Long ago, when I was young there was a shortage of everything — and I suspect in particular money, plus after the War there was a shortage of everything so every one had to “make do and mend”.

 The wrapping on parcels was carefully removed, any string wrapped up and the paper folded, all ready to be used again. Everything around the house was treated with care. Furniture and fittings were made to last and any spare food (although not a lot in my  house as there were five children) was recycled for another meal, and in fact, in our street was a bin which people put spare food, which I always believed was to feed pigs. (although this was never verified) but it seemed a good use of food waste.     All this was fine, but for me the most annoying thing was that as the fourth of four daughters most, if not all my clothes were second had — yes I was the original “Second hand Rose”.   To make thing worse, the sister immediately older than me was much taller and better looking than me and I always felt that I was invisible. One Christmas, much to my amazement there were two party dresses, one pink and one blue flowers in amongst my gifts.  Now I knew that they had never belonged to anyone in the family and I felt  very excited about it.

Imagine my shock when I discovered that they had belonged to one of my mother’s friends daughters. No longer did  I want to wear them and, in fact, they were used to dress up my dolls. A case of one very unhappy little girl and unsuccessful recycling.

However, one year, my mother did make me a new party dress of blue taffeta with a net overskirt and flowers at the waist — I was thrilled and went off to all the parties very much delighted with myself.   I am not sure if this was to make up for the earlier party dresses.  Naturally my brother, being a boy, never had any second hand clothes, but then I don’t think that this was important to him, being a boy.  In any event, being the “son and heir” he always got the best.     Nowadays, I think we have, to some extent, a lot of recycling.   This is partly due to the fact that we seem to be in a recession and also because we are so much more aware of the shortages of resource on our planet.  I know that clothes do not always wear out and that many people  (including myself) still recycle clothes by sending them to the Charity Shops, but I, for one, have never bought anything there.   I will just put it down to my earlier life.

Liz Duncan 

For many people, one of the scariest things in life is to stand up in front of a group of people and give a speech.  It doesn’t matter whether the group is friends - e.g. at a wedding – or whether it is a group of strangers, the feelings are the same.  We can prepare well and practise but it does not take away that fear.  Of course, the more one speaks in public the more confident one becomes but for many the occasion is a ‘one off’.  So how can we deal with these fears and positively enjoy the occasion?

‘Fear’ or F.E.A.R. is simply ‘Future Expectations Appearing Real’.  We create our own fearful feelings through our imagination – the ‘What ifs’

‘What if I forget what I am going to say?’

‘What if I stumble over the words?’

‘What if I bore everyone?’

Why does this negative internal chatter affect us so much and how can we change it?

We have a conscious and subconscious part of our brain.  The conscious is that part which takes in information and makes decisions.  The subconscious controls the reactions to the messages sent to it by the conscious, it never questions or makes decisions, it just believes what it is told.  Consequently all those negative messages our conscious is sending to the subconscious are being acted upon.  The result is our stomach churns, our mouth goes dry and we feel really nervous.  To change the way we feel we need to change those negative voices into positive ones. 

The phrases need to be in the first person ‘I’.  When the subconscious hears ‘I’ it becomes alert and ready for a command.  The instruction should be in the present tense (it’s happening now) and it needs to be specific and positive.

For example –

‘I am speaking clearly and confidently.’

Not

‘I am not stumbling over my words.’

Practise this and replace every negative statement with a positive one.

In everyday life avoid speaking negatively to your friends or colleagues, it has the same effect on your subconscious.  Instead of saying ‘I am really worried/nervous about this.’ You could say, ‘I am working at controlling my nerves.’

Finally, remember to believe in yourself and overcome those last minute nerves.  I recall many years ago, standing in the wings of a stage waiting to make my entrance in my first amateur dramatic play.  I tried to remember my first line (or any other line for that matter) and nothing!  I was beginning to go into panic when I stopped and told myself – ‘I’ve learnt my lines, I have successfully rehearsed them, just trust yourself.’  And sure enough, as I stepped on to the stage the words began to flow.

Remember, when you come to make your speech do your preparation, practise your speech, think positively and trust yourself .  Do all of these things and enjoy the experience.  

Lesley Smith

What do I write on a blog? Would other people be interested in what I have to say?  Who knows?  But here goes.  I joined POWERtalk GB many years ago — long before I had even heard of the Internet, webpages and blogs.  So I definitely did not join in order to become a blogger.

When the Edinburgh Toastmistress club was started up again in 1971 I was working as an Administrator but had just landed a job as a Further Education lecturer.  It occurred to me that this might just give me more confidence to stand in front of a class of adults, some of whom could well be older than me, and teach them.  I still remember the first topic I was given — “You have won £1 million. What would you spend it on?”  I think I spoke for about a minute.  But that was the start, both of my Further Education career and my ongoing fascination and involvement with communication in the widest sense.

Communication is so important in life.  We are social beings, but not perfect, so to be able to hone our skills in speaking, listening, organising, debating, contributing to discussions in meetings, minute-taking and finally chairing meetings in a welcoming, friendly, supportive atmosphere of a club meeting is one of the major plus points of ITC, now POWERtalk. 

At school I was terrified to open my mouth at a debate; at university it was an ordeal to present a paper to my tutorial group.  Taking minutes was fine for me after my secretarial training, but to take part and to chair a meeting…

I enjoyed teaching in Further Education.  Yes, some of the students were older than me.  Some were men and women who wanted to change careers of get back into the workplace after a break.  I enjoyed researching the subjects I taught — at the same time as I was enjoying researching for the speeches I was making in ITC. The opportunity for promotion came and I had the confidence to  go for it and eventually became head of section.  More communication skills were required now — delegating, listening, organising timetables, counselling and meetings. 

In ITC I was taking part (and winning) speech contests and debating — how proud my parents were with my achievements.  I held office, club right up to region and finally helped organize an international convention here in Scotland.  This would not have happened without the support of fellow ITC members, each of us putting our ITC training into action.

I am still a member of POWERtalk, now retired from lecturing, but still learning and improving my communication skills with my friends in The Rovers Club and Stirling POWERtalk.

