lazybeds

Through the naked trees
The winter burn is a string
Of grey green jewels

The bleak public discourse about education persists. Nadine Cole of Girls Aloud, reflecting the drivel that has become increasingly respectable, says that you have to accept that some kids are just not going to be as bright as others. When I read this, alongside the same sort of thing from from ”professionals”, I remember Anthea. It was 2nd year RE and I had posed the question: Why did Jesus tell his disciples to keep quiet about the miracles? Blank looks all around and then Anthea’s hand went up. This caused an expectant hush since she just never volunteered anything and had a problematic stammer. (We teachers had, in our perceptive way, dubbed her as not very bright.) She went bright red, stammered and stopped. We all waited for her to try again - and the wave of encouraging patience was coming from the whole room, not just me. After two or three tries, she got it out. I can’t remember the detail now, but it was a simple exposition of the concept that Professor Barret called the Veiled Messiah, with the additional insight that in the fragile early stages of communication aimed at developing significant relationships, tentative and obscure gambits may be used. I was stunned. For the rest of term she made no other contribution. It was a brief and brilliant volcanic eruption. I heard later that she had taken certificate RE in 3rd year but had made rather a hash of it, because her writing skills were poor. She is just one example - so don’t give me any crap about ability. We don’t know what we are sitting on top of.

Mention of back stairs in old houses the other day reminded me of a tragi-comic incident years ago in Islay. The old manse had back stairs with the additonal oddity that they had a door at the top. Which was fine if you knew about it. 80 year-old visitor Mrs Tregunna was heading for the bathhroom, opened the wrong door and stepped into the void. Alerted by the slowly decelerating series of thuds we rushed to the scene. She was OK but a little bemused. The most immediately alarming thing were the loud wails of her husband who, reasonably enough, reckoned that she would not have survived the fall. That must have been some experience for the old lady as the brain hurriedly advanced draft hypothesis after draft hypothesis of explanation. Anyway, Dad made a virtue out of bolting the stable door by eliminating the stairwell, thus extending the bathroom on the upstairs and making a cute cupboard for the hoover below. Interestingly, this is the only domestic adaptation he made as a result of an accident. The many others (stories for another day)he just did for the hell of it.

Sad but not unexpected day when Blair announces the continuance of Trident for ever and ever amen. I sometimes think the world is being run by weans, but then I think of the weans I know and their approach is so much more sensible, mature, imaginative, responsible etc. etc.than that bunch of pipsqueaks, arseholes and hangers on. And the sickening silence and acquiescence of MPs - lots of jokes and childish put-downs in the Commons as they decide to continue with the most barbaric weapon imaginable - making us all suicide bombers. And this crap about reducing the number of warheads - Genocide Lite. Anyone know any good countries that would take me?

Sad but not unexpected day when Blair announces the continuance of Trident for ever and ever amen. I sometimes think the world is being run by weans, but then I think of the weans I know and their approach is so much more sensible, mature, imaginative, responsible etc. etc.than that bunch of pipsqueaks, arseholes and hangers on. And the sickening silence and acquiescence of MPs - lots of jokes and childish put-downs in the Commons as they decide to continue with the most barbaric weapon imaginable - making us all suicide bombers. And this crap about reducing the number of warheads - Genocide Lite. Anyone know any good countries that would take me?