Have a Fair Christmas

Several years ago I went shopping in Guildford with my mum. We were there very early as my dad had dropped us off on his way to work. Desperate for caffeine we popped into Starbucks as it appeared to be the only place open. I ordered a Fairtrade tea. I was pretty sure that I had bought one from a Starbucks before. Obviously I hadn't because the girl at the till looked thoroughly confused. She made my mum's coffee, looked through the various boxes of tea on the shelf, shrugged and finally went to ask her colleague at the other end of the counter. Her colleague looked up frowning and said, "No, we don't do Fairtrade tea. It's just a brand anyway." Then she looked at me as if to say, "If you don't like it then go somewhere else, you student hippy!" I opted for coffee, because bizarrely they were serving Fairtrade coffee at this time. Coffee makes me ill, but in a bid to be ethical (or more because at this point I was determined to have Fairtrade) I drank it anyway.

What made me most angry was the dismissal of 'Fairtrade' as a brand. The description given by the Fairtrade Foundation explains it very clearly:

Fairtrade is about better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability, and fair terms of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world. By requiring companies to pay sustainable prices (which must never fall lower than the market price), Fairtrade addresses the injustices of conventional trade, which traditionally discriminates against the poorest, weakest producers. It enables them to improve their position and have more control over their lives. 
(What is Fairtrade? Response by the Fairtrade Foundation).

That, my friends, is more than a brand.

I don't remember exactly when I first heard about Fairtrade but it must have been towards the end of sixth-form college. There used to be a little stall once a month after church that sold Fairtrade products. The most I knew was that you could get chocolate, tea and coffee and some fruit from companies that paid a fair price to farmers, mainly in poorer parts of the world.

Once I started university I began to investigate more and was delighted to discover that there were more Fairtrade products available, notably pretty jewellery. I began to care a great deal about the issues surrounding Fairtrade, so in my third year I helped run a social justice pressure group, resourced by the organisation Speak. Sadly, not many people joined. I began to realise that Fairtrade was a huge passion of mine, but persuading others that it was important was actually very difficult. I remember having a debate with a couple of friends as we walked along London's South Bank. One of them said that Fairtrade didn't make that much difference anyway, and even if it did there weren't that many products available. Fairtrade could never truly pierce the mainstream market and break in. I said they were wrong. Starting small works.

I am pleased to say, and so are my friends, that I was right in the end! In the UK Fairtrade has really made its mark over the past few years. There really is a whole plethora of products available in many industries - food, clothing, toys, furniture, household goods, flowers. Some towns have become 'Fairtrade' towns due to the number of shops that sell Fairtrade products. In my final year of my BA my university had also been awarded Fairtrade status for serving FT drinks in all the cafes (and yes that included tea!), products in the college shop, and using FT cotton to make all the sports teams' kits, as well as using FT rugby and footballs!

It's great that in reality there is no shortage of Fairtrade products available now. However, there is still a long way to go. That's why Fairtrade is the Christmas Campaign for the Social Justice & Advocacy group that I am part of at church. The group launches a new campaign about three times a year on issues that require action. We encourage people to get interested in these worldwide concerns, to sign petitions, to write to their MPs, MEPs, or members of the Cabinet, to spread the word to others, to actively participate in the campaigns, and to pray.
My friend who leads the group has become an official seller for Created, run by the Christian charity Tearfund. This means that in the run-up to Christmas we are hosting a stall at the end of church services, selling their products and taking orders for more, as well as raising awareness of why Fairtrade is important, and particularly for us as Christians.

You people crush those in need and wipe out the poor.

You say to yourselves, “How much longer before the end of the New Moon Festival?

When will the Sabbath be over? Our wheat is ready, and we want to sell it now.

We can't wait to cheat and charge high prices for the grain we sell. We will use dishonest scales and mix dust in the grain.

Those who are needy and poor don't have any money. We will make them our slaves for the price of a pair of sandals.”

