We all lie awake in the middle of the night sometimes listening to the house cracking or because I live in London it could be a bird singing maybe a Blackbird, other sounds are lorries rumbling past my house, I live on a main road,
One of those moments that I remember lying awake was nearly 14 years ago and the sound I heard would later sweep through my life and rip it to pieces, everything I had ever known would be taken away without my permission leaving me lost for realistically the rest of my life.
The cough was persistent and I thought I must send him to the doctors in the morning, I was listening to my son Richie, he had been complaining of shortness of breath and said he felt pressure behind his ears. I took him to the doctors at that time and doctor said it was nothing and he would be fine, little did he or I know that Richie, his sister and I would never be fine again.
The next morning I had to go to work so I asked my daughter Sophia to take Richie to the doctors, I remember going down the stairs and looking back up, Richie was standing on the top step looking down at me I was struck at how handsome he was and it took my breath away, but Richie had been playing up lately his sister Sophia was pregnant at a very young age and as we had all got over the surprise and anger we just got on with it and life continued, I thought that Richie was a bit jealous of the attention that Sophia was getting normal behaviour but my parting shot at Richie was "stop mucking about Pull your socks up and behave" regrets for words and actions.
Richie was the child I had when I had grown up, there was a six year gap between him and his sister I was totally in love with his father and Richie was my love child, I had a good job and I was the happiest I had ever been. Richie's father and I had broken up, not my fault the new drug of my generation was Crack and I'm afraid Richie's father fell in love with Crack, he loved it more than me. What a shame.
I had been at work for a couple of hours and was sitting in the restaurant with my friend Janice a lovely bubbly pretty lady and a couple of other ladies, when we got around to my daughters pregnancy. I was saying how disappointed I was that Sophia had got pregnant so young. Janice told me a story that I would never forget.
A friend of hers had a daughter who was sixteen when she got pregnant (same age as Sophia) and she was so angry, just a short time later the daughter started complaining of a pain in her leg, the mother took the daughter to the doctors and shortly afterwards the daughter was diagnosed with cancer and within a very short time the young girl had died. Janice says her friend says if she could have anything it would be her pregnant daughter was alive and she would have a grandchild, because now she has nothing. She had realized that having a pregnant daughter was the least of her problems. That certainly put things in perspective for me and I actually did feel better.
As we were talking there was a Tannoy announcement asking for me to go the Office. It was a phone call for me from Lewisham Hospital and my daughter was telling me I must come down to the hospital straight away.
I flew like the wind. Richie is a lovely caramel colour and he has chubby cheeks and dimples, he is rather wilful and highly intelligent, he is my companion and he makes me laugh, he is twelve years old and his voice has still not broken, he is my baby.
The nightmare starts. first Richie is lying face down on a bed unable to breath properly and we are waiting to see a doctor, this doesn't take long. Next Richie is having an examination a scan of his chest. Next I'm in a room away from consultation room with two doctors looking at me telling me, there is a huge mass around Richie's throat and chest, his lung has collapsed and the other is halfway down, his lungs are full of fluid. They are taking him to surgery straight away I felt myself getting smaller and smaller the doctors seemed as if they were miles away from me and I was dreaming, next my tears are blinding me as Richie is drowsy from surgery they have inserted a drain to his lungs and he is just coming round, he lifts his arm up and his eyes are far away and dreamy, he strokes my cheek and tells me not to cry, I didn't think he could see me. I have a meeting with a consultant who says that even though there have been no biopsy results, he is quite sure that Richie has cancer and he will be transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital in the morning.This is all in 3 hours of walking through that hospital door.
Oh God things have quieted down and Richie is stable, there is no doubt that Richie was actually at deaths door. Sophia and I are shell shocked.
To be Continued
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=478237684828&set=t.100001400379083&type=1&theater
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5CUHHGlQg0
Monday 20 June 2011
Thursday 16 June 2011
Two Weeks Today
What a hectic first two weeks.
As I sit here at Crofton Park Library I look over to the counter and I see Darren Taylor C.E.O of Eco Computer Systems chatting away with his staff, checking out books and looking like any other volunteer, there is no pretence, no stuffiness, just a willingness to get on with the job of keeping the library open, as he said he would. This morning I'm sitting in this lovely bright building I feel privileged to be part of this. I have my laptop (wireless users please feel free to come in) I glance around there is a man studying,he has a pile of books besides him. Over in the children's section I can hear a couple of mums and their young children chattering away. I spoke to Darren he is utterly calm and loving his new role.