If you have just been surfing the internet and found yourself reading this, I hope it was of interest — it’s never too late to improve your communication skills for business or for pleasure. 

Diana Porterfield

First I would like to explain that one Japanese word usually implies various kinds of meanings and therefore they describe different Japanese words.  I assume this is the case with English words.  I would like to mention the various meanings of this word “Shibui” here, as follows:—
 
1.    Mouth-puckering
Bitter (tea)
Sour persimmon
Rough wine

2.    Glum, sour, sullen
Look glum (blue)
Frown at/on
Pull a wry face
Grimace

3.    Quiet and simple
Sober, austere
Be tight, stingy, tight-fisted:
(Don’t wait for Gillian to buy a drink — she too tight-fisted)
Be a miser
(On environmental spending, the president is a miser)

4.    Tasteful
Shibui – a sense of beauty：this category fits “Wabi-Sabi”.
In traditional Japanese aesthetics, Wabi-Sabi is world view acceptance of transience and imperfection. The aesthetic is sometimes described as one of appreciating beauty that is “imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete” in nature.  It is prevalent throughout all forms of Japanese art.

Wabi-Sabi is a composite of two interrelated aesthetic concepts.  Wabi may be translated as “subdued, austere beauty”, while Sabi means “rustic patina”.
Characteristics of Wabi-Sabi aesthetics and principles include asymmetry, roughness, simplicity, economy, austerity, modesty, intimacy, and the appreciation of both natural objects and the forces of nature.

Zen Garden of Ryoanji in Kyoto is an good example of the Wabi-Sabi arts. The clay wall, which is stained by age with subtle brown and orange tones, reflects Sabi principles, with the rock garden reflecting Wabi principles.

Reiko Uchiyama
Nagoya, Japan
27/11/22

The final day of the Rovers  Training Weekend started with a workshop on ‘Expanding your Word Power’ led by Vice President Iris Gibson. After a break for refreshments the second workshop  on writing was led by the President, Rosemary Low, and the Secretary, Laurence Coates.

A brief evaluation session followed before the weekend was brought to a close.

The Rovers Training Weekend in Carlisle commenced with an informal meal at SannaS Sardinian Restaurant on Friday night. Members enjoyed a relaxed atmosphere and there were a lot of favourable comments afterwards about the meal.

Saturday morning commenced with the AGM followed, after a short break by the speech contest. The winner of the contest was Yvonne Baker, pictured below receiving the Tibbie Brown trophy from club president, Rosemary Low.

President Rosemary presenting the trophy to winner Yvonne Baker

After lunch the club parliamentarian, Ruth Maltman, led a workshop on Practical Parliamentary Procedure. The second part of the afternoon was a mini debate chaired by Margaret Robertson.

In the evening we had a meal at the Crown and Mitre hotel followed by table topics led by Nancy Sanderson.

Members and Guests at the Crown and Mitre

Janya Statue

The Rovers Spring Weekend took place this year in the historic city of Chester, in Cheshire, NW England from 22^nd to 24th April 2022. We were fortunate to have fairly good weather with little rain — always a plus for any area in the west of the UK!

On the Friday evening, we all met for a meal at our city centre hotel which allowed us to catch up with all the news and to have a reasonably early bedtime, prior to a prompt breakfast before our first activity of the day — a private guided walking tour of the centre from Stephen Shakeshaft, one of the city’s Guild of Tour Guides who provided a fun and educational background to the city. 

City Walls

Foregate

 In the afternoon, members had free time, shopping, museum visits and sightseeing. Many visited the impressive Chester Cathedral for lunch and an exhibition of some stunning mosaic work. As a bonus, the Chester Symphony Orchestra was rehearsing for the upcoming celebration concert of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, and we were treated to stunning renditions of classical pieces like Elgar’s “Nimrod.”

Our Saturday evening’s Members’ Dinner was located at the Georgian “The Architect” bar and restaurant near “The Roodee” — Chester’s racecourse. The experience was most enjoyable with excellent food and an after-dinner presentation, by our tour guide Stephen, on other aspects of this historic city. Meeting face-to-face for the first time since 2019 allowed President Rosemary Low to present Diana Porterfield with the Tibbie Brown Trophy for winning the 2020 Rovers Speech Contest.  

Diners in the Architect

Diana with Stephen Shakeshaft and Rosemary Low

Diana with the Tibbie Brown trophy

On Sunday, half the group departed for home, but those remaining enjoyed a variety of pursuits including river cruising, Chester Zoo, more shopping, visiting local museums, restaurants and cafes. Everyone then headed home on Monday after having a most enjoyable weekend  — great: company; food; and the chance to learn about this historic city.

Iris Gibson

Why are horses sometimes called "gee gees"? Read on and find out.

Lots to see in Chester, of course, but how many visitors think of racing horses? The oldest race course still in operation in Britain and maybe even in the world is in Chester. It is consistently awarded the Gold Standard Award.

In Roman times, the river Dee was just about up to the Walls and the area of what is now the race course was an important harbour on the river, enabling supplies to be delivered to the garrison of Deva, the Roman name for Chester. Some harbour anchor stones can still be seen at the present course site.

Today you can see a large sandstone cross at the course. The story is that there used to be a wooden cross but it collapsed, causing the death of the wife of the Governor of Hawarden. The cross ended up in the river, floated upstream, and came to rest at the present site, on an island formed by the build up of silt in the centuries after the Romans left. Later the timber was replaced by the present sandstone.

The cross and site is now called The Roodie, based on ancient Norse and Saxon words meaning the Island of the Cross. In the early Middle Ages a weir system on the river caused much more silt so that the area became a riverside meadow, eventually developing into the present racecourse.

In 1539 the mayor of Chester was Henry Gee. He began the annual horse race on the Roodie, as part of his reformed civic celebrations. So you now know why horses are called "gee gees", commemorating the man who began the famous series of races. The first race was held on Shrove Tuesday. A silver bell was awarded to the winning owner of "the horse that ran before all others".

When the Derby race was inaugurated it was intended to be run in May but the Horse Racing Authority forced them to change the date to June to avoid a clash with Chester.

