Pass it on!

 

Pass it on!

Do you watch The Repair Shop?  In 2020, in the midst of all our worry, frustration and grief, how lovely it has been to have this (pre-recorded) haven which never fails to show us expertise, gratitude and joy!

The format is simple.  Each visitor brings a treasured possession in need of repair; an expert craftsman/woman applies their expertise to “bring it back to life”; the visitor is amazed and delighted.  Usually, two or more generations of the same family are involved: a grandparent and/or parent for whom the item has had special significance, and who now who wishes to pass it on to the next generation.

The experts, too, often mention a previous family member who taught them their particular skill.  For example, the man who created two new wheels for a child’s miniature vehicle told us that he had learned his craft from his father and grandfather, both wheelmakers by trade.

Thinking about this, I was reminded of a felt picture which I once made, to hang on the back wall of my classroom.  The front and side walls were festooned with posters of France and Germany, but I was well aware that not every pupil was keen, or indeed able, to learn a foreign language.  So, the felt picture was there at the back to encourage me, as I tried to convince my teenage pupils about the importance of the Learning Process!

The deep pink figure, standing with arms down, symbolises a pupil of the current generation.  The paler pink figures on his/her left represent previous generations: from parent all the way back to great-great-great grandparent - after which they fade into the distant past (Half-figure in white).  In order to receive useful know-how which can be passed on to the next generation (as yet unborn! – shown by the white half-figure on the right), the pupil must raise his/her arms – that is, make an effort - to join and continue the chain of knowledge.

Of course, I was delighted when pupils shared my love of French and/or German and did well in their exams.  But I was also delighted when on Friday afternoons members of my fourth-year non-certificate class took turns to tell their classmates about a specific skill they had learned from older family members.  I remember the pride of a boy who loved fly fishing as he showed us the colourful artificial flies he had made, and the determination of another, whose ambition was to become a farrier for racehorses.

In this photo of my Higher French class, you can see my felt picture on the wall behind the pupils.  But at this present time, what is far more noticeable is the closeness of the youngsters – no facemasks and no social distancing from one another or from the teacher.  How very sorry I am that the present generation – including my two grand-daughters at school and my younger grandson at university – have had their education and social development disrupted by Covid-19 and their future prospects made less certain.

What can a grandparent do to help?  Nothing much, it would seem, in this unprecedented situation – except stay at home in Lockdown!  But everyone of my age will have had to face anxiety and heartbreak at some time or another, and will possibly remember and pass on words of advice which their grandparents gave them.  In my family such advice was “Just live one day at a time” and “This too will pass” and ‘Cast all your anxiety upon Him, for He cares for you.’

Now, I realise that for many people faith in God is very difficult, especially in view of all the present frightening statistics.  But the Good News is that faith is absolutely separate from all statistics!  It is for each of us a personal relationship with God, accessed by private prayer.

If you look again at the photo of my pupils you will see a quotation which I posted up there for my own benefit! – words which have given me strength at very difficult times of anxiety, money worries, sorrow, physical and mental exhaustion.  I painted the letters in yellow on black paper, with the most important word in white paint for emphasis.

The message on the poster is in French: Ne crains pas; crois seulement, which means:  Don’t be afraid; only have faith - a quotation from Luke’s Gospel, passed on from generation to generation for two thousand years.  It is what Jesus said to a distraught father (Jairus) just before he brought his 12-year-old daughter back to life.

Now, as we face the New Year, 2021, I pass it on to you.

 May God bless you and your loved ones.

Amen