Rangers Silver Linings - online meeting

I'm going to recommend UMA Silver Linings as a good one to do as a part of an online meeting and especially at this difficult time of Corona lock down.

I asked each girl try think of something that had happened that had left them feeling disappointed.

We didn't share them yet.











Whilst they pondered that we made origami hearts

And then one by one I asked the first one what their disappointment was, then asked another girl how they would feel if it happened to them, how they would relate.  Then finally asked another girl what the silver lining was to the event.  Slowly we went around each of them.

Some brought up cancelled sporting events (how well I related to that one), some were upset they weren't going to sit their exams, some were talking about cancelled holidays or holidays that were no longer to be booked because their parents no longer had jobs.  But slowly they were discussed and silver linings funny or true were found.

Then we went back to the hearts and they each were to write something positive on  them before popping them into a box or jar (I had asked them to find prior to the meeting).

It felt like a really positive meeting, not at all as 'heavy' as it sounds writing it down here.

Another UMA to tick off for the programme that is usual at this time.

We combined this meeting with a legend of 1000 cranes, but I had them make those cranes in advance and whilst we talked about them and decided to send them to Japan, we didn't spend as long over it as we did this one.

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I want to find love and have 3 children

We were looking at 3 year and 6 month objectives at Rangers.

Rangers are girls and young women aged between 14-26.  Our oldest at the minute though are 18.

The objectives were mainly as expected: get good grades, go to Uni, get a well paid job, visit different countries, get a nice car, ride in a hot air balloon, jump out of a plane.

But I had a nagging thought at the back of my mind, then it was raised by one of our youngest:

"I want to find love and have 3 children" she proudly announced.
"In the next 3 years" screeched the room. Even the other leader raised concerns about the thought of having this as an objective at so young an age.

I agree that 3 children by the age of 17 is not an ideal, but judging by her blushes and follow up comments, she meant that her life goal was to fall in love and be a mum to a family.

Why should there be disappointment expressed at this?
Do we now require every girl to go to university or be considered a failure?
Must they get a high income job or be a disappointment?
Must they travel the world or suffer our sadness for their lack of experience?
When did falling in love, creating a family and bringing up the next generation become a second rate option?  Why should they not desire that and want to do it whilst they are young?

I am all for encouraging our young women to be the best they can be and achieve their dreams and when those dreams include being a wife and mother then I applaud the bravery of those girls to stand up and say so.

I'm not suggesting that we shouldn't encourage every young adult to get a good education and to be financially able to support themselves before starting a family, being financially stable is of course necessary but I'm not wanting to cloud this water.  I'm simply talking about dreams and aspirations. 

I watch the young mums taking their littlies up to the primary school, I see them with tots in push chairs at the chemist and in the supermarket.  Loving, capable parents with a wonderful manner with their children (mostly! but fraught mums come in all ages, shapes and sizes).  Have they ruined their lives by becoming parents so young or are they participating in one of the most rewarding challenges that life offers a woman?

It is a bold challenge taking on responsibility early. I had a huge mortgage when I was 18, I was married at 21.  I enjoyed building my home, learning many things along the way.

There is more than one path in life. Whether they choose to explore the Amazon, become a beauty queen, a brain surgeon or a mum (or all) let's support them to be who they want to be.

There is no shame in wanting to become a home maker, learning to raise children, cook, wash, clean, sew, garden, decorate, negotiate, time manage, budget, plan, laugh, cry and love.

It's our innate reason for being here, we may have the opportunities to do more, but it's ok to be happy in the family way.

I write all this and truly believe it, but my final nagging Jiminy Cricket is that higher education and higher age are synonymous with success in marriage.  But I wonder if this is because the older we get the more mentally mature we are and those that have been through higher education are for obvious reasons going to be older when they start to get married.

Perhaps the younger families just need appropriate guidance, our children learn what they live.  Teach them well.

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The Charlie Schulz Philosophy - making a difference

Christmas always leads me to Peanuts (The Snoopy kind).  A few years ago I read this wonderful post  by an Australian in Finland, I stumbled across the post again recently by sheer chance and it reminded me of the  Charlie Schulz philosophy:

Think about these things:
1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.
2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.
3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America pageant.
4 Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.
5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.
6. Name the last decade's worth of World Series winners.

