Interesting seeing Kate Bottley in her bright red top on Songs of Praise. I guess she has to tone down a bit for the BBC. But it was really special to see a programme from the local area.
The red squirrel wood is always advertised as being in Formby, but I think the better end of the wood is in our village. Thankfully parking is harder at this end so there is a better chance of a quiet walk. That is as long as there is no Martian Invasion (it was where they filmed part of War of the Worlds). But it was interesting seeing the wood on TV. I know I can walk there, but there is something about seeing where you live on TV.
And then there were all those folk I know taking part, I don’t know if any of the people filmed 14 years ago realised they were going to be shown today.
I’m not sure why it means so much to see familiar faces and places on TV, but it meant something.
A lot of people choose to go “home” or be with family when they are ill (one of the big problems with the people really ill with this virus is the isolation). I guess at our core there is something that draws us to the familiar.
Douglas Adams described it really well – a piece of elastic that joins you to your place of birth.
There was an interesting travel programme on today that went to Lesbos and incidentally filmed some refugees arriving.
I remember sitting round a fire in a refugee camp with a bunch of Syrian men drinking their incredibly sweet tea (something like 6 spoons of sugar a cup). they were discussing where they should go in Europe. They asked me where I thought they would be best, and my answer was Syria. Every one of them responded positively to that – all of them loved their home and wanted to be there.
Yes, there are some refugees that want to move their life to a new country, but the majority I have met have not wanted to leave “home” and would really like the situation to change so they can go back.
I think you also see it with “ex-pats” who take a little bit of home with them to the country they move to. The Irish pubs that are in every major city in the world might even be a symptom.
We see people searching for ancestors – a big business.
Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of father, mother, spouse, children, brothers, sisters—yes, even one’s own self!—can’t be my disciple