International Fame at Last!
I really never know whether any villager reads my monthly ramblings but it was a tremendous joy to be told by Becky Loveless that her colleague Hannah Clancy of Buffalo, NY, USA was a fan and indeed actually reads Bobservation each month. I have taken it upon myself to award the first International Honorary Fulking Villager to her. She was delighted to receive the honour and intends visiting Fulking when the Coronavirus eventually abates. It would be very interesting to know if any other supporters exist. Please let me know if you do. Subject to the most onerous investigations you may even qualify for a similar award!
Covid-19
This virus has pretty well put a stop to most social activities in the village. Observing distancing recommendations the ‘Whats app’ Quotation Friends and Community Skill Swap seem to have been successful. Some of us have got together 2 metres apart for a glass or two of wine simplified by the lack of rain and heatwave. In addition to these, yoga has continued in the North Town Field or via ‘Zoom’. At present the possibility of holding a Christmas party looks remote. I have my fingers crossed for next year’s fair on Sunday 25 July. I notice the annual Henfield Fair is taking place but I cannot imagine how social distancing and wearing masks will be applied, as it happened the weather was terrible for the whole three days of the event! General opinion seems to be that another surge will happen in the autumn if not before and so I do implore all villagers not to let standards drop. Facemasks and social distancing do make a difference to the safety of our community.
Fulking Village Archives
The village archives have just received a programme of the Edburton and Fulking Garden Fete held on Wednesday June 26 1946. Lee Holden discovered it amongst some family papers, the connection being his grandmother who arranged ‘mimes and music’ by the Henfield players. The archives are currently in the care of Terry and Linda Harris who kindly look after them and are quite happy to make them available to villagers.
Lament for Fulking Fair
On Sunday 26 July we were due to have the annual Fulking Fair in the North Town Field and along the Street but Coronavirus has caused the Social Committee to cancel the event.
Regrettably, any current relief from the Governmental ‘lock-down’ instructions will make no difference to this decision due to sensible distancing being impossible to maintain at a fair and dog show. Believe me I am absolutely gutted at this happening because of the great pleasure I get from being involved in the organisation of the fair and the interaction with everyone else involved.
However, let us look forward to Sunday 25 July 2021 when we can hold the Fair and dog show again and hopefully the Coronavirus will no longer dominate our lives. In the meantime, please keep yourselves safe.
The community skills swap whatsapp group is going so well. It has become a wonderful thing of people giving, lending and accepting, befriending and supporting. We have seventy five members at the moment. If anyone would like to join just click the logo above.
How the Community Skill Swap WhatsApp, which originated from climate change, has now turned into a very effective program combining both Fulking and (mostly!) Poynings.
Many gardening swaps of plants and seeds have been achieved and it will be very interesting to see how many new vegetable growers appear and how successful they are. If there is any demand it would be good to investigate the possibility of allotments in Fulking. They used to be on the south side of the Poynings road exiting Fulking.
When, eventually, this virus is controlled if not conquered we will find ourselves in a very different world to the one we left behind. Economically, socially and politically our lives will have changed and it will be up to to us to make sure that these changes are for the benefit of the many and not just the few.
Locked down as we are for the immediate future and possibly for a much longer period, I find it interesting to note the effect it has had on our village society. There has been a wonderful helpfulness generated by enthusiastic local leaders.
This is much appreciated by the more vulnerable villagers.
Keep safe all of you.
If anyone wants to join the community skills swap whats app group they can through this link chat.whatsapp.com
It’s a group of people who are offering help or who would like help with anything, anything at all. You won’t have previous messages in the group but there are tools for loan, for instance.
Any ideas or questions please contact Samantha.
Any ideas or questions please contact Samantha.
Minutes of the first meeting: Environmental Impact and Green Resolutions 11th January 2020 [PDF].
The ecological way forward:
‘It’s impossible’ said Pride
‘It’s risky’ said Experience
‘It’s pointless’ said Reason
‘Give it a try’ whispered the Heart!
With thanks to my friend Kirshanda of Itsallgoodeco.co.uk
The recent meeting arranged by Samantha bringing Fulking, Edburton and Poynings villagers together to exchange ideas on how to tackle Climate Change was a great success and will produce many ideas that we can all share and indeed implement.
The very recent upsurge in local parish level concern is very gratifying in spite of the total denial by some world ‘leaders’. I do urge everyone in Fulking to join us in this very rewarding crusade at the next meeting which is scheduled for Sunday 8th of March in the village hall at 7pm (please check this date/time on the village website).
BN5
Many thanks to Emma Osman and her team. Emma is the editor of BN5 magazine which comes through our letter boxes monthly. It is always a fund of local news and advertisements. BN5 is a very good friend of our village when we want some publicity. Periodicals like this are one of the corner stones of protecting village life as we would wish it to be.