All at sea learning from the past

In this photo, I was 5 years old and had been dressed up for a fancy dress competition on board the P&O Orient ship, Orcades while travelling home to N. Ireland after two years in Australia.  I have few memories of this except my father telling me to smile and shake my tambourine and hips when parading in front of the judges of a fancy dress competition.  I did neither and scowled at them furious that I should be subjected to this cattle show.  This photo captures me on deck just before the competition started blissfully unaware of what lay ahead. (PS when I first posted this Facebook/Meta blocked my posting as obscene, hence the label!).

The skirt is still in this house, stored in a plastic bag in our garage attic.  My Mum stores everything safely and that is why I also found this document below which was stamped on the exact same trip in May of 1964. 

It records my receiving the Smallpox vaccination on board ship.

Smallpox had been the torment of humanity for over 3000 years. In the 20th century alone 500 million died from this dreadful disease.  Just 55 years ago smallpox was still to be found in 30 countries and 15 million people caught the disease every year. Of those 15 million, 2 million would die.  As a result of this in 1959, the year after I was born, the World Health Organization (WHO) started an initiative to rid the world of smallpox. However, this worthwhile global eradication campaign was short of funds, personnel, vaccines, and most importantly commitment from enough countries. Because of these factors, smallpox was still widespread in 1966, causing regular outbreaks across South America, Africa, and Asia.  The reason for my vaccination on board ship was that we would be stopping at many of the ports still plagued by this disease.  

The world community did not give up and an Intensified Eradication Program began in 1967 with considerable determined effort across the world. The 33rd World Health Assembly was able to declare the world free of this disease on May 8, 1980. In terms of international public health, the eradication of smallpox is considered an outstanding success.  A united world approach worked and today children no longer even need to be immunised against this dreadful killer disease.  

Today's COVID pandemic has caused a division of opinions as well as suffering and loss of lives.  I have relatives who are convinced the whole business is a conspiracy/fake and are devastated at what they see as their loss of freedom.  Another group of relatives has experienced bereavement and are understandably furious that anyone doubts the seriousness of COVID. They feel angry that vaccinations are not being accepted and that those who refuse them end up filling much-needed intensive care beds.  

As always, we will not know the whole story until much later when we look back at all the successes and failures of various countries and their approaches.  I feel the debate has become too toxic of late.  If we are to learn the valuable lessons from such incidents the level of discourse will have to be elevated not debased.  

Following scientific advice, I decided to vaccinate.  With a vulnerable elderly relative, I wanted to do everything in my power to safeguard them and others in my community.  After all,  herd immunity has succeeded in controlling other contagious diseases such as smallpox, polio, diphtheria, and rubella.  There are always people who for serious health reasons are unable to vaccinate and they rely on the herd protecting them.  It reminds me of how a herd of buffalo forms a circle around the young and vulnerable when attacked by predators. If someone chooses not to take a particular vaccine for ideological rather than medical exemption reasons it perplexes and saddens me but does not make me want to protect them any less.  If they can benefit from herd immunity then I am happy.  It is just worrisome when too many make that choice to remain unvaccinated as it can end up threatening the safety of us all.  More importantly, there are other challenges the world are facing now that will necessitate acting in unity.  Without unity, so many other vital endeavours will simply become impossible.

58 years ago I was part of a courageous and daring world experiment to eradicate a killer disease that had plagued the world for over 3 millennia and we must be grateful to all those who initiated, sustained, and participated in that endeavour.  It is only usually in hindsight that we can see the effects of medical intervention on a global scale.  But even from this present perspective, it seems hostility, division, and toxic debates do little to benefit the well-being of our world community. 

"The well-being of mankind, 

its peace and security, 

are unattainable 

unless and until 

its unity is firmly established."

Bahá’u’lláh

The Ring of Protection

They’ve just appointed a minister of loneliness in the UK. You may be surprised or sceptical but I take it as a welcome recognition of one of the major sicknesses of today’s world. The condition afflicts not just the elderly but also children, youth and middle-aged etc as well. 

I have long observed that children will choose to operate like herds or packs. It is much more interesting for them to have all that company and interaction. They learn best by observation, how to communicate and live. However, in today’s world of destruction, they also experience the toxic pressures of social media, materialism, alcohol, drug and other forms of addiction.  These forces blight lives at any age but for children, they are particularly detrimental. Before they even begin to discover who they could be, such forces mould and distort them.  Self-harming is now too common, suicide numbers are growing, bullying is being carried out in school, at work, in neighbourhoods, homes and online.  It should be recognised that bullying and abuse does even worse damage internally than it does externally.  Those psychological scars are carried unseen and the fall out to the wider society grows. 