In the 19th century the race goers were referred to as "the most perfect mix of society from all over the British Isles". In 1817 the first grand stand was built but it burnt down on 28 September 1985.

While racing continued, a new grandstand was built and opened in May 1988.

In 1883, the first Duke of Westminster, Hugh Grosvenor, bred Ormonde at Eaton Hall nearby. The horse won the Triple Crown in 1886.

In 1903 Buffalo Bill and his Wild West Show appeared on the Roodie.

There have been three times when races were suspended - during the English Civil War, the Great War, and World War 2. In 1946, when racing re-commenced, a record 103,993 people attended.

The course averages 25,000 racegoers for each meeting, in the top five for annual attendance.

Nowadays the Roodie hosts 15 days of competitive and quality racing. In three days in May riders compete for the Chester Cup, the Chester Vase, Ormonde Stakes, Cheshire Oaks, and the Dee Stakes. Top racehorses from Britain, Ireland and sometimes France participate.

In 2012 the Olympic Torch came to the racecourse. Jockey Jason Maguire rode the winning horse with the torch down Watergate Street.

Visiting the Roodie makes for a good day out. There is no shortage of first class eatries. The glass-fronted 1539 restaurant and bar situated within the County Stand, open all year, overlooks the race course.

A second hospitality venue, The White Horse, in the racecourse paddock, opened in Easter 2014, with a bespoke nautical themed play area.

A third venue can be explored in the city centre. Commonhall St. Social gives a "fun vibe and eclectic industry-leading craft beer offering".

There is also an on-site hotel, ideal for weddings.

The Roodie is surounded by beautiful manicured lawns, a picturesque setting, in over thirty acres of breath-taking green space. Have I whetted your appetite? Why not attend on Ladies Day, for glamour, fashion and excitement as every one waits with baited breath to learn of the winner of the best dressed Lady Competition with its fabulous prize.

On 8 May 2022, Jackie Chambers 56, from Essex, won the prize for the best dressed. In a yellow Sophie Hunter dress and Steve Madden heels, she was awarded a Boodles diamond pendant and £700 fashion voucher from Matthew O'Brien,

Wow!

Nancy Sanderson

3.6.22

A relatively modern building, 1274 AD, in comparison to a Roman amphitheatre.

 

As we started the walking tour of Chester our tour guide, Stephen Shakeshaft, showed us the statue of a baby elephant. Iris, who in one of her speeches admitted to “a passion for pachyderms”, is seen here sitting beside the statue.

The plaque in front reads:

“This baby Indian elephant is called

Janya

The bronze sculpture is a gift from Chester  Zoo to the people of Chester. To celebrate the strong friendship between the Zoo and the city. Janya means ‘Life’ in Hindi. It symbolises the Zoo’s global role in Wildlife conservation. She was gifted in 2010 by  the sculptress Annette Yarrow who grew up in India in the 1930s and 40s, there is a sculpture of another one year old elephant by Annette at Chester Zoo.
Annette’s sculpture is remarkably lifelike, it benefits from her first-hand experience of elephants. Inside nearby Chester Cathedral there is a 14th Century wooden carving of an elephant and castle on a bench and in the Quire. However, the medieval craftsman would never have seen a real elephant so it has a rather strange body… and hooves!
Please feel free to stroke and enjoy Janya. Please do not climb”.

Apparently is is supposed to be lucky to rub the elephant’s ears. Some members indulged in this superstition.

Yes, the Rovers are Roving again! The club is enjoying our spring meeting in Chester. At last the members of Rovers in Great Britain have had a chance to get together. On Friday night we enjoyed a meal together in the hotel. This morning we met together to go on a walking tour of the city. Outside the town hall we enjoyed performances by traditional Morris Dancers celebrating Saint George’s day in honour of England’s patron saint

The most important qualities of a good host.

    Assertiveness
    Always pro-active
    Uses initiative
    Has organisational skills
    Is always welcoming
    Easily connects with people

But many other qualities are also required.

    Approachable personality
    Ability to keep calm at all times, not easily flustered
    Is both sympathetic and empathetic
    Willing and available at all times to help and smooth over any issue that arises
    Uses common sense
    Is aware at all times of what is happening
    Is adaptable to all situations
    Always inclusive
    Advance preparation
    Always willing to share knowledge with others
    Listens attentively and absorbs the message   
    Exudes friendliness to all, not just "significant" people
     Good at remembering names
    Engaging speaking voice
    Ensures people are introduced to others
    Has knowledge of speaker and audience
    Keeps smiling!

The Perfect Host has a Perfect Check List>>>

What should be considered:   Before,    During   and   After   an event.

 Before:   

    Is a committee required?   If so, what will be delegated to whom?
    What venue?  If necessary have contacts who can help with finding most appropriate one
    Visit the venue, with president/chairman, familiarise yourself with layout and meeting rooms
    Liaise with president at all times re all details and information required
    Prepare map or directions to venue
    Parking - at venue?  nearby?  capacity?
    Meet liaison person at venue, discuss requirements,  arrange meeting dates
    Investigate disabled access, and location of fire escapes and toilets
    Any Health & Safety issues relevant
    Find out how to operate blinds, curtains, air conditioning in meeting room
    List of those to be invited, when invitations should be issued and RSVP date
    What information should be sent to participants, eg: what, where, when, etc
    Any special requirements for any participant - diet?  overnight accommodation?
    Is catering required?   Who organises it?
    Programme - timings, start, finish, breaks, meal, identify speakers
    Know the names of key personnel, especially correct pronunciation and spelling
    Know the correct title and address of those to be introduced
    Obtain short bio details of those to be introduced
    What aids required?  Screen, OHP,  White board, Laptop, Microphones, extra cables?
    Are there to be questions from audience at any time?   How will they be dealt with?
    Ensure that guests will not be left alone at any time.
     
