Various

It's ages since my last post. I feel as if the month has fast forwarded in an alarming way. I haven't even finished The Life of Pi yet, which is surprising considering my usual reading speed.
It is a curiously compelling book. The stage upon which the story is built is so bare. There is so little that one might consider of sufficient interest to keep coming back, and yet it does keep drawing me back! It is certainly very well written.
It is many decades since I suffered "The old man and the sea" by Ernest Hemingway as an A level text. I truly dispised it at the time and remember little of it, and yet there have been some stirrings of memory as I have read "The life of Pi", so maybe I need to go back and give it another chance.Maybe I am more cultured now!  ;-)

The past 4 weeks have truly been weeks in which I needed to listen to my own advice about difficult people. Oh my goodness, how cranky and self-centred people can be! I am glad to say that these comments are not directed at family members or close friends. Unfortunately, I have to work fairly closely with people who think more about their own egos than about the good of the community, who will disagree with an idea simply because it wasn't theirs and who cling to the status quo so strongly that its amazing that they managed to grow up and leave home! Lord, give me wisdom and patience!

Enough of that or I will blow a gasket!

At present, I am preparing to go to a conference called Spring Harvest with my trade stand, so "real life" will be on hold for 2 weeks. I have been meeting with a business mentor who has been helping me to think about my business and I have been finding that really helpful. Working alone means that it's easy to lose perspective and I have been finding this lady's input very useful. She is a sounding board for ideas and asks searching questions. I pay for her time, which seems a crazy way to use money when the company isn't really making a profit, but somehow it feels worthwhile. If business is tough, it's tempting to close in and become more insular, like a person riding out a hurricane in a bunker, but I find that I get very discouraged in my bunker at times. The mentor is like a breath of fresh air and helps me to see issues more clearly.

I will probably not write again until mid April, so wish you all a very happy Easter.

The life of Pi

I've just started reading The life of Pi and am finding it very thought provoking. In the early chapters, the narrator talks about freedom in relation to zoo animals.
Now I have always tended towards the "It's cruel to keep animals in captivity" camp, but the book talks about whether freedom to go hungry, get attacked by predators or parasites etc is really what the animal would choose, if it could. It also talks about animals that have escaped from zoos, only to return to the environment they know at a later date. I have a feeling that there is something importnat hidden in these ideas, but will have to reread it and give myself time to think things through!
I have a feeling that The Life of Pi is going to raise many interesting philosophical points!

Discouragement

No matter how much you care about a cause or something that you are involved in, there do come points where you find yourself pausing to wonder what it's all about and why you keep on pressing forward.
Take my town. It's quite small. It doesn't have MEGA problems, but lots of smaller ones. I've lived here for 3 years and got very involved. I've always cared passionately about things. It doesn't matter what I am involved in, it's always important to me. So I start to dream big dreams for my town and, as I firmly believe that one person can make a difference, I begin to push forward. I talk the town up, I write the town up, I discuss things with people positively and I get involved in decision making in the town. It's hard work but I accept that. I know the road is not easy and that other people won't always want to go in the same direction. I go to meetings, I ring people. I email people. I feel that things are beginning to change then...
A local man who has been giving out dog poo bags to fellow dog walkers runs out of bags and asks me where he can get some more. I phone the council (who normally give away free dog bags from council offices) and they have run out. Not only have they run out, but the whole county has run out, and we can't have any more because there is no one in post to agree the budget spend for more bags.
And then I wonder how I can possibly expect to make a difference in the town, if I can't even sort out the simple issue of dog poo bags!
That's what discouragement is, right there. It's not the big things that faze us, but small but seemingly insurmountable problems, that should in reality be so easy to fix.

Don't worry. It will take more that dog poo bags to throw me off track completely. I will sort out the dog poo bags, somehow, and then I'll get my attention back on trying to encourage local business!

What are you worried about?

