Migrating

Almost everywhere we look today migration is bandied about as a bad thing. Why?

We are, by nature, a curious folk and this curiosity has led to all the amazing things we now have in the world.  Migration brings new people, experiences, viewpoints, cultures, tastes, sounds, sights, smells, collaborations and discoveries.

How many of us love a good curry?  Or pizza?  Burger?  Crepes?  Falafel?  Bake and Buljol?

We may not like or agree with everyone in the world but the beauty of freedom is that if you do not like someone you can move away.  (I almost wrote 'walk' then realised that I usually 'roll'!!)

I am pretty sure that all those people shouting about immigrants being bad enjoy the benefits of those immigrants.  How many of our doctors and nurses are immigrants?  What about cleaners? Teachers? Teaching Assistants?  Carers?  Restaurant staff?  Hotel staff?  Builders? Office staff?

Just as so many people have chosen to come to this country many of our natives have chosen to emigrate and give the benefit of their skills to another nation.  This freedom has allowed us to collaborate with each other and great discoveries have been made. 

We are a world of innovators-from the person creating recipes in their kitchen to the person designing a space station we all contribute to the world.  I could not reach so many of you without the internet being so easily accessible from my bed and this connectivity has eased my isolation immeasurably.

IN the spirit of migration a friend recently suggested that I blog with Wordpress so that I can reach a wider audience and in the few shorts days of doing just that I have received more feedback from readers than in all the time with Blogger so, in the spirit of migration, I have decided to move.  All my posts have been transferred and this will be my last Blogger post.

Please do join me in my new Wordpress home.

Journalists needed

"Journalism is the work and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word applies to the occupation (professional or not), the methods of gathering information, and the organising literary styles."

Have you seen the television drama 'The Newsroom'?  It only lasted three seasons (and by the end was a bit disappointing) but it started out well and was refreshing in the way it showed how news reporting no longer gives people actual information with which they can have informed opinions and decisions. 

The reality of current news reporting is so similar as to be embarrassing.

Throughout the Brexit campaigning there was a very great deal of nonsense bandied about and there was a very, very disappointing lack of actual facts and information available to Joe Public.  The Guardian published an article on Saturday 25th June which illustrates the ignorance created by a lack of actual journalism. 

Sure we have lots of newspapers, magazines, radio and television news and talk shows but the most widely available of these  have very sadly become much like their US counterparts where they parrot what the politicians say instead of actually reporting the real information.  Mr Orwell was right.

Now that the votes have been counted we are seeing reports and articles informing us of everything we gain from being part of the EU and what we are losing.  I have even seen an article debunking the most ridiculous claims of the Leave campaign.

Where was this information before the vote?  The information was published but if it is not easy for Joe Public to understand it may as well be non-existent.

Now that its too late we have journalists creating easier-to-understand pieces and many people are realising that they did not understand what they were voting for.

How do you know?

How do you know what the right thing to do is?

M has eczema and allergies and he really, really hates using his medicine. When he was younger it was simply routine to apply them twice daily but he's nine years old now and since he was seven he has been resisting- a lot.

He's a young man and I have to respect his wishes, after all it is his body. The alternative is what? Forcing him? Then what? 

Would it be acceptable to forcibly apply medication to the body of a teenager or adult? Of course not. It isn't acceptable to do that to a child either.

How do you get a child to understand the importance of something and to do it even if they don't like it?

Maybe I've been too lenient and he should just do as he's told and shut up about it?

That's just not how we parent.

We all deserve to be respected and that includes children. It is right that children be trusted and respected just as it is vital for them to know that being frustrated or angry or sad is normal. We do, however, have a responsibility to ensure our reactions are managed and appropriate.

Easier said than done.

Imagine being itchy all over all the time and having to use two or three emollients twice daily on top of taking oral medicine and inhalers and this is topped off with not being able to eat the nice things you want that everyone else can have.

I think I'd be screaming in frustration.

So, back to my question, how do you know what the right thing to do is?

And how do you get a child to understand and accept that thing?

Mindfulness

After a lovely chat with a friend this afternoon I decided to finally get to one of the FutureLearn courses I'd signed up for-Mindfulness for Wellbeing and Peak Performance. 

Mindfulness is something that has interested me for some time now and I've been trying to practice meditation as well but I have no frame of reference so no idea how I'm doing!

Back to the course, the videos were interesting but the 'discussion' was a bit all over the place I thought. There were so many comments that in the end I decided to post my thoughts and just see what responses I got. One of the posts I submitted was about children already being mindful and parents usually looking at the 'big picture' and how this clash is likely the culprit of many disagreements. 



Another subscriber took my post to mean that I was looking for advice and suggested that a greater understanding of the other person's position may reduce the number and intensity of clashes. Ummm, you think?!

It is pretty well established that if you speak to kids on their level [and not patronisingly] they tend to give a more favourable response.  To be honest, the old adage 'do unto others' is a good standard to live by; it is baffling that so many people do not recognise that children are individuals to be respected (and not just there to be seen and not heard or follow orders).

Here I am

I've been thinking about starting this blog for a while and [after spending what felt like hours trying to come up with a blog name that wasn't already taken] I'm finally here writing the first post.

The kids are keen though I'm wondering if they really know what blogging involves-time will tell.

I have systemic lupus erythematosus and fibromyalgia.  A few years ago the medicine I was prescribed began to produce unbearable side effects so I had to stop taking them. My illness became uncontrolled and things got pretty bad so I had to retire. My health was worsening and I could no longer self-care. 

Around the same time(ish) we discovered M's allergies and asthma which added to the eczema that they both have.

On top of these health issues things were made worse by a discriminating school with no regard for safety or accessibility and a dishonest headteacher [can you tell I have residual anger?] so B and I decided to home educate The Kids.

This road has not been easy.

Educating The Kids at school would be an easier and simpler solution- but would it be the RIGHT solution?

We've had some great times and we've had times when I am stuck in bed (literally!) for weeks. It is  a challenging path but anything worth doing is worth doing well, or something like that.