During
   
    Be early at venue
    Check room - layout, water and glasses - especially top table
    Check final arrangements with venue liaison contact
    Be at door to welcome guests and take to chairman
    Make attendees welcome, give special attention to special guests
    Keep constant watch on what is going on
    Inform everyone of housekeeping - toilets, disabled facilities, fire exits, etc
    Know how to deal with distractions - noise, sunlight, air conditioning, room temperature    
    Keep discreetly checking on chairman and guest speaker - any requirements?
    Have someone at door to prevent unwanted entrance
    Look out for any potential problems and be prepared to deal with them
    Have pre-arranged signal to chairman if items seriously over-running time
    At ending of meeting:  gifts/ payment to guest/s  readily at hand?
    Be a gopher - go for this, go for that
    Smile!!

After 

    Feedback forms as participants leave?  or later?
    Say goodbye to any that the chairman is not attending to
    Make sure the room is left tidy, no papers, files, bags etc left
    Check bill is correct and pass to treasurer
    Thank you letters to be sent?   Or does chairman do that?
    Liaise for final time with venue
    Be the last to leave the room - final check!

********************************************************************************
    Nancy Sanderson and Stirling Club workshop

Microsoft Publisher has always been the ‘ugly duckling’ of the Microsoft Office Suite. It doesn’t have the same prominence as other Office programs.  Unlike Microsoft Word you cannot create a table of contents that updates automatically for example. Nevertheless, if you want to mix text and graphics is a little easier with Publisher than with Word.

I used Microsoft Publisher to edit our club magazine, The Rovers Document.  Manually editing the table of contents (TOC)  was not the biggest bugbear. I wanted to have the footer on each page say ‘The Rovers Document’ on the left-hand side, with Page X of Y in the centre and the month and year at the right hand side. X being the page number and Y being the total number of pages.

There is no inbuilt way to put Page X of Y using Publisher so I looked for a way of doing this using VBA. A web search yielded a macro that adds a text box to every page with the page number and page count. That is not very satisfactory for a number of reasons. It is difficult to update and it does not use the header or footer.

Publisher uses master pages as templates to contain items that should appear on more than one page. In particular they contain header and footer elements. If you want to put a page number marker in a header or a footer you insert a page number marker by pressing Alt+Shift+9.

The marker displays as a ‘#’ character but, of course, it isn’t. If you use ‘#’ it does not work but if you use VBA to try to read that character it reads a ’#’.  Publisher VBA is not well documented, lacks a macro recording ability and there is no sendkeys facility. So how do you program placing a page number marker in the footer exactly where you want it?

So start on one of the pages where the footer has to appear (this makes sure that you access the correct master page) and run the macro. ActiveDocument.MasterPages(2).Footer in my publication is the footer on the master page used as a template for all pages except the TOC. Note that I have started a new section after the TOC.

strPagesCount is the count of pages, reduced by one to exclude the TOC. Then strIssue is the Month and Year converted to string format.

Sub NumberPages()
    Dim strPagesCount As String'The number of pages
    Dim strIssue As String 'The month and year 
    Const conDocName As String = "The Rovers Document" 'The document name to be placed in the footer
    strPagesCount = CStr(ActiveDocument.Pages.Count - 1) 'Subtract 1 because the TOC is not to be included
    strIssue = CStr(Format(Date, "mmmm yyyy")) 'Find the current month and year
    With ActiveDocument.MasterPages(2).Footer.TextRange
        .Text = conDocName & vbTab & "Page " '(Re)sets the footer text
        .InsertPageNumber 'Insert a page number marker
        .InsertAfter (" of  " & strPagesCount & vbTab & strIssue) 'Insert text following the page number
    End With
End Sub

Some months ago, I was asked to find a speaker for a charity dinner.  I consigned the question to the windmills of my mind, in the firm belief that the sails would turn, wheels and cogs would interlock and a speaker would be found.

Now I’m a sucker for ‘freebies’ and last week I picked up a free Rotary magazine from Sainsbury’s.
One of the articles was about leprosy. The very word conjures up fear. It is a wasting disease where the peripheral nerves die, causing pain and numbness, but also leaving the body vulnerable to damage. For millennia it was recognised as infectious and a sufferer was immediately banished from the community.

I was reminded of a famous letter written by Robert Louis Stevenson concerning leprosy. Stevenson had gone to the South Seas in the hope of recovering from tuberculosis, then an infectious and incurable disease. In Britain at the time, families were often ostracised if one of their members had the illness. He empathised with the social rejection of the lepers and decided to visit the island of Molokai where a famous priest, Father Damien, had just died.

 
A Belgian missionary, Damien had volunteered in 1878 to go to live in the leper colony on Molokai, a lawless place, ruled by violent gangs. Sixteen years later at the age of forty-nine he contracted leprosy and died, but not before establishing a civilised community, providing care, justice and peace. His total commitment to the lepers of Molokai gained him world-wide acclaim.

Stevenson was greatly moved by the care shown by the doctor and nuns in the hospital but repelled by the smell and sight of the lepers with their disfigured faces and bodies. Back in Hawaii a public figure, who had never visited the island of Molokai, wrote a letter in answer to a colleague’s enquiry about Fr. Damien. In his response he referred to the colony’s insanitary conditions and maligned the name of Father Damien. The letter was published in an Australian paper.

On reading the letter, Stevenson was outraged. In a lengthy open letter to the world’s press, he publicly humiliated the writer in a stinging rebuke. Stevenson’s invective was so severe, that he thought he might be sued.  He never was. In the letter Stevenson suggested that Damien might someday be made a Saint. The Vatican officially declared Damien a saint in 2009.

The treatment of leprosy advanced, but up until 1916 the only effective medication was injectable chaulmoogra oil, which had very unpleasant side effects. In 1916 a black American chemist, Alice Augusta Ball was working at Hawaii University.  She was the first woman and first black American to teach chemistry and obtain a master’s degree at the University. At the age of 23, Alice discovered a method of radically improving the medication. Her discovery, led to the most effective treatment for leprosy until the 1940s, when a full cure was found. Sadly, Alice died in 1917. Four years after her death, her notes were published and her superior, the Dean of the University, was exposed as trying to claim the discovery for himself. He had even given the new medication his name.