One of the sermons on Sunday was about worry, so I thought I would take some of the ideas expressed in that talk and add a sprinkling of my own thoughts and observations.
1. Worrying gets you nowhere
The Bible says, "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" (Matthew 6: 27)
I guess no one would argue with that. However much we may worry about a situation, the worry itself doesn't change a thing. In fact, worrying can damage your health and actually shorten your life!
2. Worry involves crossing bridges that you will probably never come to!
Once you let worry into your head, you start to imagine a dozen different scenarios, problems and difficulties and in your mind you try to find a way through each of them. It is a real waste of effort, because the vast majority of the things we worry about will never happen.
3. Worry chases away peace.
Our brains can only think about one thing at a time, so we can't be thinking peaceful thoughts at the same time as thinking about our worries.  When my children were little, they occasionally suffered from scary thoughts when they were in bed at night. I found that the best way to help them was to get them to tell the scary thoughts to go away and then to think about something nice that had happened instead. When they were thinking about the nice memories, they couldn't be thinking about their fears. Although I used it on my children, I have also found it works for me!
4. Time passes, even in the most difficult times.
No matter how difficult the circumstances ahead, we will one day be on the other side looking back on them. Our experience tells us that we will survive, somehow, and that worrying won't make any difference to that fact.
5. Worry is usually about things in the past (that we can't change) or things in the future (that haven't happened yet.) The Bible says,"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." God will give us the strength we need for today.
6. Worry is when we think it's all down to us.
We often bear the weight of other people's expectations or our own feelings of responsibility. No one is indispensable and God does not want us to feel overburdened. "“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28
7. God will help us and change our perspective, if we look upward instead of inward.

10 great things to do in Mid Wales

This is my top ten of things to do, which doesn't recommend anything I haven't done, so apologies if your absolute favourite isn't there!

Go on the train from Machynlleth to Barmouth, Harlech or beyond on a sunny day. The coastal views are amazing and on a clear day you can see the Lleyn peninsula. The train goes closer to the coast than the road on this route, so at this you can see seabirds flying below you.

Cycle around Lake Vyrnwy (about 12 miles) and then visit the sculpture park below the dam, the bird hides and RSPB centre, finishing with a cup of tea and a cake in one of the cafes.

 

Climb Roundton Hill, a Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust site just outside Churchstoke, and sit on the top with a flask of coffee. There is a 360 degree view and it is a peaceful and lovely spot.

 

Walk along the river walk by the River Severn in Newtown, keeping your eyes open for otters and kingfishers. Then visit the Robert Owen Museum in Broad Street to find out about this famous son of Newtown, the founder of the Co-operative movement.

Park in the town square in Montgomery and then walk up to the castle. Spectacular views and it's free!

Visit Bodnant Garden in North Wales, which is a beautiful 32 hectare garden owned by the National Trust. Go when the laburnham arch is at it's peak. It is stunning! Okay, this isn't strictly Mid Wales, but I've got to recommend it anyway!

Visit the Pistyll Rhaeadr waterfall, a few miles from Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant. It's stunning from the bottom, and stunning from the top! It's a decent climb, so wear good shoes.

 

 

Visit Powis Castle, especially the garden. It's National Trust and  a bit expensive but worth every penny. The castle is warm looking and friendly, and the garden is a series of beautiful flowered terraces. Wonderful in any season.

 





Visit the Centre for Alternative Technology in Machynlleth. It's a really interesting place built on sustainable principles- and it's got a water powered lift! The gardens show how land can be used to produce food organically. A very informative place. (Haven't got a photo of this. Sorry!)

See Red Kites, either at the Gigrin Farm, Rhayader or at Nant yr Arian, a Forestry Commission site near Aberystwyth. These birds are beautiful.

Vyrnwy in autumn

I thought I would show you one of my recent paintings. I love the way it has been framed. The paintings look as if they are floating in the frame.
If you have never been to Lake Vyrnwy, you should go there. It is lovely.

Abraham Lincoln

I have justed returned from watching the film "Lincoln" with my husband. The acting was incredible and Daniel Day-Lewis deserves his accolades. I didn't know much about Abraham Lincoln before- well American history and politics just don't form part of an English education, sadly- but he certainly was an impressive guy.
At the moment when the 13th amendment which outlawed slavery and made that act an integral part of the constitution was passed, I found it really moving to think about all those men and women whose whole lives were changed from that point forward. Tears came to my eyes as I thought about the enormity of it all. How one man had the courage to stand up for and fight politically for what he believed. I thoroughly recommend the film to you. It is not fast moving (and does get your brain working overtime when American politics are discussed using old fashioned language!) so don't expect a pacy film. It is about grit, determination and character development. It also makes you want to be heroic and to make a difference.