Amos 8:4-6 – the passage we are using to underpin our campaign.

It is really important to consider where what we buy comes from and how it is made and by whom. It is so easy to bury our heads in the sand. What we buy directly impacts on the lives of others. There are plenty of other things to consider when we purchase, like the effects on climate change, animal cruelty, supporting local traders etc. These are all important to me too, but my main passion remains Fairtrade.

We are fortunate to live in a town where Fairtrade is already well supported, and where members of our community are already well informed. Nevertheless we know there is more work to be done. It would be easy to become complacent now that there are a wider range of products available. It excited me that we could put so many Fairtrade items on our wedding list that a few years ago wouldn't have been possible. It excites me now that I can buy beautiful gifts that come at a fair price for my friends and family, and lovely clothes for myself. But I know that it is still not enough. Until all things available to us are purchased through a Fairtrade system, then the campaign must continue.

Beating the Bullies

Someone at work the other day called me "useless." For the first time in my life it didn't hurt. Because it's a lie. I am not useless, and she is wrong.

I am one of those people that through my life has attracted that kind of treatment. It's never been on a massive scale. It's usually quite subtle. But over the years it has raked my self-esteem away into nothing. And it's not going to happen anymore.

I've just left a job working in a horrible office of tension, of stress. "Self-esteem? You won't want that here. Only the big guns can have that. You're an admin assistant. You can just be a shell. Because, who needs to be anything really to photocopy, to file, to deliver the post? You are nothing. And we will not encourage you or support you in anything. We do not need to. Because you are nothing." Said to me? No. Implied daily? Yes.

But I am not nothing. I am made in the image of God. God who is Love. Who loves me so much that He sent His one and only Son to die for my sake. That's how much he loves me. Beyond all imagining. And so, I am not nothing. I am His, and He is mine. And bullies, He loves you too. Because of Him, I can forgive you. Because of Him, my self-esteem is returning. Because of Him I know you've fed me lies. I'm sorry I ever believed you. But I am stronger now. I pray that you are stronger too, and that treating others like this does not need to be your crutch any longer. I pray that you are free from the pain you feel that means you have hurt others, through no fault of their own.

This week is Anti-Bullying Week in the UK. Sometimes bullying is so obvious. Sometimes it is not. Look out for those around you. Be there for them. Build them up and encourage them. Because they are not nothing. Help them to report it. Because no one should stand for it. In school or work, it is never OK. People do not deserve to be made to feel less than they what they are.

Useless? Nothing? Lies.

I am His and He is mine.

Bonfire Night - It's What We Do Best

I live in the town that has the biggest Bonfire Night celebrations in the world (considering it is a UK-wide celebration, I guess that's not really difficult...)

Bonfire Night is THE event of the year in Lewes. It's an important event for a great percentage of the rest of Sussex too (particularly the best eastern half). Numerous towns and villages put on their own Bonfire Nights throughout October and November. I talked about this a couple of years ago in this post: Bonfires, Bollards, Bankers and Bangers!

With Lewes being the heart of Bonfire, rarely an evening goes past in these two months without a few loud bangs heard here and there. Bangers, or rookies as they are fondly known, are let off sporadically, usually outside the town's pubs. It's like any noise you get used to; late autumn wouldn't be the same in Lewes without these occasional distant booms (sometimes accompanied by raucous laughter if you happen to be near where they are let off).

Anyway, to the event itself. It's a crazy evening and it's a lot of fun. It's a celebration for the town, in particular for the Bonfire Societies themselves, of which there are six. Visitors are welcome although generally discouraged due to high volumes of crowds - this year the crowds exceeded 60,000. However, the celebrations would go on with or without the visitors or even the bystanding townsfolk (such as myself).

However, I feel that when you live here there's really no avoiding it. I'm not the biggest fan of loud noises, but I am a big fan of sparkling prettiness. And at the end of the day, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. To be honest, I always have a good time, even though I don't like the rookies.