It is marvellous to be able to sit here knowing that if there had been no protests, there would be no library to sit in and he acknowledges that by having a lot of the protesters from the original campaign group working for him now. A young local woman Remi saw the photographs of one of the volunteers Gwen on the Pepys Resource Centre facebook Page, see link below, and recognised her as her Old Brown Owl, Gwen had worked at Grove Park for many years as a librarian and here she is still around volunteering and making a local woman feel that everything is alright with the world.
The role of the library has changed so much, when I was a kid of course there were no computers and you had to go scrumping or using your imagination to enjoy yourself but of course things have changed a lot and now a lot of children are experts on the In's and outs of computers. As this is a newly formed Community Hub, Crofton Park will be providing I.T training for everyone of all ages.
Cycling down to Grove Park Library I arrived just as Mhari Clare, The Hub Manager was locking up for the day. Mhari Clare has a lot of ideas and wants what the community wants, she is off for a meeting at the Residential home for Seniors just around the corner they have expressed an interest in helping, one has also offered to clean the rather grubby nets on the window saying she has been dying to wash them for years. The offer has been kindly accepted. The seniors have also expressed a desire to learn I.T. we want everyone to learn the delights of the Internet, where else would I know what is going on that interests me, walks, exhibitions and even free lectures at the Geological Society on Piccadilly, get there early.
She would like users of the Hub to get more involved and help with the displays, A library user has been the first person so far to get involved he has picked a topic on Travel and Food and put out a selection of books that he felt were relevant. There is an established baby Singalong and a steady footfall of users.
Mhari Clare felt that 99.9% of the users were happy with the new management and had said they were just glad the library was still open. Cycling down Burnt Ash Road and then in to Somertrees Avenue I saw a few shops and it would seem that there is not a lot for people to do this far down from Grove Park Town Center.
Closing this Library was not an option.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=226687237356852&set=pu.173041006054809&type=1&theater
As I sit here at Crofton Park Library I look over to the counter and I see Darren Taylor C.E.O of Eco Computer Systems chatting away with his staff, checking out books and looking like any other volunteer, there is no pretence, no stuffiness, just a willingness to get on with the job of keeping the library open, as he said he would. This morning I'm sitting in this lovely bright building I feel privileged to be part of this. I have my laptop (wireless users please feel free to come in) I glance around there is a man studying,he has a pile of books besides him. Over in the children's section I can hear a couple of mums and their young children chattering away. I spoke to Darren he is utterly calm and loving his new role.
It is marvellous to be able to sit here knowing that if there had been no protests, there would be no library to sit in and he acknowledges that by having a lot of the protesters from the original campaign group working for him now. A young local woman Remi saw the photographs of one of the volunteers Gwen on the Pepys Resource Centre facebook Page, see link below, and recognised her as her Old Brown Owl, Gwen had worked at Grove Park for many years as a librarian and here she is still around volunteering and making a local woman feel that everything is alright with the world.
The role of the library has changed so much, when I was a kid of course there were no computers and you had to go scrumping or using your imagination to enjoy yourself but of course things have changed a lot and now a lot of children are experts on the In's and outs of computers. As this is a newly formed Community Hub, Crofton Park will be providing I.T training for everyone of all ages.
Cycling down to Grove Park Library I arrived just as Mhari Clare, The Hub Manager was locking up for the day. Mhari Clare has a lot of ideas and wants what the community wants, she is off for a meeting at the Residential home for Seniors just around the corner they have expressed an interest in helping, one has also offered to clean the rather grubby nets on the window saying she has been dying to wash them for years. The offer has been kindly accepted. The seniors have also expressed a desire to learn I.T. we want everyone to learn the delights of the Internet, where else would I know what is going on that interests me, walks, exhibitions and even free lectures at the Geological Society on Piccadilly, get there early.
Mhari Clare felt that 99.9% of the users were happy with the new management and had said they were just glad the library was still open. Cycling down Burnt Ash Road and then in to Somertrees Avenue I saw a few shops and it would seem that there is not a lot for people to do this far down from Grove Park Town Center.