I was also deeply saddened to think about the entrenched racism and how people used the Bible to back up prejudices that Jesus never showed during his life and that the Bible does not condone.

I read a series of books by Mildred D. Taylor based on the lives of black sharecropping families in the deep south, after the abolition of slavery, but when blacks were treated as second class citizens. The first book in the series is "Roll of thunder, hear my cry". It is really a series for teenagers. I read it with my children when they were teenagers and we cried and fumed at the injustice and the callous way in which black families were treated. Another recommendation- two in one post! You can buy Roll of Thunder, hear my cry from Amazon for £5.99  http://www.amazon.co.uk/Roll-Thunder-Puffin-Teenage-Fiction/dp/0140371745/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1359412870&sr=1-5 Once you start this series, you will want to read all of them!

The opther thing that I thought about while watching Lincoln was the fact that slavery, though abolished in most countries, maybe all, is actually more prevalent today than in the days of Wilberforce or Lincoln. Human trafficking is in every country. If you think it's not happening in your country, you are wrong. We need to become more aware of the issues and ensure that we support anti-trafficking charities and organisations. I can recommend Stop the Traffik as a charity doing excellent work which is based in the UK. Third recommendation- visit their website! www.stopthetraffik.org

My thoughts about windfarms in Mid Wales

I am concerned about the scale of wind farms and pylon routes proposed in Mid Wales and about the impact on the environment and the communities in this area.

I am not fundamentally opposed to renewable energy sources, but the thinking behind renewable energy schemes has to make sense. I do not believe that these wind farms are being proposed by organisations with a “big picture” approach to problem solving. In many cases, projects are being peddled by those who have a financial or other interest in their implementation.

The wind farms proposed will have turbines of up to 146 meters tall, which is catastrophic in a place like Mid Wales. Traditionally depending on an agricultural base and more recently on manufacturing and service industries brought in by the Development Board for Rural Wales, Mid Wales is struggling economically. Many companies attracted by low rates and business support by the Development Board have now gone elsewhere. Tourism is one area where the area can hold its head up, and one which offers real opportunities for future economic growth. Visitors to the area come because of its tranquility and unspoilt environment. Covering vast areas with turbines and pylon corridors will spoil views that have been changed little over centuries, and that vandalism will never be undone. Once you draw a moustache on the Mona Lisa with a marker pen, there is no turning back!

My feeling is that energy producers have found themselves under increasing pressure to source some their energy through renewable means and have looked around for the easiest way to do so. Mid Wales is an easy target, because its hills are considered suitable for wind turbines, but more importantly- and I cannot stress this enough- because there are fewer people living there to complain!!!

Those same energy companies could site wind farms around major cities, where the power will be close to where it will be used, but they are not considering that because the outcry from residents would be too great. Powys has one of the lowest densities of population in the UK and therefore is an obvious choice, particularly if some of those who might be opposed to the plans can be bought off by promises of making money by selling or renting land for turbines or pylons. Considering the smaller population of Mid Wales, the outcry against the plans has been astonishing. To say that people feel strongly about this is understating the issue.

Even the most optimistic estimates suggest that wind turbines produce energy for 30% of the time. In addition, a small percentage of the energy is lost in transmission, with the loss increasing with distance transmitted. If all applications go ahead, the energy produced will be perhaps 0.6 percent of the total energy consumption of the UK, probably less. What we need is not bigger wind farms covering more and more of our country, but a more joined up approach which looks at the common sense of the issues and judges schemes on their effectiveness.

I am concerned about the environmental impact of filling large areas of environmentally sensitive upland and valleys with huge slabs of concrete, not to mention the access roads to make such sites possible. Wales is a wild and biodiverse area, and any large scale inroads into previously undeveloped areas will have an impact on fragile habitats and protected species.

Mid Wales is an area of real natural beauty. It does not have the protection in law afforded to the National Parks in Snowdonia or the Brecon Beacons, but should be protected nevertheless. If it did not have those two even more outstanding areas to the north and south, I am quite sure that Mid Wales would have been designated as a National Park or an Area of outstanding natural beauty by now. If you visit the website www.midwaleswind.co.uk you can see a map showing the concentration of wind farms and proposed wind farms in Mid Wales. The proposed wind farms will change the face of Mid Wales forever, blighting rural communities and producing less than 1% of the electricity required.