(I know it's targeted American but it would be wouldn't it! You could name the last 5 Wimbledon winners, or the Melbourne cup winners, you get the point)

The point is, few of us remember the headliners of yesterday and yet these people (or horses!) are brilliant for their achievements.  But we soon forget them.

1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.
2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.
3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.
4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.
5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.

That isn't so hard is it, and the smiles that memories of those people bring to your face make their efforts worthwhile.

So the quote is "The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials , the most money, or the most awards, they simply are the ones who care the most"

Teachers, Guiders, Scout Leaders, Youth workers are the people that children look back on and remember them as making a difference in their lives.

It's a nice feeling.

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The best window

This week's Gallery is 'A Favourite Place'

I love this window, even though it is right next to an industrial cooker and 3 sinks. 

Even though when I look out of it I always have sore feet and quite often an aching head.

 When the rain starts to clear.

And I look across the fields and over the city, I always feel at peace with the world.  Even if 26 people are demanding 26 pizzas be served all at the same time!








It is also the place where I took my most favourite photo and I wrote once before about it's story.

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New Core Muscles Post Back Surgery

Before my back injury I was the fittest I'd been since I was a teenager. In fact the amount of weight training I was doing was probably partly responsible for the injury. 

Since my last MRI I have gained some confidence back, the consultant told me that I'm not at any more risk than anyone else from injury.  It is safe to be training.  I do still suffer from back pain and mild sciatica, although I have cancelled my root block injection that was due this week, I just don't think my current level of pain warrants it. But I'm still not prepared to risk weights and crunches yet.

But I am wondering if it's time to move to another level of self help.  Strong core muscles are good for bad backs.  One school of thought is that weak muscles can actually lead to back pain, so maybe I'm now stuck in a vicious cycle.  Good core muscles do lead to better posture and the wii fit tells me that my posture is positively rubbish.

So it's time to motivate myself into doing something about it.  I've started to use my slendertone belt again.  It's a pain, literally, but it does help me to stand up straighter so I know it's doing something to those muscles in there but it's not enough alone.  I'm doing the 30 day plank challenge, which is a challenge. Once that starts to get me somewhere I'll add a second 30 day challenge of some sort.  If you've got one you know about leave it in the comments for me.  I need a challenge, I can't just do home stretches and reps daily, it's a bore chore and I end up just not doing it.

I'm still running, well I call it running, a real runner would call it a short distance jog.  But it's running compared to 30 minutes in front of Eastenders.  I'm back to 5k in 30 minutes but I don't want to go any faster, I think the load on my knees and back is too much.  Walking is the best exercise there is, walking up hill, but it takes time I just don't have and in the winter it's also a bore as I can't get out into the fields.
 


 Here is my before picture for you.  It's time to tighten that core.



















I'm a remarkably impatient person when it comes to this sort of thing, so here is my after photo.

Haven't I done well?!  No, it's not photo-shopped.  They are taken within minutes of each other, so let that be a warning to you when you are looking at your Facebook side bar sales pitches.

It does show what difference a good posture makes, and if I want that posture to be there naturally without a suck it in effort then I guess I'm going to have to work for it.





I'm looking fit enough on the outside but it's time to sort the inside out too.

I need a new core.





This week's gallery theme is 'new'.

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Money can't buy you class

Or maybe it should be: Money can't buy you cognitive intelligence.

I was sat watching a group of people thinking 'money can't buy you class' but these days it would seem that there has been a redefinition of class and according to the BBC, money is precisely what buys you class, money and how many times you can afford to get out socialising in a week.

So maybe I'm not actually talking about true 'class' but what, in my world, that defines 'class' or generally nice, caring people from the scrote. A term applied by HWMBO to 'the other type'.

For me swearing isn't part of it. Those who know me know I care a lot about people. I will carry a screaming child with no connection to me around on a long haul flight until it falls asleep to save a mother's sanity but I will call someone who tuts at said child and gives mother dirty looks an utter arse without shame and I consider the F-word to be one of the most versatile in the dictionary when used with discretion. At funeral or Guide meeting: nope; at desk when cat-A service crashes: oh yes indeedy.

For me 'class' is the ability to recognise there are other people that share this world besides you and your family. Our actions directly or indirectly affect others too and that matters.

I watched a 10 or 11 year old boy ram his bike into my parked one. He was also watched by his mother. I waited for her to say something. I expected as a minimum 'be careful' but she said nothing at all.

But it's not even about what I consider to be poor child behaviour going unchecked.

