Tile Tales - a preview of what's left

For the few who have bought or been given a copy of my first pottery book, here's how some test tiles turned out. Inspired by the results of more tiling experiments last year, I hope to manage to produce a second pottery book this year entitled 'Tile Tales'. Pottery, in common with all the arts, teaches us all many things including how to look, listen, touch, feel, think and communicate. Art for me is an enigmatic puzzle far beyond anything new technologies could ever wholly fathom let alone master because it will always evolve faster than any machine we could make.

Rather like an unfathomable jigsaw I remain undecided as to which order the above tiles should be arranged in, or how many to include to share with others. With the General Election in the United Kingdom looming I feel much the same about that too. As a traditional, homely kind of gal at heart, purple has never struck me as a colour politicians should ever wear in our little islands and have made no secret of it much to the annoyance of others. It's just not me to select any group to pick on and blame for everything. We are all part of so many groups that it all seems a rather stupid thing to ever do, but as we know, there are exceptions and exceptional circumstances when defending what we hold most precious and dear is worth making a stand for.

Whatever the outcome of our voting I do know this, that what works for some scenarios will not work for all. History plays a fickle game; it never discriminates and is tricksie to all in equal measure.

Some prefer others to organise and make decisions for us while others prefer to take charge but I personally cannot think of anyone who makes any perfect decision, far less every time. Nor have I met another person who always likes others to make all decisions for them. It's nice to be able to choose what to eat, where to live, a career or what to wear. It is also far safer to choose not to take a medication that we are allergic to but even then allergies themselves can come and go because our metabolisms change as we journey through life too.

Recently human rights for many seemed to have become over rated, or of lesser value than other concerns but they are not. To me it is merely a case of what takes the highest priority according to our most immediate needs. That alters moment by moment when the pace of life is so fast moving. How iconic is a human hand and how much more potent it seems to be when clenched as a fist than left open in greeting or in friendship. Both are of equal importance and, I feel, have equal worth.

We are all part history makers and part of history all rolled into one as if part of one enormous collective thinking machine. My current contribution to thinking is that that word 'collective' resonates the loudest when a challenge is clearly visible, though I'm sure others have expressed the same concept for centuries. Unity as a concept always has and always will resonate loudly whenever survival of our way of life is at risk. Whether we collect to defy a joint danger, or to unite to share joys, it strikes me that what it is to be human must surely entail being adaptable with a commitment to take part.

I have been described as many things and all labels are true of course, but not just of me. I find everyone shares the exact same description but just to a different mix to make us all unique. We carve out not just our own name but our own path in life in part; but equally I feel it is and has always been plotted, navigated and channelled for us often by persons and powers unknown, precisely because we are all part of the/a collective. In times of peace and prosperity we shrug it off as being just about 'acceptable' and nothing to go to war over. In times of hardship the result is rather more difficult to manage or come to terms with.

It is the taking turns that seems to work best, not just for our species but for all species. No one can be on top form 24/7 - we all need to rest to stand a chance of being at our best. While I rest, others take their turn at the helm to enable my projects to not only keep going but flourish in ways I can only delight in and applaud while they start many new ones of their own. My struggles with my health have forced me to take time out and perhaps for the first time, I am both accepting and enjoying the break as my shift on just one project last year was rather longer than anyone could have predicted due to the number of people who became involved.

History taunts and tantalises, it teases and torments, it tests and tempts us into tangles of troubles; yet there is one thing that it never does - it stubbornly refuses to predict anyone's future.

So with regard to all my tomorrows... well, I think I'll give what's left to them when I get to them.

What’s Left

I give what’s left and hopeful fling

To chance a chance remembering

A careful word, a touch, a kiss

Recalls to mind all I miss

And ached and longed for in my plight

That faith restored in such delight

Retrieved and strengthened now in sight,

No longer giving as I please

I give what’s left.

Mindless seems my destined flight

Yet something calls, “this is right”

So joy does raise me from my knees

To share with others what would them please

And so I gain a strength in fright

To give what’s left.

(From my 'This is Me' Exhibition in Luton several years ago - sorry if you missed it as it was free entry. 
However this poem was first published in Poetry Now along with a few others way back in the 1990s 
- what a journey it and I have had since then, none of which I regret as I have learned from 
my travels to strange places and enjoy continuing to do so.)

Founders Thoughts: The proof of the pudding

Written during the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II and before the 2012 Olympics in the middle of a global economic crisis - I thought it worth mentioning, if only to act as a reminder to myself of the extraordinary times I am privileged enough to be a part of. Extraordinary because of the resilience of people during difficult times, not least in their determination to find joy and to win through and, I'm no different...