Today leprosy has been almost completely eliminated globally. Any pockets are quickly identified and treated.
From an article in a Rotary magazine, my windmills had interlocked.  I had journeyed from Glasgow to Molokai and Hawaii, encountering en-route, saints and sinners, writers and reprobates, chemists and cures.
At the end of the article there was, written in small type: 
‘Anyone requiring an after-dinner speaker should contact ‘administrator@stfrancisleprosy.org.’
In the words of the song,
“As the images unwind, like the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind.”
My windmills had finally resolved the initial question and provided me with a potential speaker.

P.S.
The full text of R.L. Stevenson’s letter can be viewed online.  There are several films about St. Damien on YouTube.
A film was made of Alice Augusta Ball’s life ‘The Ball Method’. 

Brendan Berry

Was Sean Connery the 'quintessential' Bond or was Daniel Craig? Personally, I don't care because I want you to focus on the strange word 'quintessential'. It means 'the perfect example'. The 'essential' part makes sense, but what about the 'quint-' prefix? It's Latin for 'fifth' but why?

The origins of the word go back to ancient times and early attempts to understand what the world is made of. I shall explain why it divided astrologers from alchemists and how it gained its modern meaning. Finally, I'll move on to what the world is really made of and some important ideas we have to consider today.

The story begins in ancient Greece in the sixth and fifth centuries BC where the pre-Socratic philosophers were thinking about the primordial substance from which everything else was made. In time they decided it was not just one substance but four: earth, water, air and fire. These correspond to what we would now call three states of matter: solid, liquid and gas plus energy.

Aristotle felt that the heavenly bodies were composed of a fifth element. Although he did not use the term himself, it came to be called the Aether. So why, even today, do people talk about four elements when the idea was outdated when Alexander was a lad? Probably because twelve is divisible by four, but not by five, and there are twelve signs of the zodiac. So, three star-signs share one element.

In medieval alchemy the fifth element was very important and they called it 'quintessence'. Quintessence was thought to be a panacea for curing illnesses or even the philosopher's touchstone that would transform base metal into gold.

Incidentally by medieval times alchemists recognized two more elements, sulphur and mercury. So, according to astrologers you could be fiery, earthy, wet or windy but if astrology ever moved on you could be vitriolic, mercurial or ethereal. Of course, the adjective we are missing is 'quintessential'. Alchemists saw the fifth element as the purest element so the term 'quintessential' came to mean the perfect example of something.

Sulphur and mercury are real chemical elements. There are another ninety naturally occurring elements. Water isn't one of them but gold is. There is no Rumpelstiltskin out there spinning gold out of straw so let's ditch fairy tales and antiquated philosophical concepts because we need to look to the future not the past. We need to understand the modern concept of an element to deal with the state of the planet.

To be clear, the modern definition of an element is a substance that cannot be broken down using chemical reactions. These are the fundamental building blocks of our world. If you search the Internet for 'periodic table' you will see them listed from the simplest to the most complex.

The first element is hydrogen, meaning the water-former and you are going to hear a lot about green hydrogen from now on. If you pass a direct current through water you can break it down into its component elements, hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen is 'green' if the electricity is generated by renewables. When you burn hydrogen it recombines with oxygen to produce water. Green hydrogen will one day power aircraft.

Lord Bamford, the chairman of JCB argues that it would be better to run all vehicles on green hydrogen. His company has developed a kind of internal-combustion engine that runs on hydrogen rather than fossil fuel. Bamford says that you cannot use electric engines in the type of heavy plant machinery his company produces. He also claims that his new engines are closer to the kind of engines that mechanics are used to. The counter argument from Energy UK is that the expense of hydrogen production and the cost of deploying new infrastructure rule out the use of hydrogen-powered cars at least in the next decade.

The real fifth element is not particularly exciting. In fact, it is named boron. Boron is found in the mineral borax and in the heat-resistant glass used for casserole dishes. The sixth element is a different matter, much more important. The adjective should be 'sextessential' but that sounds like a late-night Channel Four programme. A web search suggested an interesting alternative, 'existential': of, or relating to existence. The existential element is carbon because all life is based on carbon and its ability to form long-chain molecules such as proteins, fats, carbohydrates, DNA, RNA etc..

I have given you a few definitions to ponder. I have shown you how the concept of elements has developed from ancient times to our modern understanding and how the latter feeds into climate debate. The carbon cycle is out of balance and we have to be careful to be balanced in our response. Language matters. Campaign groups overuse the term 'existential threat' to justify anarchic behaviour and terrified teenagers believe they may see the end of the world. No, Greta we do not need 'blah, blah, blah'. Not even from you. In Classical Greek, words are 'lexeis' but logical reasoned arguments, or words that lead to actions, are logoi. The success of COP26 will be judged by how many logoi it produces.

Most people find it hard to stand up and speak fluently off the cuff.  Perhaps you want to respond to someone’s talk, but do not have the confidence or know the right words – how often do you say nothing and then when you get home you suddenly think “now why did I not say…”. At a meeting you may be asked for your opinion or asked to comment on a particular subject. You may know the subject, but having to comment right there and then….
Perhaps you need a bit of practice — and you can do this at home, no-one else needs to be around.

Step 1: Take a noun e.g. DREAMS

Photo by Benjamin Sow on Unsplash

Step 2: Write down words beginning with each letter
     e.g.      Danger
                 Realise
                 Excitement
                 Anger
                 Mist
                 Satisfaction

Step 3: Take 5 minutes to draft a story using these 6 words.  It does not matter in which order  you use them, just make sure you use them all in your story.
Step 4: Read out the story you have just written (remember this is just to yourself, but it is better to say it aloud)
Step 5: Repeat step 2 — same letters, different words.
Step 6: Now, don’t write anything down, but still compose your story as you speak it, i.e. impromptu.

And now that you have tried that, you can choose any other word and repeat — until you feel more confident that you are not going to get tongue-tied next time you want to stand up and say something at a meeting or are asked for your opinion!

Diana Porterfield

You are sat down with a blank piece of paper, ready to write your speech; an hour later the page is still blank. You want to be entertaining and engaging, funny even, but the words just aren’t coming to you. 

Here are some top tips to inspire you to write an awesome speech. 

1. Know your audience. Identifying who your audience is will help with setting the pitch tone and content of your speech, use the right language and engage your audience appropriately. Is your speech in front of professionals or a casual setting? Setting the pitch and tone at the right level will help you to get maximum engagement from your audience. 