Perhaps it's about stepping aside for buggies, holding a door open for the next person, not leaving litter behind, closing a gate, not putting a group of chairs across a walk through, picking up someone else's coat if it falls to the floor, not brushing crumbs onto the floor.

All of these things, if done, can make the world a slightly nicer place. Lots of slightlies make a big difference.

Sometimes people or families live as if nobody else in the world exists or matters. Everything they do is done with that in mind. They might go on a parent rota if there is a threat of closure but they wouldn't otherwise offer to help. They would ensure their whole family gets a locker but wouldn't double up to enable other families to get one too. They will spread out to take up a whole picnic table rather than squish up to share.

I think I'm fairly well racked up in cognitive but fail in the 'self' part of emotional intelligence. COG is the same. We both get grumpy when things in the world are getting hard or scary or change is afoot. I will fall out with people quickly because I don't take time to rein my emotion in. I then go back to happy quickly as if the quick release of adrenaline cleared the air but it can leave other people reeling in my wake. I guess this isn't classy either.

So is class the stuck up woman that has a handbag full of expensive makeup, has wonderful manners and great conversation but wouldn't roll up her sleeves to help others in need?

Or is is the helper that cares about others, shares their table and swears like a trooper?

Is it somewhere inbetween?

There are some people I just cannot relate to and many, I don't doubt, that can't relate to me.

Life is a rich tapestry.

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Disarming with Empathy

I found this very moving.

It's a mind shift.

Imagine if the whole world made the mind shift at the same time. Just imagine the love, the peace, the understanding.



Is it time I stopped feeling so bitter about my fear of terrorism when growing up, probably. But I don't want to continue living in a world where that fear continues to exist.

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SuperCommissioner

This week's Gallery is 'Inspirational Women'.

I could have picked Mary Macarthur who fought for women's rights at the time of the suffragettes. She led the 1910 chainmakers’ 10 week strike in Cradley Heath that won a battle to establish the right to a fair wage.  You go girl.

Or maybe, Emily Wilding Davidson.  I really relate to her passion and the Darwinian way she unintentionally managed to die whilst fighting for them.  She got away with that one though, it being interpreted as the ultimate sacrifice for the cause. Votes for Women!

But no, I give you someone that has inspired me beyond belief.  If she hadn't had said "did you see me in Hello magazine with my Guides?!" There is no way I would have volunteered to do the best thing I have ever done.


So without further ado, I give you Abi, my County Commissioner.

She is constantly supportive and amazingly up beat.

In fairness, this was already a good and active county when she took over, but she has taken it from good to great, with her ever able never pointless assistant.

The roar when she walked out onto the stage at Charnwood just shows how much her county appreciates her.








She leads a mean campfire.

And can build one too.

And what she does well with the girls, the leaders also appreciate.  She manages to meet people at the level required.  It's a rare skill.

 

And she even scrubs up well to rub shoulders with the Chief Guide.

My Inspirational Women.

One of the questions for the gallery was 'who I think should be on a bank note?'  Well I think Abi should be, as in....lying on top of a million pounds worth...that would help us grow Guiding!


And just as a reminder, County Commissioner is a totally voluntary role. She gets no money for giving up her life completely for 5 years to Guiding.  I actually don't think there is money enough to cover it's worth.

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Training is more than learning

Our County have a weekend every year where we go away to one of of the training centres and train.

We do train, quite a lot actually. Reminders about the program, principles, paper work, planning, games, crafts. But as important as that is, it's not my main reason for going. It refreshes me, it remotivates me, it reminds me that there are lots of ladies, lovely ladies, doing the same things week in, week out. It reminds me of the fun parts, why we do it, how good it is for the girls, the community...oh heck, I'll say even the world.

On the way to Waddow we stopped off in Morecambe if you can work out how that is 'on the way' you are a better man than me to see Eric.  That was enough to fill my tank for a while and that was before we even got there.  In the car on the way up with the leaders from my district we discussed many things districty.  Useful in it's self.

There was 64 leaders from my county gathering for the training, so district was left behind as soon as we arrived.

It seemed necessary to explore, find the dressing up cupboard and put on a rabbit head.  Look, it seemed like a good idea at the time!  What amused me more was the leader by the side just texting away Guide fashion totally ignoring the dancing rabbit.  In Guiding it is rare to do something stupid that actually raises an eyebrow, there is usually a queue of others waiting to 'have a go' too.