There must be a thorough rethinking of the whole issue, before it's too late.

From Montgomery Castle-too nice a view to put pylons through!

 

Downton Abbey

I am not sure if I should confess in a hushed voice or be brazenly unashamed of the fact that I have become seriously wrapped up in the lives of the Crawley family and their household. I only started watching in series 3, then enjoyed it so much that I bought the whole boxed set and watched it all the way through series 1, 2, Christmas episode 2011 and series 3 (for a second time). I then sat down to watch the Christmas episode this year, which we had recorded on our "box".
Just in case you have not watched the Christmas episode, I will not go into details, except to say that I was shocked at the events of that episode!

So why is it such compelling watching? The period details, costume, cars, stately home interiors are just sumptuous. It is so well done with no expense spared to get details right.
In addition, there is a credible mix of characters, all with their faults as well as virtues, and time is given to character development, which is something I always enjoy.
The characters are well acted and have lively scripts. The Dowager Duchess and Isobel Crawley spark off each other in an amusing yet realistic way. Some of Maggie Smith's one-liners are priceless!
The conversations betwen the sisters show both their affection and their frustration with each other, which certainly reflects many families of today. Their personalities are framed by the early 1900s, but they resonate with us in 2013.
I think the thing which I warm to is the feeling that most of the characters are wanting to be better versions of themselves. Their focus on duty to family and community seems old-fashioned, yet strikes a chord. Characters advising others (with the exception perhaps of Miss O'Brien!) encourage tolerance, fair play and forgiveness.
I also like the low key history lesson which takes place, when events of the period affect the family's fortunes.
I guess I should declare a "favourite" character. I like the character of Lord Grantham, an honourable man struggling to come to terms with changes in society and the family, and not always managing to retain his equilibrium, but devoted to his family. I also really like the kindly and humorous character of Mrs Hughes, who tempers the more pernicketty and exacting nature of Mr Carson, the butler.
Of course, I wouldn't be alone in confessing a soft spot for Matthew Crawley, played by Dan Stevens! Every mother would be pleased to have her daughter marry him!  :-)
Well enough of Downton Abbey. We'll have to wait a few months for the next series!

Extended families

In this area there are a large number of families who have mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, siblings and cousins all living within 10 miles of each other.
This is quite unusual in the UK today and only really happens in rural communities or in poor inner city areas.
This got me thinking about how our society has changed. I also wondered about whether the extended family network of past centuries is actually better than the situation we have now where people move quite readily to other towns or cities. None of our 3 children live close to us, or even that close to one another. It has its challenges of course.
When my daughter had a baby this year, I wanted to be closer. I know there have been times when she has wished that we could be round the corner to do some babysitting when she feels exhausted! I remember feeling that way too when the children were little, as my mother and father never lived that close.
I guess so much depends on the family and the way it operates. I have heard some women with extended families nearby complaining at the lack of privacy. I can certainly see that it can get claustrophobic at times. And what if the family is an abusive family, or one in which adult "children" are still treated like children? It's great to have people to lean on when things are tough, but does that sometimes cross over into over-dependence and an unwillingness to shoulder responsibility oneself?
With the boot on the other foot, families spread far and wide lack the support that extended families can bring.Our modern society can be a lonely place, where it seems everyone is too busy to build valuable and lasting relationships. If you are struggling with tempestuous teenagers or struggling in your marriage, it can be hard to know who to share it with. Extended family would fulfil that role- possibly- perhaps... or maybe not.
I actually think that, for me, living at a distance from my children forces me to allow them to be adults. We have a good relationship and enjoy spending time together when we can, but I wouldn't want to have any of them living with us now. We are enjoying our freedom too much!
I'd be interested to hear your thoughts an dexperiences of living close to or far from parents and siblings.

As an aside, I feel that the English language is lacking a word. There should be a word to use for "grown-up children" so that when you talk about your children, people don't assume you mean 10 year olds!  What about chadults- which combines children and adults? Any suggestions?

Sin revisited

I was at a church prayer meeting last night and we were praying for our town and that got me thinking about sin again. I know, I keep coming back to it!

There's a film called the Truman show in which the main character is brought up on a film set without actually knowing what is going on. He is living "real life" but everything and everyone around him are simply playing a role. Obviously, the film creates doubts in his mind and he finally wakes up to the deception, but one could imagine that this could deceive someone possibly for the whole of their lives.