2. Write an outline. Much like writing a story, a speech needs a beginning, middle and end. By writing an outline of what you want to say will help when it comes to adding detail. What are the main points that you want to cover? What is the reason behind giving the speech? What do you want to achieve? 

3. How long does it need to be? Keep this in mind will help when it comes to fleshing out the details. You may have a set time that you need to stick to or the freedom for it to be as long as you like but make sure that no matter what the length, you keep to the time you set otherwise, you could run the risk of waffling which will detract from the main points you want to cover.

4. Get creative. Now you have your main points, it’s time to flesh out the details. Let your typing or writing run amok. Give yourself complete and utter freedom to write down whatever comes to you. The more writing you do at this point the better your speech will be. Even if you think of something crazy, write it down. At this stage, it doesn't matter. 

5. Editing and proofing. Following your outline as a guide, it is now time to give your writing some structure. Take out the bits that don’t support your speech, focus on your intentions, take out any waffle. Expand on the bits you know to be important. 

6. Practice. Perform your speech in front of a friend or family member and ask for honest feedback. This not only gives you the opportunity to time your speech but also to cut out or add anything to make it better. Once you have edited your speech, then recite it again and again until you are comfortable. The more you know your speech the more natural it will be when you come to deliver it. 

7. Enjoy. Even if you are delivering to a room full of professionals, if you prepared well and comfortable with your speech you will come across as confident and enjoying sharing with the room.

Next time you need to write an all-important speech, following these tips will help you to not just write a speech, but to write an awesome speech.

What is good platform presence and why is it important on Zoom? Good platform presence helps to command and hold the attention of your audience, whether you are physically in front of an audience in a meeting room or appearing on a screen on the wall or even on a screen in your own home. You may not be too worried if you are simply making social contact on Zoom, but if you are in a business meeting you may need to impress and you certainly need to get your message over, to make your presence felt.

The following gives you some suggestions to ponder over before you venture onto Zoom.

A Two Step Approach

Preparation

• Make sure you have practised on Zoom beforehand — you can always try it out with a friend. But remember that there are different levels of Zoom, each providing slightly different facilities.  Search of the internet will give you lots of practical advice on how to use Zoom and how to get the best out of it technically. 
  
  
• If you are using Zoom from your home, decide which room you are going to use and make sure your set-up is as good as it can be. Avoid busy and untidy rooms in your house. Alternatively, Zoom offers you the ability to change the transmitted background using a selected wallpaper. However, be careful what sort of background you pick. If it is too busy it will distract from your presentation. Also be aware of how any movement you make may affect the apparent focus of the background. This is definitely something to try out beforehand.
  
  
• Make sure that your lighting is suitable, you cannot impress if your audience cannot see you clearly. The best source of light is one that you are looking towards. Light from one side can be adequate but will highlight your pores and blemishes, so it depends on how vain you are!
  
  
• Make sure that you are in focus and that you can clearly hear and be heard. Again a  practice with a friend beforehand can be useful. If using a PC then a separate webcam and speakers may be required – make sure they are of adequate quality.
  
  
• Have visual aids which can be brought into play without difficulty. Zoom facilities for displaying documents or slides are available. There is also a Whiteboard option. But do make sure you have tried and mastered these facilities beforehand.
  
  
• Have your notes in order and easy to handle – cards or A4 sized documents are still best for talking from but remember that it will be possible to display key data using the facilities described in the paragraph above.
  
  
• Be appropriately dressed. Your appearance is still important and although casual outfits may be appropriate, you do need to look as if you care.
  
  
• Be sure you know how to get into Zoom in a timely manner and how to mute your voice when others are talking so that no extraneous noises disturb the meeting. Not everyone wants to hear your dog barking or your children quarrelling!
  
  
• Don’t forget to close all unnecessary files or tabs that can slow down your software and connection. Make sure you have done a test run to ensure there are no unexpected technical obstacles for your presentation.
  
  
• Place your seat so that your audience can see your head and shoulders. If using a laptop, have it on a solid surface and use a box or books to raise it up if necessary.
  
  

The Presentation

• Greet your audience and introduce yourself if necessary. Make sure your name is appropriately displayed on the screen. If you press the “record” facility at the start, then you can review your presentation and all the audience interaction to it, afterwards. Your next presentation can then be even better.
  
  
• Sit comfortably and try not to move around as this can be distracting and may affect the focus of your picture or the clarity of your sound for the audience.
  
  
• Indicate when you are starting and speak clearly.
  
  
• Maintain eye contact by looking at the screen. Avoid looking at the walls and the ceiling of your room, and never out of a window.
  
  
• Be aware of any distracting mannerisms you may have as these can be exaggerated by the concentration of your presence on a small screen and annoy your audience:
  • Make sure your hairstyle is tidy even if you haven’t had a hair cut for a while. Untidy hair can be a distraction especially if you find yourself “fiddling” with it.
    
    
  • Spectacles that do not fit and have to be pushed up the nose all the time should be avoided if possible.
    
    
  • Gestures may not be of much use on Zoom but do not to fiddle with paper or other things on your desk / table.
    
    
  
  
• Make sure it is obvious when your presentation has come to an end.
  
  
• Wait for the host to close the meeting before you disconnect.
  
  

Platform presence is as important on Zoom as in any other situation. Do not be put off by the technology. With thorough preparation, your presentations can take off on Zoom and achieve the high standards you are used to. No presenter is ever perfect and nobody expects you to be. If you slip-up during the presentation, simply acknowledge it, and pick up from where you erred. Always remember to keep your audience engaged with a SMILE.

Yvonne Baker

Top 15 tips to enhance your Zoom meetings

Zoom has quickly become the most popular tool to keep us connected during Covid-19, especially in a professional capacity. We have adapted well to running and joining meetings at home even with the worry of invasion from the kids, the cat sitting on your laptop or the dog deciding it’s a good time to pee on the carpet. Even when we finally go back to offices, the popularity of Zoom meetings will continue, as we realise that there is no longer the need to bring everyone together for a meeting in an office environment and can just as easily be done remotely. More and more people will also be given the opportunity to continue to work from home.  So, Zoom is here to stay! Here are some great tips to help you when running or attending meetings.