Waddow was slightly over subscribed with not a bed left in the house (or the cottages) so the dining room was fairly packed in tight.  I couldn't be bothered to keep asking people to move so I could get to the buffet table.  I decided to stack my breakfast Guide style.  

The training weekend also gives me the opportunity to experience what a residential might feel like for a Brownie, Guide or Ranger.  Waiting for a gong for meals, setting places, fetching food, doing crafts whilst being shown how.  As I watch the trainers it helps me think about how I might be perceived by my girls and how some of them might feel about being away with 'strangers' or at least, not close friends and family.  How it feels to be a little out of water with the way things work like standing behind chairs for Grace or knowing the words to songs.  It helps me think a little more about it.

I think you might be hearing a bit more about what I thought and what I learnt this time.

At the end we were given a plant to wrap up and chose a label for.  I very carefully chose 'thank you for making Guiding a way of life'. It made me feel really good about myself.  But then the trainer had one more surprise, she said 'now give your plant to some one else in the room to say thank you to them.'  I didn't want to, I had treated the plant in my hand as the thank you to me and was feeling very good about it.  I reluctantly swapped with the lady next to me saying 'but I really liked mine, can we swap back again' and kindly she did.  But I wonder how I made her feel, did she feel unthanked?  It worries me.  I feel a little selfish, but I'm still looking at my little plant and little card and liking it very much.

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New and Old Guiding Style

This week's Gallery theme is 'new'.
I have been away this weekend training with lots of other Guiders from my County. 

These trainings give me a chance to renew my enthusiasm and motivation levels.

And it gave me the opportunity to try to break in 2 new pairs of running shoes (at once).

Waddow seems to have new facilities every time I go.  From new tents in the old style....

...to very new style.  In fact, positively modern.

But no matter how new the 'tents', those Guides still built their washstand.  Old traditions live on, even with a new plastic bowl on top of the old style gadget.

New and old in blissful harmony.

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Yes, I do girls, lots of them!

This week's Gallery is 'Girls'.  This has been really hard for me.  My life is stuff choca full of girls: 538,000 if we include all the Guiding members I haven't bumped into yet.

There were at least 2000 at Charnwood and  12,000 at the Big Gig...so I'm trying my hardest to meet them all!

I love this picture from the Big Gig:

Lights over 12,000 Guides.

I can't imagine anything ever matching the feeling of closeness I got at Charnwood 2011. I have poured through the photos loving every second of it but not a single one captures the strength of feeling I have about it.

So I spent some time updating my montage video with Charnwood, the Big Gig and of course my mountain top moment on the Mall.  I hope you have 3 minutes to spare so you too can feel my passion:

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What do city kids do?

This weeks Gallery is 'Adventure'

I don't live in a completely remote area, it's a large town but surrounded by fields on the edge of the Welland Valley.  Everyday I feel lucky to live so close to the countryside and often wonder how children in cities even begin to enjoy nature in the way the children here get the chance.

Today, I set out on a steady, but cold, walk and went through a field I've not walked in over a year.  As usual, there was hardly anyone around. But everywhere I looked there were sled tracks.

Still no one just sheep and snow as  far as the eye could see.

And then shapes much less sheepy started to appear.  The shouts and squeals gave them away first.

The 'bushes' on the horizon giving them away by their bright colours.

 Lots of kids, running, shouting, laughing, falling...

 Climbing

At every corner I turned or style I climbed there was another set of kids that had claimed a part of a field as their own for a while.  Building snowmen, making snow angels, snowballing but mainly snow boarding and sledging.

And as I headed home more kids were coming out over the fields on the hunt for the best hills.

There was hardly any adults around, with the tiddlers there were mums and dads but mainly it was tweens and teens walking a mile or 2 across the snowy fields to the hills with their friends.

What do the city kids do when the snow falls?  Because I know it isn't this.

Ask the teens around here what they think of it and they will tell you many things about hating to catch the school buses, the lack of good accessible transport to them, the lack of things to do.  Very few of them are aware of how in years to come, these trawls across the fields with their mates will be the happy memories they will look back on.  They have no idea how lucky they are having these adventures and won't until it they are no more.

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Live your life the way you want?

I read a tweet recently:

"Live your life the way you want it, not what other people want. Don't live your life to please anyone but you."