We usually have a few friends round to our house for food and drink, and then depending on our mood will head out to watch the processions, and then watch the fireworks back at home.

This year my husband set about making quite a spread. He baked cheesy Bonfire bread and also cooked up sausages, baked potatoes, and beans that were spiced up with tabasco and JD! Together we made an extremely calorific chocolate pudding to be served with marshmallows and cream, post fireworks. We were also very pleased to serve both our home-brewed beer and pear cider, which everyone really enjoyed - yes we enjoyed brewing the perry so much that we tried our hand at beer, and it's turned out rather well. You can read about all this and other tasty adventures on hubby's new food blog *proud wife beams accordingly*

We had a number of small processions go past our house. One of my friends, who is a professional photographer, was constantly dashing in and out to attempt to get some good photos. He must have taken hundreds, although he believes he only got one or two good ones. The processions are indeed quite difficult to capture well on camera, due to movement and the effect of the flaming torches against the dark of the night, but if you do manage to get a good shot, then boy will it be a good shot!

A group of us went up to the top of the High Street to watch the United Procession, which is the best of all. It goes right through the centre of town, with five of the six Societies taking part. Each has a number of other town and village Societies accompanying them, as well as local bands or from further afield, such as an awesome band from one of our twin towns, Waldshut in Germany. During this procession the Bonfire Societies will pull their tableaux through. These are usually related to current affairs. This year we saw South Street pulling through Harry Potter standing in front of Hogwarts with Voldemort creeping up behind him, Commercial Square present David Cameron putting Britain through the wringer, Borough dragging along a Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club seagull relaxing on top of the team's new Amex Stadium, Southover yanking the 'Pig' Society whilst continuously lighting sodium flares (which are bright pink and blinding!), and Waterloo brought us Rebekah Brooks riding on top of Rupert Murdoch as a dinosaur. These are all spectacular works of art that are later blown to smithereens in the most awesome of firework displays.

A few of our friends went off to one of the fire sites, but the rest of us went home to watch two of the fantastic displays from the top room of our house. We had a perfect view and sat there, sipping tea (or home brew), "oohing" and "aahing" at all the appropriate places. The fireworks seem to just get better every year. It is a privilege to have them on our doorstep (although please not literally on our doorstep, thanks!)

Once everyone was back at ours we consumed the chocolate pudding and chatted into the small hours as rookies continued to boom and the Waldshut band serenaded us with some seriously rocking tunes in the distance...

As always we had a great evening. I always feel trepidation at the impending approach of Bonfire Night. I'm often excited but also a little anxious. This is because there are a few morons, who are nothing to do with the official event, who throw fireworks in the crowd and behave like idiots. They are the people that bother me. Thankfully, they are few and far between. The evening is always great fun, it brightens up November, and it's a big part of our culture in this part of Sussex. If we ever move away, I know I shall miss it very much...yes, probably even the occasional exploding of bangers throughout October and November...

Photos my own.

November

"November is the most disagreeable month in the whole year," said Margaret, standing at the window one dull afternoon, looking out at the frostbitten garden.

"That's the reason I was born it," observed Jo pensively, quite unconscious of the blot on her nose.

"If something very pleasant should happen now, we should think it a delightful month," said Beth, who took a hopeful view of everything, even November.

(Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, Chapter 15)

Meg and Beth, I agree with you both.

November is both disagreeable and delightful.

The weather is usually fairly grim - cold winds, heavy rain, grey skies, maybe snow... The clocks have changed and the evenings are darker than ever. It is cold in the house. I feel ready to hibernate until March.

My youngest brother has turned 21 today. It's Bonfire Night this weekend. There's a wedding of good friends next weekend. There's a Fair Trade campaign to launch at church in time for Christmas. There's NaNoWriMo. There's even a fancy dress party inspired by this very month - 'N' for November - which will be a reunion with many of my old Classics chums.

November is both disagreeable and delightful. As are you Jo March, my favourite character of all.