1.      Add a background – Zoom offers a selection of backgrounds to use or upload one of your own. Just go into settings and get creative. If you don’t want to use a background then have a plain wall behind you.

How I found out about the Scottish Colourists

 

In the pre Covid times, I always enjoyed my annual visit as Region Board member to Caledonia Council meetings.  

Portrait of Grace McColl by J D Fergusson

Who would not enjoy being royally entertained by old friends? I always arrived on the Saturday evening, had a splendid meal provided by my host for the weekend, then a full breakfast on the Sunday morning, and so on to the Redhurst Hotel for the Council Meeting. On one memorable occasion, I was seated comfortably enough, and from somewhere I could hear the sound of the staff preparing to serve Sunday dinner. “I’m still full from breakfast!” I began to think, when, suddenly, I found myself on the edge of my seat, almost startled. I had hardly noticed from the programme that the last event of the morning was to be “The Scottish Colourists”, but Brendan had commenced a talk and was projecting a stunning sequence of paintings onto a screen. I was surprised because, although art has always interested me, I had never heard of this group, and had never seen any of these paintings, before.

 
The Colourists were Samuel Peploe, John Fergusson, George Hunter and Francis Cadell. They were at their height between 1900 and 1930 and were very much the heirs of the French Impressionists of the nineteenth century. The name came to be applied to them because of their “use of brilliant colour to capture the rich evocation of a place or person”. What were their subjects? To continue to quote from Dr Cummings of Edinburgh University, “whether a landscape, a portrait, a still life or a subject celebrating the vibrancy of urban life, [they] convey a real sense of joie de vivre which few can match”. It’s difficult for the layman to add to that. A large part of their attraction is that they are capable of being appreciated by anyone: the viewer can simply enjoy the use of colour and not try and guess any “hidden meaning”. Confident in their own Scottishness, they spent a lot of time in France, where the sunshine gives plenty of scope for the artist. Several of their paintings were purchased for the French nation.

Disgracefully, I am not aware of any of their work being on display in any of the major English galleries, and would be very happy to be proved wrong. If you want to see more, and I hope that this very brief introduction has whetted your appetite, then the National Galleries of Scotland have some fantastic exhibitions from time to time. 

Colin Gray

Body language is our non-verbal way of expressing our thoughts and feelings. We gesture with our body and use facial expressions without even realising it. Being aware of how we use our body language is a powerful tool when it comes to the art of negotiation and persuasion and will help fully engage your listener/s.

Once you learn how to use your body language, you will naturally be able to read others which will help you gauge situations quickly and adjust your behaviour as necessary. This is great in meetings especially if you are needing to really capture the attention of who you are talking to.

Here are some top tips to consider when you are in your next meeting or giving your next presentation or speech.

1.      Use open body language – make sure your arms are unfolded and your hands are unclenched. This shows the listener that you are being open and will help convey honesty and integrity. If you have to deliver bad news or face a difficult meeting where there is the potential of a sticky situation, you will most likely see your audience with arms crossed, facing away from you and not making eye contact. If you mirror their behaviour then you will hit a stalemate. By showing you are open allows them to feel more at ease and they are far more likely to engage.

2.      Make eye contact – No matter if you are speaking to one person, a few people or a whole room full of people, eye contact is important. Of course, there is a fine balance between holding eye contact with the same person for too long and not holding it for long enough. Too long and you are in a creepy staring match, not long enough will make you appear disengaged. A few seconds at a time is more than adequate. If you speaking to a room full of people then pick out people left, right and centre and alternate every few seconds.

3.      Avoid touching your face and fidgeting – If you frequently touch your face or fidget you will come across as being uncomfortable, untrustworthy, dishonest and shifty. It really won’t matter how great your subject is if you let your body language contradict what you are talking about.

4.      Use open hand gestures – Be careful to not overdo the gestures with your hands, this can be distracting from what you are saying. Having your hands opened palmed will convey openness, sharing and trust. Unless you are putting across a serious issue and it is intentional. Never point, this will show aggression and will turn your audience right off.

5.      Smile – Unless you are delivering bad news of course! The simple act of smiling will show warmth and trustworthiness. Your audience will be put at ease and feel more relaxed and open. Smiling changes your whole persona and has a knock-on effect, if you are smiling you tend to make others smile. Much like how a yawn is contagious.

6.      Posture – If you are standing to give a presentation or speech, stand with your shoulders back and chin up, this will convey confidence and also frees your diaphragm which will help to keep your voice loud and clear.

Bonus Tip: Film yourself giving your presentation or speech so you can see how you are gesturing, the facial expressions you are making, and any bad habits you may be displaying without even realising it. Most of us are self-critical when watching ourselves back on film, so try not to be too hard on yourself.

Written by Sarah English for Birmingham Speakers Club - 08 September 2020.

Giving a speech requires preparation, from research and planning to writing and rehearsing, but failing to prepare mentally can mean the difference between a good speech and a great speech.

Controlling your nerves requires a little practice and patience, but once perfected it can be used for all sorts of situations. Here are some great tips to get you started.

Accept your nervousness and feel okay about it.  If you make a conscious effort to identify that you feel worried, that you feel queasy, that you are sweating and understand that your nerves are doing this, you are able to then accept that feeling nervous is natural and absolutely okay.

Don’t put pressure on yourself to be perfect. We often compare ourselves to others and put pressure on ourselves to be perfect but you are far better off being yourself. Even the most established of speakers make the odd mistake and that’s what makes us all human.

Know your subject matter. It is evident very quickly if you are talking about a subject that you know little about. The speech come across as lacklustre and wooden with lack of passion and conviction, your audience won’t engage and your speech will soon be forgotten. The more you know about your subject the more confident you will be.

Engage your audience. Involve your audience so they feel a part of your speech. Not only will it raise the energy level of the room, your speech will be far more memorable.

