wee stage, they were standing waiting to go on. I made a bit of an arse of myself (remember, the endorphins are always flowing when you sing, so I was a wee bit over-excited!) by being a wee bit over-zealous in my chat to them, but they were really lovely and humoured me by chatting and telling me they thought the choir sounded brilliant! Feeling brave with the confidence that feeling great gives you, I said, “Aw, that’s so great! I’m so glad you liked it. So, when can we come on your show then?” Des told me to email him the details and, as long as we could sing something modern, he’d see what he could do! Ocht, maybe he was just humouring me, but it was so nice of him to spend the time to chat! I had a bit of a mild panic later, thinking about how it’s not my place to go telling folk we’ll perform for them – but hopefully Annie and Jane didn’t mind too much – especially if we do manage to get a wee slot on Capital, or even a wee plug for our concert in a few weeks at the Albert Halls in Stirling! (10th of December, if you’d like to come along!)
Back at home, a nice meal with the family (except Gemma) followed by the completion – in the wee small hours – of my placement application topped off a really great weekend. I’m heading out for a busy day of bits and bobs shortly, but first, I think I’ll send that email to Des and Jennie – just in case they were serious about having a wee visit from a great choir with a big heart to their studios. And, let’s face it, nothing ventured......
Saturday was spent up in St Andrews with Gemma and Alex supporting Ross in the Scottish Uni Cross Country Championships. He had a brilliant run and I was so proud to see him coming in as a counter for the Strathclyde team – the cherry on the cake was a silver medal for his efforts! Being up there on Gemma’s ‘Uni’ home turf somehow made the day even more special and we really enjoyed spending time with her over a chatty lunch after the race. I was spoiled, having Gemma at home for a full week a couple of weeks ago, and the house has been feeling too empty ever since.
Saturday night was spent in Larbert singing with the choir at a gig to raise funds for Kidney Research. One of the girls in the choir, Pauline, had arranged the evening to celebrate a family success story. Her gorgeous wee niece had received the gift of a kidney from her own Dad - Pauline’s brother - just over a year ago. The night was made so much more special by being able to see a successful result of the fantastic work that renal units do every day. And, aw man, the Bellshill Sally Army Brass Band were playing too. I love the sound of a big brass band, but they were in a league of their own! Honest – they were brilliant! They did spine-tingling renditions of things like the music from Lion King, Andrew Lloyd Webber songs and the most beautiful version of My Love is Like a Red Red Rose. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the hall. I never could’ve imagined that I would write a blog post about how good it made me feel to be sharing a stage with the Salvation Army on a Saturday night! I love life’s unexpected moments of lovliness! Great car-chat on the way home with my buddy, Christine, topped off a fabulous night.
Most of Sunday was spent in front of the computer doing some work for a charity placement scheme I’m applying for, but I had a lovely break from it in the afternoon to sing with the choir at the switching on of the Christmas lights in Stirling. Annie had been told, by the organisers, that only a few people could stand up on the stage so my wee section – the low harmony group – were up there, undercover, with Annie. It felt really weird looking over to the rest of the choir - standing in a cordoned off area outside in the intermittent rain - and just not being all together. As ever, we just all got on with it and Annie made sure we made the best of a difficult arrangement – it certainly can’t have been easy for her, having to coordinate us all while we were spread all around. However, as professional as ever, she just got on with it and made the very best of the difficult situation. We always sing live, with no recorded backing tracks or anything like that, and that can sometimes make things much more testing – especially in an outside environment, or when there aren’t enough microphones provided – but if the Heart of Scotland choir are asked to perform, they perform live. That can make the performance technically much more challenging, but Annie and Jane are never afraid to meet those challenges head on.
It was the first gig that Ross has made it along to. I felt so great when I saw him standing there, out in the rain, looking knackered (he’d had a late night out celebrating the events of the day before with his running pals), supporting his auld maw doing her wee thing. And, he’d really enjoyed it -even with the sound issues at some points during our set - he heard enough to give us a big seal of approval! To round off the excitement, I had a hug and a chat with Des and Jennie!! You know who I mean? They do the Breakfast Show on Capital Radio. Anyway, when we came down off the wee stage, they were standing waiting to go on. I made a bit of an arse of myself (remember, the endorphins are always flowing when you sing, so I was a wee bit over-excited!) by being a wee bit over-zealous in my chat to them, but they were really lovely and humoured me by chatting and telling me they thought the choir sounded brilliant! Feeling brave with the confidence that feeling great gives you, I said, “Aw, that’s so great! I’m so glad you liked it. So, when can we come on your show then?” Des told me to email him the details and, as long as we could sing something modern, he’d see what he could do! Ocht, maybe he was just humouring me, but it was so nice of him to spend the time to chat! I had a bit of a mild panic later, thinking about how it’s not my place to go telling folk we’ll perform for them – but hopefully Annie and Jane didn’t mind too much – especially if we do manage to get a wee slot on Capital, or even a wee plug for our concert in a few weeks at the Albert Halls in Stirling! (10th of December, if you’d like to come along!)