After a month of intensive tweeting and networking I am quietly pleased with the results as well as optimistic for the future. If you are new to social media, you might like to read my March post 'Connecting you' here on my blogsite and reading my tweets on the subject.

Already something seems to be working in my favour. Followers on twitter have increased, even if they haven't on here - I am aware that some people don't want to be seen to follow anything, others see following as a form of endorsement, I happen to feel it isn't - the police have to watch and follow suspected criminals don't they? Each to their own though, to suit their personal style and preferences.

Analytics show that over 200+ people have been reading this blogsite and been hooking up to the WildeHeads website too and I feel that's not bad for a novice in just over a month for one person who has deliberately not spent a penny on marketing so far (aside from internet connection and a few pence on electricity). It proves these things can work. Much now depends on how to maintain interest as well as finding new things to say to generate more. That could be tricky but not impossible for even a lone-trader - there are always possibilities and solutions so even if I don't have them to hand, at least I know how to look for them.

In addition, I have been working on sources of PAYE work including full-time positions to maximise options as with more options comes more choice. Happily I have one job offer in the bag already and it is flexible enough to fit in with whatever I may wish to marry it too. Just finalising CRB and paperwork. New possibilities for WildeHeads too, although I am not anxious to steam ahead with it - far better I think to take my time and build WildeHeads steadily, selecting as I go which projects I want to do, which I'll put on hold, which are most viable and which are just not feasible for me at the current time. Rushing things can, and often does, lead to inferior services or complete disasters.

While former line managers of mine may be frustrated that I am not interested in climbing the career ladder, I find I have no problem with positioning myself at the level that suits my personality and interests best. It's not written in stone though, as who knows what a polymath such as myself may be inspired by next. Suffice to say I doubt very much that reaching the level of a CEO is something that will ever grab me because I prefer working somewhere between the front line and upper management and always have.

Aside from community and the Arts I have a keen passion and interest in empowerment, communication and psychology - hence my counselling and teaching qualifications and my intention to develop those skills for sheer pleasure - I've found them to be invaluable in any business environment (another plan I have been actively progressing this month). Empowerment for me means not forcing people where they don't want to go, while encouraging people to reach their full potential for and by themselves. We all have personal lives and the work/life balance is, I think, vital to get right in order to be at our best in both environments.

Politics
Quick note about some of my tweets about politicians... no one will be more delighted than I to extol their virtues when I spot them, but I doubt I will ever name names. I happen to have a healthy respect for anyone wishing to enter politics because it must be extremely difficult to even attempt to try to please all the people all the time - I actually think it is impossible.

However, for as long as they continue to bicker about who's to blame for mistakes, dig up dirt about each others private lives that have no relevance to their ability to do their jobs, or fight over who has the best solutions like squabbling children, I'm afraid I will remain largely disinterested and disinclined to even listen. That to me is not only a bad way to market their policies, ideas and solutions but should be beneath them to even consider entering into even when passions run high.

There is one exception - corrupt MPs should always be 'outed'. I will possibly come back to politics in another article at a later date, but for now my current stance is that any time they collectively wish to grow up is fine by me. We do need to note what they are doing so we can make use of the positives or help fix their mistakes. There have been some good things happening, just not enough of them to warrant it hitting my headlines aside from the superb display of oneness over the Queen's Jubilee. I wish we could see that all the time.

What's next?
The likelihood is that my tweeting and networking will be less frequent the busier I get, but as I've already outlined I can always ask for a volunteer to help out if I feel I need or want that help. Options... there are always options.

Coming up soon will be articles on communication and possibly time management - although there's a glut of information available on the net on that already - and who knows what else; I don't. I will not risk providing a schedule for when such things will be posted, simply because I wish to remain flexible enough to respond to whatever is happening at any given point. As a basic rule of thumb I hope to post a new article once a week every Wednesday on here on something that I hope will be helpful in some way, but I won't promise - I might just decide to go for early retirement instead and pootle at pottery! Another option.

Having survived in business during the last recession I know that keeping the money moving is vital and that teamwork and networking can help to reduce not only the longevity of a recession but the severity of it. As I have tweeted, what is a recession if not a war on poverty and economic collapse? It presents us all with the opportunity to excel in how clever we can be with regard to minimising risks and displaying the best side of us - our humanity. We can all do our bit to help progress that.

To clarify, yes I have a few useful connections and a very diverse work history, but no, I have never been at the top of the business chain although I have certainly been assisting those that are, sometimes even directly. I have always admired their skills and talents, but I think will always prefer to remain a behind the scenes type - hence the range of services WildeHeads offers. All I really know for now is that I am enjoying the journey and the process of just exploring - that is actually an understatement... I adore it! I hope you do too.