Initially it seems like an empowering way to live.

But I pondered it for a while  and decided I couldn't disagree more.

In fact, I decided the less people that think this way, the better a world we might live in.

"Live your life the way you want it, not what other people want."

Does this include laws?  Ok let's assume laws must be kept.  What about general common decency?  What about my family?  To be quite honest there are many many mornings where I really don't want to haul myself out of bed to shake a grumpy teenager, so be grunted at by HWMBO and to please my manager and mortgage provider.  Nothing would make me happier than to Shirley Valentine, that's what I want to do right about now. But my family would probably prefer I didn't.  What they want matters quite a lot to me, as it does to many.

"Don't live your life to please anyone but you."

Probably shouldn't hold a door open for a mum with a pram then because to be quite honest I'm a busy lady and nothing would have done me better than to let the door go and rush off but I thought it might make that tired mum a little less stressed if she could just push pram straight through.

It made me think of a post I wrote 2 years ago.

"Thank you to the teenage metal head who spoke so politely, it broke my preconceived opinion of youth today.

Thank you to the man who smiled patiently when yet again I got the timing wrong at the chicane and he had to wait.

Thank you to the sea of volunteers whose same faces turn up again and again in youth groups, on stage, at open days and remind me that I live in community not a faceless town.

Thank you to the man in the shop who smiled and made me feel like more like a woman and less of a drudge.

Thank you to the shop assistants who smile at my inane comments despite having heard the same thing at least 20 times already today."

If all those people hadn't tried to please me I wouldn't have been half so happy and how wonderful that even after this time I still remember how lovely those things felt. 

If I can make one person feel as good because I chose to please them not necessarily myself and you do the same and then they do the same and then.....and then.....

Small stones make big ripples.  And if you want to fill your bucket you do it by giving not receiving.  It doesn't take much, it's the insignificant every day acts of kindness that make mountains of difference.

So I really think that the person who decides to "Live your life the way you want it not what other people want. Don't live your life to please anyone but you."  is probably not going to be the happiest button in the tin.  They might be the big brass buckle that everyone sees first but the happiest button is happy doing what it does best.

Have a nice day.


Here's another 'Man' living it the way he wants:

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The most important part of Parenting well

This one line, taken from my recent Parenting Course,  says it all for me

The small consistencies of every day add up.

I have always had a clear 'no is no', 'yes is yes' and 'maybe' is I'm up for negotiation.  I have always tried not to jump to a no, to be sure to ask questions, to allow negotiation to play a part.  Hard with a young child but sometimes possible, much easier with a teenager if you are prepared to consider yourself to be a counsellor not a conductor in this parenting game.

The small consistencies of every day do add up.  The politeness, saying nice things, time spent together, asking how a day went, that kiss on the head as they leave for the day or at least a shout through the bedroom door that you are leaving and you would find it pleasing if they emerged from their bed before you got home from work.

Sometimes it's hard to be consistent, sometimes it's easier to throw yourself down on the sofa and declare wine is the only thing to cure the day you've had, that a rush around in the morning is easier than a breakfast together.  Sometimes life happens but small things are exactly that and don't take much effort.

Small stones create big ripples, ripples that roll far and wide.  The family morals and consistencies you give to your children today will be their morals and guides of the future.  Take care you show them the ones you actually want them to carry through life.

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The Parenting Course

I have recently done a 5 week parenting course at a local Church.   It is a lovely old Church with very modern halls, kitchens, facilities and very active youth workers. 

Each week comprised of getting in and sitting down to a lovely cooked meal, and generally nattering over the meal about life, teenagers, not having killed your kids this week etc

Then there was a DVD to watch presented by Nicky and Sila Lee.  It was easy watching, informative, not condescending, not bible bashing - just common sense reminders.  Lots of different parents and teenagers are interviewed with plenty of sound bite pieces about different topics. 

This was followed by dessert actually a hearty pudding! and guided discussion about the topics the DVD covered.

We then had tea and coffee whilst watching the second part of the DVD, plenty of table discussion afterwards and tootle off home feeling rather warmed that everyone has 'issues' of some sort, at some time, that actually it's normal and a lot of tips for handling them.

I seriously can't recommend this enough, it you get the chance and you have 11-18 year olds do it.  For me it was £3.50 a week of great company, a lovely welcoming atmosphere, lovely food and a lot to be learnt.