Unfortunately, predators easily identify those already damaged or easy prey. Just as a lion will target the eldest, weakest or youngest member of a herd of buffalo so to do human predators. What are the habits of predators? Well, they are remarkably similar to methods always used to break the human spirit (read about Solzhenitsyn's Gulag: The Simplest Methods which Break the Will).  They follow a systematic and indeed predictable pattern. In fact, at a UN conference in New York more than 15 years ago the speaker called for domestic abusers to be identified for the protection of others. Claiming that it was far easier to pinpoint abusers than to identify victims. Serial domestic abusers move from one victim to the next one while authorities question the morality/lifestyle/choices of these victims.  Instead, red flags that people are abusers are ignored.  Their need for increased control, their insistence on isolating victims from family and friends, their violence becoming more brutal during pregnancy and their violent outbreaks often being followed by sincere apologies etc are all standard textbook behaviour.  Things are changing. The Metropolitan police use a questionnaire for victims that asks the right questions to not only identify the presence of abuser but to flag up the degree of risk to the victim and save lives. Claire’s Law has been introduced so that people have the right to be informed if their new partner has a history of being an abuser.  This seeks to block the dreadful cycle of abuse continuing with another victim following in the footsteps of so many before them.

Perhaps there are lessons here for other situations.  In the playground, at school, too often the victim of bullying is lectured on being more assertive, standing up for themselves, avoiding disputes, not being alone and their parents consulted as to how they can help.  Teachers are instructed to try and protect the victim.  But all of these practices studiously ignore targeting the bully, the abuser.  Too much time and energy have again gone into quizzing the victim when actually more attention needs to be directed against the abuser and all the other unseen/uncomplaining victims they also target.  Justice needs to be tempered by compassion but there is a fundamental need for it also to act and be seen to be effective.  Not doing so, fails the victims and also encourages and empowers new would-be bullies.

Why is this tied in with loneliness? What can protect the young or old from that lioness is the herd of buffalo itself. The healthy and strongest form a circle inside which the old, young and weak are protected. Unfortunately, today’s isolation plays into the hands of predators. There are too few eyes to see, too few friends, relatives and neighbours to care.  In this new landscape, we spectate in the virtual world of entertainment. Inoculated from our neighbourhoods, those predators of body, mind and property find ample room to lope behind weak defences and run riot. It seems the best we can do in response is to throw money at the social services to mop up the damage.  What is the answer?

We are responsible for the herd.  When the young Jamie Bulger (aged 2) was being led to his death by two older boys (aged ten) they were noticed by 38 individuals.  Two members of the public did stop the boys and questioned them because of the crying and distressed toddler but did not act.  Those individuals were not to know that inaction on their part would allow a hideous murder of a vulnerable toddler.  

All of us need to know that we are responsible to and for each other. Every child you see deserves your care and protection if they need it. Each abuse victim should feel your concern. The elderly or ill should experience your kindness and engagement. Those who are targeted because of race, religion, colour or sexual persuasion need us to be more proactive in their defence.  It is not easy but understanding the psychology at work and knowing a few successful strategies in advance gives us choices (Bystander Intervention).  Not knowing is a disservice to ourselves and others. We must fight loneliness on every front.   Then, predators will experience the wrath and strength of that ring of protection and step back.  

Dynamic Shift

What is it about getting past fifty that heralds the break down of health after decades of well being?  So unexpected to be wandering down hospital corridors and waiting in rooms full of other worried fifty plus individuals.  A sweet couple past me today in Altnagevin hospital he in his seventies with a white stick, with his hand on his wife's shoulder leading him out while she with a walking frame wobbled alongside.  Strangely touched by all our vulnerability.

Dynamic Shift

A belief begins in me
Deep down under all the layers
That change has begun
Years passing blur like
life racing between my fingers
but something within stirs
finds itself and grows
begin and trust it seems to say
the time is now, not later
choose this moment to begin
A dynamic shift within
Makes me think I should dare,
To hope to act, to achieve
To dream big and begin
I watch hardly hoping
But a flicker blazes within.