Back at home, a nice meal with the family (except Gemma) followed by the completion – in the wee small hours – of my placement application topped off a really great weekend. I’m heading out for a busy day of bits and bobs shortly, but first, I think I’ll send that email to Des and Jennie – just in case they were serious about having a wee visit from a great choir with a big heart to their studios. And, let’s face it, nothing ventured......
Tuesday, 15 November 2011
A feel-good advert
Oh dear, that was a bit of a grumpy post, that last one. A wee bit of a viral thingy, a sleepless night and I turn into Victor Meldrew! Tut, tut.
It doesn't make me feel good having such a whinging post at the top of my blog, but I don't have time to write anything much just now as I'm heading back out the door soon. So, instead, here's the John Lewis Christmas advert; it brings a lump to my throat and makes me feel good every time I see it!
It doesn't make me feel good having such a whinging post at the top of my blog, but I don't have time to write anything much just now as I'm heading back out the door soon. So, instead, here's the John Lewis Christmas advert; it brings a lump to my throat and makes me feel good every time I see it!
Looking forward to being more like me again
Along with everyone and their granny, I’ve been feeling rubbish over the past few days. It’s some flu-like thing - one of many wee bugs that’ve been doing the rounds - and it really floored me. I thought I was over the worst of it so I carried on as normal yesterday; starting with an early morning SAMS shift, followed by work work and a meeting at the hospice during the day, topped off by choir practice in the evening. However, I’m now paying the price for not spending one more day doing bog all as now - at 4.30am - I’m feeling so lousy I can’t sleep.
While I’m sitting here, cooried up on the couch (having abandoned bed as Alex’s snoring is too much of a loud and constant reminder that I’m very much awake instead of very much asleep!), my head’s too puggled to think of anything very much that’s making me feel good at the moment. I decided to write a post though, as this blog isn't meant to be all about life being wonderful and rosy all the time; it's more about me finding something good in my day, even if that day hasn't been the best.
So, here in the wee small hours, at this very moment in time, what's really making me feel good? Simply the thought of a good night’s sleep and starting to feel a bit more like myself...
Roll on tomorrow!
Lying awake in the wee small hours when you desperately want to be fast asleep must be one of the most frustrating things. I really feel for anyone who suffers regularly from insomnia. I used to go through long periods of sleepless nights - particularly when I was recuperating from any one of a number of operations I underwent some years ago - but I’m fortunate to be affected by it now only on the very odd occasion.
So, here in the wee small hours, at this very moment in time, what's really making me feel good? Simply the thought of a good night’s sleep and starting to feel a bit more like myself...
Roll on tomorrow!
Wednesday, 9 November 2011
Watching Gareth Malone do his thing
I love watching Gareth Malone at work. D’you know who I mean? I first saw him on the telly a couple of years ago when he took a bunch of bored, disillusioned folk from a deprived area down in England - South Oxhey - and transformed them into a fantastic community choir. I thoroughly enjoyed the series and I remember saying to Alex, ‘I really wish there was something like that here in Stirling. I’d love to be a part of that kind of choir...’. What a difference a couple of years can make!
I'm so chuffed that, after spending a good while looking, I did eventually find the choir in Stirling that totally floats my boat (I may just have mentioned it in previous posts...!). We have two of our very own Gareth Malones in the form of Annie and Jane, we have a whole bunch of folk who've benefitted in so many different ways from being a member of a very special community choir, and when we sing I reckon we mostly do it straight from the heart. Yup, much of Gareth's programme last night felt very, very familiar....
I suppose, up until then, I’d always thought of choirs as consisting of big groups of classically-trained singers who could all read music, stood in a regimented group at the front of a church or concert hall, moved nothing except their very wide mouths, held matching black folders, wore matching white or black shirts and hauntingly harmonised the kind of songs that I’d never sing in the shower. I obviously knew about gospel and rock choirs, but if anyone had told me they were a member of a choir, the classical churchy set-up is the one that would’ve sprung to my mind. I remember looking for a choir in the Stirling area and the only ones I could find were of the choral music, traditional sort. One that I came across at the time was the Stirling City Choir, so it was nice to go along to one of their performances held in my mum’s church last night. The evening was called ‘A Festival of Gifts’. In my naivety, I thought the idea was for the church’s members simply to benefit from the gift of beautiful music. What the idea actually turned out to be was to entice the church members in with the promise of some beautiful singing then hit them with a power-point presentation detailing the state of the church’s finances and explaining lots of different ways that the members could improve the state of the church’s affairs in the form of different financial ‘gifts’! Hmph. Still, I had a lovely night. Gemma came along and we joined my mum and her good friend Jan; we were all a bit like the cheeky school-children in amongst the pretty staid audience, but we sat back and thoroughly enjoyed the choir’s beautiful performance (except the part when they got a wee bit lost with their ‘Amens’ during the Amen Chorus). It really brought it home to me though that I made the right choice by not joining a more traditional choir. It just seemed so serious and, well, stuffy if I’m being honest. There just didn’t seem to be any kind of mojo about them. Ocht, I’m sure the members love their choir and have great fun at their rehearsals – and they certainly produced a beautiful sound – but it just didn’t produce the same kind of ‘feel-good’ vibe that I like to think oozes from the Heart of Scotland; the choir that I’m now very privileged to be a member of.
