Thursday, May 27, 2010





Last night I had a curry in Brick Lane.
I was with my friend Dave from Belfast.
We have seen each other twice in 30 years.
First of those was one year ago.

At the age of 24 he came as a student youth worker.
I was leading a youth project in the East End of London.

He has been involved for many years in reconciliation work.
He was feeding my out-of-date-mind about the issues over the water.
Because the 'Troubles' of ended we get little news from Northern Ireland now.
Only a sectarian murder delivers some news coverage of that divided land
and the many divided communities.

Brown eyes/Blue eyes.
We talked about the experiential exercise
using the colour of participants eyes.
Prejudice/injustice/deprivation/ all dished up
as an exercise but delivering real feelings -
real racist behaviours, real prejudice.
Powerful.

So much is unique about that region.
Yet the issues relating to
the human damage and long ingrained socialisation
is transposable into my work and the situation here.
London/Urban/Oppression/Offending/Dysfunction
all need the new experiences of
bringing the separated into union with one another,
touching finger tips,
holding hands.
Lions laying with the Lambs.
That we all may be one ..........

Our discussion reminded me
of my blog a few weeks ago -
'Take a new born child
and sew him up in a dead mans skin.
Grand father has come back to life.'
All about socialisation.


We shared stories from his work.
My work.

We talked about our experiences
from our Youth Work some 30 years ago.
He remembered more than me.
That is worth another Blog tomorrow ......