How else can you explain the smiles and playfulness of children brought up on a rubbish dump, sifting rubbish for a living? It's not that they recognise the terrible situation they are in but choose to make the best of it- they simply accept as normal what they experience from day to day.

Isn't this how abusive relationships go on and on? The victim simply accepts as normal a way of life that looks deplorable from the outside.

I was struck again by what I realised in an earlier blog- the huge, ongoing and crippling effect of sin in our world. And what struck me hard was the fact that we are so used to living in a sin-sick world that we don't even notice how bad it is. Like families living on a rubbish dump in South America, we can't even imagine what a world without rubbish would be like. How could a person from a slum dwelling imagine the life of an Arab oil sheikh?

But life without sin is what we were created for and what we will experience after our bodies die, providing we have accepted the free gift of salvation that Jesus offers us. And life without sin is God's best for this world too.

In the words of Michael Jackson, someone who I don't think I have ever quoted before, "I'm starting with the man in the mirror!" Wish me success!  :-)

Just be glad you're not a politician!

I guess it is a lot easier to make popular decisions when there is money in the kitty to spend. There are a whole load of politicians caught between a rock and a hard place by the current economic conditions.
Unpopular decisions of the year so far include changing the way that welfare benefits rise each year. They have been tied to inflation thus far, but suddenly someone has realised that benefits have risen with inflation over the past 3 or so years, whilst wages have either been frozen or made very small gains, below the level of inflation. "It's not fair," someone cries- and maybe it isn't. We have all got used to a reasonable sized slice of the cake and now that the cake is smaller, we all want to argue that our slice should stay the same size. The only trouble is that that means that someone else's slice must get smaller!
If you were a politician, what would you do? If you please the education lobby, you will have to disappoint health, or roads, or funding for the arts........ 
It's not popular to feel sorry for politicians, but I do. They cannot win. If they give in to all the different special interest groups, the country will be bankrupt and everyone will lose. If they make tough choices, there will always be a significant chunk of the population who disagree with them and think they should have chosen differently!
Another tough choice has been the stance to take on those claiming benefit because they are unable to work. Many people are incensed because of stories publicised by the media of benefit cheats who take advantage of loopholes to claim benefit when they could work. This has led to an unpopular assessment system which has seen many vulnerable people being told that they are able to work and that their benefit is being stopped. Criticism of the heartless way in which the frail and ill are being treated is growing, especially as people see their own friends and relatives being targeted.

Can there be a way through this economic and moral maze? I am sure that economically we will emerge eventually in a more stable place than we are in at present. What seems inevitable is that there will be winners and losers as politicians make their decisions. Unless we, as individuals, are prepared to uphold the rights of others and not just look to our own self interest, poverty, abuse, cruelty and disease will strengthen their grip on our nation(s). 

A man shows his humanity when he sacrifices his own desires for the welfare of others.

Relationships- who'd have them!

Despite the title, this is not a marital spat made public. We've had plenty over the years, but still seem to end up loving each other at the end of it!
I am feeling a bit exasperated by people who live in their own bubble and do not realise the impact of their words and actions on others.
Am I going to be more specific?
No.

So where does that leave this post?
I am going to tell myself what I believe about handling difficult relationships, in order to regain some sense of equilibrium.

Okay! Pull yourself together!

• If people are difficult, it is much more likely to be because of how they feel inside than what they think about you.
• If they are grumpy, it's probably because of something going on in their lives that you will never know about.
• "Never make an enemy by accident." I heard that in a TV programme recently- probably Downton Abbey- and it makes good sense.
• Never put down the person, even if you have to criticise their behaviour.
• "Sticks and stones may break my bones........." but words can inflict wounds that may never heal, so be careful what you say.
• Never say behind someone's back what you would not want repeated to their face.
• People listen to the advice of a friend more easily than the words of a critic.
• Listen more, think deeply and say little.
• A bad memory is a useful tool when it comes to leaving hurt feelings behind.
• People are different on different days, so give them the benefit of the doubt.
• Never argue after 10 o'clock at night- tiredness makes grumpy wretches of us all!
• Be the first to apologise.
• Don't feel that you have to be right all the time. You aren't.

That's it. The distilled wisdom of 52 years. If only it was as easy to follow as it is to write!
Ho hum!