Closing this Library was not an option.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=226687237356852&set=pu.173041006054809&type=1&theater
Eco Community Hubs Opening Times & Staff Information
| MON | TUE | WED | THUR | FRI | SAT | |
| Grove Park Eco Community Hub & Library Somertrees Avenue, SE12 0BX Tel: 020 8857 5794 Hub Manager: Mhari Claire mhari.claire@ecocom.org.uk | 0900-1300 -1000-1030 is U5s sing-a long | 1430-2000 | CLOSED | 0900-2000 | CLOSED | 0900-1700 Alternate Saturdays are local Cllr ward Meetings |
| Crofton Park Eco Community Hub & Library Brockley Road, SE4 2AF Tel: 020 8692 1683 Hub Manager: Kaiya Willaims kaiya@ecocom.org.uk | 0900-1700 | 0900-1900 | CLOSED | 0900-1900 | 0900-1300 | 0900-1700 |
| Sydenham Eco Community Hub & Library 210 Sydenham Road, SE26 5SE Tel: 020 8778 7563 Hub Manager: Nesrin Ingham nesrin.ingham@ecocom.org.uk | 0930-1700 | 0930-1900 | CLOSED | 0930-1900 | CLOSED | 0930-1700 |
| Pepys Resource Centre Old Library, Deptford Strand, SE8 3BA Eco Tel: 020 8691 3146 Hub Managers: Kim & Stephanie This Centre has a facebook page where you can also leave messages. | 1000-1800 | 1000-1800 | 1000-1800 | 1000-1800 | 1000-1800 | 1000-1600 |
Wednesday 1 June 2011
Taking over the libraries
1.05.2011
The date that Eco Computer Systems took over 3 of the 5 libraries earmarked for closure.
Sydenham Library, Grove Park and Crofton Park
I wanted to be at Crofton Park library for the handing over of management from Lewisham Council library services to Eco Computer Systems.
I got there nice and early it was not yet 9.00am, so I sat on the modern stainless steel seat and gathered my thoughts, today was the day that these libraries become Community Hubs.
When the announcement came that five libraries in the lewisham borough were to be shut, as you can imagine the communities of these libraries were up in arms. Coming together they organized marches protested outside Lewisham Borough premises, and went along to the meetings at the civic centre, there was uproar as well there should be.
Because of their actions, there is proof people power does work, and I can write this piece.
Bang on 9.00 am the doors opened and I was swept in along with volunteers and users, mothers and children. This is not an exaggeration and It goes along with the outrage that many community members felt when they heard that the libraries were under threat. It also underlines what many users said; these libraries are used, wanted and needed.
Councilor Pauline Morrison and Campaigner Karen Jonason were there to mark the occasion with a speech. They have both worked extremely hard, as have all the members of the community to make sure that their library was not closed and were ecstatic that their hard work had paid off.
Off to Sydenham Library next where I used to spend many happy hours as a child, my childhood was a very scary and lonely existence and being able to go to the library was a great escape for me, I would get a pile of books out and hide behind sofas, chairs and under tables and read for hours. I stepped into the doorway and it was like stepping back in time. It was quite busy by the time I got there and to be honest Sydenham needs a lot more volunteers, if you or someone you know would like to learn some new skills go and volunteer. Great news for Sydenham Community Radio Station they have a permanent new home at the library that far exceeds anything they were trying to find
Grove Park was just as busy as the rest, by noon a would be Silver Surfer was asking for I.T. lessons and the children’s section was very busy, some people hadn’t even realized that the library was meant to be shut that day and were surprised and pleased that the doors were open and would always be open from now on.
Sadly for New Cross Library it could not be saved and I believe the campaign goes on to find a solution to reopen this building. Age Exchange is in talks to take over some of the library service with Blackheath Library.
We wish them luck
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| Councillor Pauline Harrison, Darren Taylor, Karen Jonason |
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| Computer user |
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| Looking for a good book |
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| Father John, Gavin Dunne, Kiya, volunteer Librarian |
3
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| Waiting for the Library to open |
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| Crofton Park Library |
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| Sydenham Library |
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| Grove Park Library |
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Two volunteers at Crofton Park Library |
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