It is part of the Alpha series, but Religious or not I would still say do it.   didn't even realise it was Alpha until the very end of the 2nd week, which shows how little it directly refers to the Church.

There is a course for 0 to 10 year olds in the same series and a marriage course.  I would like to do the marriage course, I'm not sure I would get the weekly commitment out of OH so if any of you fancy a weekly night ou.....oh, oh I see....damn!

I can't precis 12 hours of learning into one blog post for you, but I'm sure that snippets will appear through my posts, although I am pleased to say that a lot of the attitude I take now sits very well with their ethos.

http://www.relationshipcentral.org/parenting-teenagers-course

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You can't bring me down

This week's Gallery is fitness.

I have always exercised, long after I left school I carried on playing hockey for a ladies team.  I then moved onto a running track at a local stadium.  When I moved further away from the city, I started step aerobics locally, then circuit training.  I've always been active and finally went back to running as the one thing that always lifted me come rain or shine.

I was running everyday regardless of the weather.

And then my back injury struck.  I've carried on walking my running routes in good weather and walking on the treadmill in bad.    Walking has kept my general fitness levels up but it's not the same.

I am finally starting to feel improvement with my back again and I've started trying to run again.  No doubt it's far too soon, I have no self control at all, I desperately want to feel good again.  The endorphin rush of a good run is a high I love.

 

 

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(Not) Throwing bricks at windows

Sooooo, I'm stood outside in the cold at a tennis tournament. Clearly not watching COG playing tennis as I have my head buried in this but that's ok because she prefers if I am here but not watching win:win.

She generally gets annihilated at these tournaments and I fail to see the enjoyment she gets out of it. But she does enjoy it, so I drive her to them, get bored and drive her home again.

What I do find interesting is watching the groups of kids hanging around between matches. The girls generally sit and watch but the boys need to 'do stuff'. The younger ones ride scooters around.  The older ones kick tennis balls in improvised footy, they 'short volley' balls in small areas, in fact anything to keep from being bored.

It strikes me that there is little difference between these kids and the ones in the streets at the back of shutdown factories throwing bricks at windows. They are all just keeping busy, killing the boredom.

So what is the difference?  Some of it is money, there is a fair or unfair share of X5s and iPhone 5s around here, but this isn't an expensive afternoon. It cost £12.50 for the whole thing no extras.  The cost of her weekly tennis in general is less than an average smoker's or drinker's habit or a weekly family trip to McDonalds. A trip to Starbucks would wipe the floor with a few weeks worth!

So I think a lot of the difference is parental time. Every child here has a parent hanging around.  Most look cold and bored like me. Some look like they are enjoying it, mainly the pushy parents, I hate the conversations with them:

"We are a huuuuge tennis family you know. Oh yes, we just adore touring the tournament circuit"
"hmmmm, great, fantastic" the flat sarcasm is unrecognised or ignored
"I love how they spend all the summer hols on the courts"
"COG spends most of it in bed"
Pushy Parent sucks teeth sharply "well, yes, sweetumns1 does like a lie in occasionally, but best discouraged we think. You could try evening coaching"
"I think that breaks her ASBO curfew"
Watch pushy parent check for X5 keys and zip handbag shut.

But that's just my in-house entertainment, I think they are really here for the same reasons as me. Knowing it is better to keep kids busy doing stuff or they will be off somewhere doing stuff we'd prefer they weren't.

There is one coach running the whole thing and my guess is he isn't making a whole lot of money out of today. My guess is he makes his money coaching one-to-one middle class, middle aged ladies that nag sweetums1 out of bed then like to lunch after a session with the coach.

I may be stereotyping a tad.

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The ultimate stress reliever

I'll be honest, I'd had a dreadful week at work, so stressful I had started to have palpitations and room spinning.

A weekend in the country was exactly the order of the day. 

In a field with 300 others!

Soooo, I may have spent the best part of 8 hours in a marquee with 2 sessions of 50 Guides, 1 session of 50 brownies and 1 session of 72 yes I said 72 Rainbows. Now admittedly, 72 Rainbows in a fairly tight space, all needing help with their fish template, straw threading and mermaid cutting is fairly intensive but...

...as always the company and the location sooth away the work pains and take me to the place that matters, the place that makes a difference, the place where there is a common aim, a common understanding and a sharing of the load.

GirlGuidingUK enables girls and young women to develop their potential and to make a difference to the world.

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