Anyway, I’ve totally digressed from Gareth! When we came home last night we settled down to watch his new series on the telly. Aw man, it was such a good opening programme. This time he’s taking a group of military wives and girlfriends and forming them into a community choir while their partners are away on a tour of duty in Afghanistan. It really brought it home to me just how difficult it is for these women, and their children, when they’re left behind on the base. So, the idea is that Gareth is giving them something to focus on; something that’ll raise their self-confidence and also bring them closer together to support each other through the trials and tribulations of living on a pretty isolated military base while coping with the emotional turmoil of the long wait for their partners to return home, hopefully, safe and sound.
One of the most touching parts of the programme was when Gareth asked the women to audition for a solo part. Initially no one would come forward. You could almost hear what some of them were thinking, just by looking at the expressions on their faces: “There’s no way I’m doing that, I might make a complete ass of myself”, or “I know I could sing that, but I don’t want folk to think I’m a show-off” or “I think I could sing that, maybe not brilliantly, but I think I could just about manage it. But I’m too shy to give it a go”. However, with some gentle coaxing and persuasion by Gareth, some of the women hesitantly made their way to the front and sang the solo audition piece. It brought a big lump to my throat. It’ll seem like such a trivial thing if you didn’t see the programme, or haven’t witnessed or experienced that kind of thing, but it was honestly so inspiring to see these woman find the courage that it takes to stand up and sing alone in front of folk. It's a different kind of courage to the kind required by their partners out in Afghanistan, but it's courage all the same. The woman who, for me, stood out – not because she was the ‘best’ singer, but simply because she sang straight from the heart – was the one chosen to sing the solo. When the time came for the choir to do their first public performance, the companionship, camaraderie, boosted confidence, positive vibe and sheer feel-good factor were almost tangible throughout. It was brilliant TV.
I'm so chuffed that, after spending a good while looking, I did eventually find the choir in Stirling that totally floats my boat (I may just have mentioned it in previous posts...!). We have two of our very own Gareth Malones in the form of Annie and Jane, we have a whole bunch of folk who've benefitted in so many different ways from being a member of a very special community choir, and when we sing I reckon we mostly do it straight from the heart. Yup, much of Gareth's programme last night felt very, very familiar....
Monday, 7 November 2011
Being a bit envious, but still loving my mum
We had a nice wee family celebration dinner here at home yesterday for my Mum’s 75th birthday. Mum has trouble convincing folk that she’s in her seventies. For a start off, she has the most amazing head of thick, black, shiny hair and has never (and I mean never) used a drop of hair dye. The odd wee strand of grey has appeared during these past few years, but nowhere near enough to tip the balance so that ‘grey’ has become a more apt description of her hair colour than ‘black’. It’s so bloody unfair! I’ve had to use dye to cover my grey hair for ages; why could I not have inherited my mother’s hair genes? Also, my mum has gorgeous skin. I joke not when I say that I don’t remember her ever having a spot and she’s still almost wrinkle-free. I, on the other hand, have always had rubbish skin. I’ve always been prone to plukes (I’ve actually been sporting a cracker on my chin for this past week, as pointed out by my mother when she said - in the way that only a mother can - “that’s some size of a spot on your chin”...) and I already have lots of, ahem, laughter lines around my mouth and eyes. Ocht! Why could I not have inherited my mother’s skin?
Never mind, I guess all that stuff’s pretty superficial. The most important things are the things I’ve learned from my mum. And, I’ve probably had just about the best teacher I could’ve had in the ‘How to be a good Mum’ school of life! I really couldn’t have asked for a more supportive, loving and caring person to be my mum and my pal during the past 46 years. Aw, thanks maw!
Never mind, I guess all that stuff’s pretty superficial. The most important things are the things I’ve learned from my mum. And, I’ve probably had just about the best teacher I could’ve had in the ‘How to be a good Mum’ school of life! I really couldn’t have asked for a more supportive, loving and caring person to be my mum and my pal during the past 46 years. Aw, thanks maw!
I’ve also had just about the best teacher I could’ve had in the ‘How to be a brilliant home-baker’ stakes, but I think I must’ve fallen asleep in that class! The only thing I’m good at, when it comes to home-baking, is licking the bowl and spoon. Aye, she might be getting on a bit, but my mum’s clootie dumpling is still the best I’ve ever tasted. I know it sounds bad that she had to bake the dumpling for her own birthday dinner, but I wouldn’t even contemplate taking over the mantle of the family clootie-dumpling-maker while my mother’s still going strong! I do know that some day in the future I’ll have no choice but to inherit that very important family role – but I’m sincerely hoping that that day is a long way off and it’ll still just be my job to lick the bowl and spoon for many more years to come...!
 |
| My lovely Mum, and her lovely dumpling! |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)