Use breathing techniques. Controlling your breathing will bring your heart rate down and help you to focus. Sit or stand straight and slowly take in a deep breath from your diaphragm to expand your tummy as full as you can. Hold for a few seconds exhale slowly as far as you can, hold for a couple of seconds and repeat. You will instantly feel calmer and in control.

Practice mindfulness and meditation. Mindfulness is the art of being in the moment, not letting any outside influences in, any worry or problems, questions or noises. It is clearing your mind enough to blank out everything and listen to your own heartbeat and breathing and nothing else. Mindfulness and meditation take practice and patience; there are plenty of guides, YouTube sessions and books out there to help you learn.

Visualisation. Visualise the success of your speech. Imagine getting to the end knowing that you were concise, clear, engaging and interesting. So much so, that your audience applauds loudly and you know that all your preparation and practice was all worth it and more importantly, you enjoyed delivering your speech.

Practice out loud. When preparing to deliver a speech you should always rehearse it out loud and in front of a friend or family member. That way, not only are you practicing, you can get open and honest feedback on your delivery and content.

Avoid stimulants such as caffeine or alcohol. The last thing your body needs is extra stimulants when your adrenaline is taking over. You may think a drink beforehand will calm your nerves but in actual fact it has the opposite effect and will only add to your anxiety. Only drink water, your body and mind work so much better when hydrated.

Make eye contact with your audience. It can be very tempting to read from que cards or your PowerPoint presentation without really looking at your audience, but will show lack of willing to engage with your audience and will turn them off what you are trying to say. Try to hold eye contact across the room by alternating to your left, right and centre audience.

By following these techniques, you will soon be on the way to delivering great speeches and actually enjoy giving them!

RRS Discovery with the V&A in the Background

On Saturday morning Margaret continued in the role of a tour guide as the rovers took the city centre circular bus. This was followed by a visit to the Discovery exhibition detailing Captain Scott’s explorations of Antartica.

The Tay Railway Bridge

Penguins outside the Discovery Exhibition

Merritt in Winter – Mascdman [CC BY-SA 2.5 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5)]

1. Read the words
2. Read the punctuation
3. Read between the lines.

POWERwrite

Online, On Paper or Both?

Tick TOC

Add Your Own Style

Columns

At the Drop of a Cap

Pull Quote

Format Painter

Compatibility Issues

Pictures

The Devil

• Ethos: Persuasion based on the moral character of the speaker,
• Logos: Persuasion based on logical argument,
• Pathos: Persuasion based on emotional appeal.

1. What’s the issue
2. How is it affecting things?
3. And what is being done about it?

1. Past
2. Present
3. Future

1. What was it like before?
2. What was the event?
3. What’s the result now?

1. What?
2. Which?
3. Who?

• Introduction
• Main Body
• Point 1 – with 3 sub points in support
• Point 2 –  with 3 sub points in support
• Point 3 – with 3 sub points in support
• Conclusion and call to action if relevant

• The microphone and other electrical equipment is working
• water is available for the speaker
• the lectern is the right height for the speaker
• You have enough background information.

• Meet the Speaker at the entrance.
• Ask if there is anything he/he requires.
• Show the speaker to his/her seat.

• Prepare your introduction and thanks beforehand.
• Write key words on a cue card.

• Cliches
• Repeating yourself - remember to use your notes.

• Why this subject?
• Why this subject subject for this audience?
• Why this subject for this audience at this time?

• Exaggerate the speaker's qualifications
• Read a lengthy curriculum vitae or biography
• Say how wonderful the speech will be
• Steal the spotlight

• Speak to the audience not the speaker
• Be brief - never longer than two minutes
• Be genuine and sincere
• Smile and relax

• listen carefully to the question
• Repeat it clearly for the benefit of both speaker and the audience
• Unobtrusively guide speaker to audience members signalling to ask a question.

• Say what you enjoyed about the presentation
• Don't simply repeat the main points of the presentation
• Speak to the speaker and the audience.

• Be sincere
• Be brief
• Be seated!

1. Mentoring is a relationship that enhances the development of individuals by the passing on of knowledge, skills and values.
2. This relationship is a creative bond between a mentor (teacher) and a mentee (learner) which is to the benefit of both.
3. From a mentor, a mentee receives input about organisational culture, coaching and counselling, skills development, motivation and continuous feedback, thus becoming a useful member of an organisation much more quickly.
4. The mentor benefits by the development of interpersonal and leadership skills, and accomplishments in his/her mentee's success.
5. A mentoring programme should have the visible support of those at the head of an organisation, and it should form part of the culture of that organisation.
6. The ideal ratio is one mentor to one mentee.
7. Mentors should volunteer their services. The relationship should be one of choice, and should be committed to in writing.
8. The best mentors are experienced empathetic persons with a willingness to share, the capability of building trust, and with good listening skills.
9. Specific time periods should be set aside for mentoring. Opportunity should be given to the mentee for questions and feedback.
10. It is recommended that the mentee maintains a close relationship with the mentor, takes ownership of his/her own development and actively seeks new challenges.

1. 10% of our waking time is spent in communication and 45% of that time is spent listening but we only retain 25% of what we hear.
2. Active listening is about listening for the purpose of understanding and interpreting the message the speaker is trying to convey.
3. Concentrate carefully - don't get distracted.
4. Listen for the explicit date (what is said) as well as the implicit data (what is not said)
5. Refrain from immediate evaluation - attempt to see the other person's point of view.
6. Check that you are really listening to the other person - not just waiting your turn to speak.
7. Listen for the main ideas. Acknowledge what you have just heard and give an appropriate response.
8. If you do not understand, don't be afraid to ask for clarification.
9. Read and listen to difficult materials just for the exercise. Jot down the main points you have noted and then check to see how you did.
10. For a day, keep a record of the time you spent listening. Consider the specific differences improved listening could have made.

BOOK REVIEWS (Club Programming) Has your club every thought of having Book Reviews for a club programme? Many members of POWERtalk are avid readers (when they have time) and have widely varied tastes in books. There are many advantages to having this sort of evening including making you much more aware while reading a book you intend to review and enjoying hearing other people’s views of something you have read your self or even finding out about one or more books that you would enjoy

Another interesting idea would be to ask members to review specific books – perhaps something that they would not normally read