February! The gateway between winter and spring – though this winter, signs of spring have been popping out at random all the time. Let’s hope we see the end of frosts and chills before the month is over… We have Pancake Day, Valentine’s Day and Random Acts of Kindness Day (on the 17th) to keep us cheerful, anyway! And of course there’s our Drop-in, on Thursday February 5th, from 10.00am till 11.30am at Burnby Hall as usual. We love to welcome all members, and the tea and coffee are much appreciated by all. Jean and her team are always ready with a kettle and a smile, but more volunteers would be very welcome, especially as the next couple of Drop-ins will be our busiest. Could you lend a hand with our refreshments? Let us know if you’d like to join the team!
Whether you were one of the boppers at one or both of our u3a discos, or have heard about how much fun it was and fancy a piece of the action for yourself, you'll want to know that there's going to be another one. Friday evenings at Burnby Community Hall have been block-booked by a yoga group, so the next disco will be on a Saturday. Glad rags at the ready for Saturday 14 March. As usual, the lights will go down and the music will go up at 6.00pm. Also as usual, book your place by contacting Pauline "The Dancing Queen" Slater: paulieslater@hotmail.co.uk
You will have already received a message from our Membership Secretary, Christina, about paying your subscription for next year. If you’re planning to pay at a Drop-in session, please remember that these can be very busy. For smooth running we rely on your patience while waiting. If you can pay by credit card, that’s easiest all round. You’ll find full instructions and advice in your Renewal letter, but do get in touch if there’s any problem.
Christina also relies on having up-to-date contact details for all our members, so if you move house or change your email or phone, do please let her know as soon as you can; we don’t want to lose track of you. Also, if you have u3a friends who don’t use email, please can you make sure that they tell us their new details? Thank you.
Now, we have some ideas for new groups which might be of interest.
Margaret Stubbs suggests a new monthly Discussion Group. (Serious, and sometimes not so serious conversation, with members choosing topics.) This would meet, possibly, on 4th Wednesday afternoons or Friday mornings. The first topic could be 'What values should we pass on to the next generation?'. If you are interested please contact her on 01759 303683 or at the next Drop-in 4th Feb.
John Brian proposes a Living Family History Group - this is a group for those interested in sharing what they have learned from their life experiences. To that extent, each member is an expert, and so this group is not one where a subject expert delivers a talk. Meetings would require each member to come prepared to share some experiences about people, places or things which have had and may continue to have significance for them. The meeting may explore a particular year or alternatively take a theme such as music, sport, fashion, travel, hobbies, and so on. Henry Ford infamously said that history is bunk. The intention in this group is to explore our personal histories and emphasise the importance of learning from the past, so as to enable us deal more effectively with the present and the future. Please drop an email to johndbrian@yahoo.co.uk if this type of group interests you, indicating what you can bring to it.
As well as these ideas, our fellow u3a branches in the Accord network are inviting new members for the following groups:
· Swanland u3a:
o Writing for Fun, meet 3rd Wednesday 10.00am - 12.00 noon. Contact Susan Shaw 01482 666113 or the website for more details
o Singing for Fun, meet 4th Wednesday 2.15pm - 3.45pm. Contact Kate Woolley 07789 608856
· Caves u3a
o Jazz Appreciation, meet 2nd Wednesday. 2.00pm - 4.00pm Contact Mike Pinfold 01430 422059 for more details
o Writing for Fun meet 2nd Thursday 2.00 - 4.00pm Contact Lesley Atkinson 01430 421171 for more details.
And one final ‘news item’ comes from member Yashpal Anand, who writes, “I collect stamps. I started doing this as an aid to teach children through the Charity - The Gian Foundation, which now is based in India. As a byproduct I have ended up with stamps from different countries. I am now collecting only a few countries and would like to discuss the possibility of exchanging the duplicate stamps I have.” So do get in touch with Yashpal at ypa@sky.com if that’s of interest to you. (Who said philately would get you nowhere?)
That seems like a lot of news for a short month – I hope there’s something there to engage your interest. And I hope February will bring us a break from the winds and rain. Whoever makes up the celebration dates seems to know it’s a time of year when we need comfort; we can look forward to Yorkshire Pudding Day, Real Bread week, Chocolate Day, Pizza Day and Chilli Day, as well as Rose Day, Promise Day, Kiss Day and Hug Day to cheer us up after Toothache Day on the 9th, perhaps? Watch out for butterflies too – apparently, if you see one in February it’s good luck for the rest of the year. (Probably not good luck for the butterfly, though!)
I’ll finish with the closing lines of Margaret Atwood’s poem, ‘February’: “Get going on a little optimism around here... Celebrate increase. Make it be spring.”
Take care, and keep warm!
Rosemary Waugh (Vice Chair)
