Softly softly

9th April
Another promotion session at the Milton Keynes theatre where The Calendar Girls is just closing after a run of two weeks. Next week the show moves to High Wycombe. It is still playing to packed houses although this is its second showing at MK and it is booked again for the autumn sometime. It is great to see the members of the audience come out laughing after the first act and after the end of the show contributing so generously to the collections for leukemia research which is the real purpose behind the original calendar, the film and now the show. Most of the people whom we approached seemed to be from Bedfordshire so we were encouraging them to join WIs in another county but that doesn't matter as long as they become WI members somewhere.

5th April
A full house today for the local WI book group meeting. We returned briefly to Trespass by Rose Tremain because there had been quite a few people absent last month. We then discussed The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer. When this book was first recommended to me I thought it was a joke but I am very glad to have read it. I think we all learned a lot about the suffering and hardship which the people of Guernsey underwent during World War Two as described in the novel. In spite of the occupation the author included several members of the invading forces who were not villains and some quite unpleasant natives to the island. Some readers don't like novels written as a series of letters but it worked really well here because the different characters all showed a different style of writing in their correspondence: even the telegrams added something to the story. It was not just a romance: it had humour and a lot of discussion about literature in general, publishing and journalism. The characters were believable and some of the experiences heart-breaking. Even so, it was a lighter book to read than the Rose Tremain and I would recommend it to anyone--- especially someone going on holiday to the Channel Islands.

4th April
This was one of those days when one is not sure whether one is in control of one's life or whether the WI has taken over. I had forgotten that I had promised to do a second session of crochet teaching in the afternoon so was taken by surprise when the first pupil arrived on the doorstep. Then another WI person came along to conduct a ballot on one of the Rambles which was over-subscribed. There are more people wanting to walk than ever before which is good news but creates headaches when the catering WIs have to draw the line at a certain number for practical reasons. At home we managed to fit in a meal and a change of clothes and then it was off to promote the WI at Milton Keynes theatre, a solo effort because my partner cried off sick.I don't think I caught any new potential members but spent a long time chatting to people from local WIs and during the first act, to the stall-holders in aid of Leukemia who were pitched in the foyer beside our display. I think the WI profitted in a way from not having things to sell. It is difficult to draw the fine line between standing back while people read the display and rushing up to accost them and so frightening them away! I know I shy off when a shop assistant approaches me too quickly when "I am just looking". Don't you?