Writing
The Power Of Presence
Ever thought of volunteering, or wanted to help make a change for the better in the world, but thought you didn’t have the time or the money? Think again. You can make a difference with no money and very little effort if you pick your project carefully. Me, I’ve been trying to find people to [...]
Percy
This is Percy. Otherwise known as Percival Fredrick the Second. A stuffed white polar bear toy just under a foot high. Actually it’s shaped about halfway between a polar bear and a beanbag but it told me it was a polar bear. It used to be white but it’s sort of dull greyy after so [...]
Not Mad
‘He’s mad as a hatter’, ‘The kids are acting like madmen’, ‘She’s mad as a fruitcake’. Most people use phrases like this without thinking. But what do we really mean when we talk about ‘being mad’? What is madness? A person diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, heard to say ‘At least I’m not mad’, means that [...]
“Non-Fiction”?
Non-fiction. Such a negative name for a genre. It seems to say that non-fiction is just those pieces of writing for which nobody could be bothered to make up anything interesting to pit into it. Maybe analogous to calling fiction ‘untrue stories’. Worst of all, the name seems to imply that non-fiction is the ‘little [...]
Making The Invisible Visible
You slip the handicapped parking placard onto your dashboard and get out of the car, stretching as you stand up from the cramped car seat. The man walking by notices you parking there and calls out, “Hey you, you don’t look handicapped!” He was only doing what he thought was right, making sure healthy people [...]
Improving Hospital Surroundings
Picture a hospital room. Now picture the surroundings you would most like to be in if you were sick. The sort of environment that makes you feel safe, secure, relaxed, loved. Was there even a single thing present in both environments? If so, you are probably in the minority! When children are in hospital it’s [...]
A Slightly Odd Advertisement
We’ve all heard somewhere, by now, that – according to chaos theory – a butterfly flapping its wings in South America can change the weather in Australia. We are, on this basis, attempting to recruit a generous South American to go outside and flap wings attached to their arms (wings supplied free of charge!) at [...]
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