My excuses for not going out today. 1- It is too late to go. I got up a bit late today and so by the time I was more or less ready to go, it was around 11:30 am. Far too late to be going out for coffee and writing a blog in a cafe. Also I have discovered that the Parco Cafe in Vauxhall Park dos not provide wifi for its customers. There are other places nearby. 2- I have had two autumn vaccinations which have left me with sore arms. Right Arm flu vaccine and left arm covid vaccine. So feeling a bit of pain. (How feeble is that). 3- The weather is turning cold and damp. Octogenarians do not fair well in such conditions. So am up in the loft again.
You may recall that five years ago I had been to see the Head Teacher at the Lilian Baylis Technology School about giving a lecture to Year Sevens about the development of the Rule Of Law and the day before my debut I received a telephone call from the Head Teacher saying the lectures had to be cancelled. I sent her an email saying I was sorry about the problems and she wrote back on the 13 October 2021, almost five years ago to the day:
Hi Edward, no need to apologise. This last week and a bit have been rather terrible, but we’re trying to get back to business “as usual”. Apologies for not letting you know sooner, we looked at some of the aspects of the whole day we had planned after some staff complaints about keeping it, and decided yesterday we would cancel.
I’ll be in touch with some other dates very soon.
Thanks,
Karen
I have not had any other dates offered as yet, but I have today sent her an email asking again if it would be possible to try again, as I am older now and perhaps better able to put across my point of view with a more mature mind. Tee tee. Of course, I am mindful of the fact that my addressing 11 and 12 year old kids about law, may be stretching things, coupled with the fact that I know absolutely nothing about the lives of 11 and 12 year olds in 2026. Yes I was once their age and attending secondary school for the first time, but my time as a 12 year old was 1954. There is a gap as large as the Pacific Ocean between being 12 in 1954 and being 12 in 2026. My time in 1954 is ancient history. It is an antique era they have little or no knowledge of, whereas my contemplating their world of 2026 from a 1954 perspective is pure science fiction. They would clearly think ‘what has this old fart got to tell us, what does he know about us?’. They would be absolutely right.
In 1954 there were no smart phones, no TikTok, no instagram, no Facebook, no WhatsApp, texting, FaceTime and any number of internet connections of social platforms, no AI. They have grown up with it. It is second nature to them. How can I bridge the gap to create a meaningful dialogue? I think I have a way, through humour and candour. I would certainly advise them that I was not in the room to give them a ‘when I was our age’ speech. I was never their age nor would I ever be able to be, but I might have some information they might like to take in, or not, as the case my be. If I could impart a small scintilla of what the duty of care and rule of law is actually about, it would be a good thing, would it not? So I have sent Ms Chamberlain another request to have a go.
I would tell them how scared I was when I started at a new school. I was worried I wouldn’t fit in and no-one would like me. Some of the other kids were very nice to me and we made friends. Others didn’t like me around at all or I was simply ignored. Some tried to push me around and some did push me around. I was too shy and scared to do anything about it. But little by little I began to fit in. I found out what was OK and not OK. The class became sort of unit as did the school. I had friends, some closer than others. I had a first crush on a girl and I was jealous of the popular guys who seemed to have little trouble socialising and making friends, particularly with girls. . There were rules and regulations we followed as well as the school yard “rules” that was self imposed by the kids themselves. If somebody got punished for something they did no do, but someone else did, I really felt just how unfair that could be. Indeed we all experienced that feeling of what was fair or unfair. It was equally unfair if someone got away with something and not punished. In effect what was right and what was wrong. I experienced a kind of innate sense of just what was correct and acceptable and what was inappropriate. I not only experienced a sense of fair play but of shame for not always standing up for it. I ran the gamut of emotions and began to grow up. I would tell them all that and I would hope it might resonate a tiny bit with their present circumstances. It may not at all, but worth a try.
I have no real idea of what it takes to make better citizens. I just have a thought that perhaps a simple chat with an old man might make a small difference. Questioning and understanding why we do the things we do from an early age may benefit some. They may get an idea or some indication as to where they might want to take their lives. I guess that is what education is about, feeding enquiring minds, or at least getting the minds to make enquiries. An understanding of how societies work is surely on display in the school-yard. Should it hurt to bring that to their attention? Would it hurt to understand that what happens in the school is happening all over the world to some degree. Disputes, friendships, alliances, intimacies, rivalries, riches, poverty etc.. it’s all there. I would just like to try to put it to some effect.
We live in a pretty remarkable society. Even although the turnout in the Holborn and St.Pancras bye election was quite low, it has resulted in the election of a Somali refugee who came to the UK at the age of 7 and is now in her 40’s. She had a rather seemingly meteoric rise from councillor to MP, but the mere fact that as he has been elected, even if by a small majority, is a good thing. We still have decent multicultural electors who give people of all sorts a chance to serve and hopefully make a difference. It is quite brave to put yourself forward to be a legislator and representative for a constituency of over 96,000 people. That’s a lot of responsibility. Good luck to her.
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