A Day in the Life of . . .

If you want a job done, ask a busy person, is an oft-used quip in the charity sector. Seems an unlikely one, doesn’t it? But experience shows that it's very often the way of things and motivation is invariably at the root of it.

Being classed as a busy person is an accolade I don’t think about too much, why would I, but I guess it must be true. No two days are the same.  Keeping a live to-do list in my head, or better still down on paper, is how it works best. Yes, it's often a bit of a juggling act, between this commitment and that, this deadline and that task that needs a bit more thought or care. Some are externally generated, whilst others are driven by that motivation thing I mentioned earlier. Nearly all of it for me, is about that great desire to make things, make lives, better for other people. The reward is beyond doubt in seeing it happen.

It would be easy to measure it all in a rather back-to-front kind of way by thinking of the converse; of those who don’t seem to have that practical humanitarian passion, their apparent lack of external commitments, or just seem to do very little by way of active involvement beyond themselves or their immediate circle. But that’s a bit negative, so we`ll leave it for another time.

Monotony is not a word I`d ever use, nor indeed the word boredom for that matter. So it`ll come as no surprise, that my mantra is busy is best.

Each day is therefore an adventure for this septuagenarian. In addition to all of the charity administration and fundraising, there`s family with those seven life-enriching grandchildren. More family over in Ireland that I`m close to and greatly appreciate. Whilst my website www.polymathpetewright.com shows, there`s an almost global family history project that I`m fostering. Then there`s all the cycling that I love to do, sometimes fully loaded with a tent and all of the necessary camping gear. From time to time, the garden at home needs my attention. Oh, and did I mention writing books? Yes, I`ve at least two projects in hand; my third novel `Echoes From the Forest` is gestating well, if rather slowly. Whilst the biography of my paternal grandfather is just beginning to emerge out of the mixture of research, from between Inverness, Glasgow, Sydney and beyond.

One of the things about growing older we are told, is that in addition to the value of diet, plenty of physical activity and a wide social circle, it's important to learn a new skill from time to time, to keep those grey cells going. I`m hoping that adding a few wee dimensions to my IT competence will fit the bill on this front, for now. Slowly getting to grips with developing and growing my website seems like a very useful, if extremely challenging thing to do. In addition to this, as I plan my major bike-camping summer ventures, or capers as I like to call them, I try to enhance my route and logistical planning. Someone once said something about proper planning and preparation, etc, so there`s certainly no harm in pushing out the bounds of this if it`ll make all that pedalling a bit easier on my joints.

Back to A Day in the Life of . . . , then. I imagine that by now dear reader, you`ll see that there is no such this as a typical day – just like the way the weather changes, perhaps? Wouldn’t have it any other way. If I come over as a bit scatty, then so be it. One or two folk have been heard to mutter words like `inspirational` though, so that`ll do very nicely.

Now here comes a confession. Older people do like a wee nap now and again, and I can tell you I`m just like all the rest. Oh yes, and a wonderful indulgence it is too.

So what about today then, yes, this day, the 16th of November 2024? I`m over in Ireland visiting my sister and all the gang for a few days; there are a few treats and delights, of course, this is Ireland after all. We`d a fine walk along the promenade where sea and land engage so beautifully.  A lot of talking and laughter about everything from the trivial to the more profound. We`ve reminisced as we looked back, and pondered the present, whilst the future has been given a fair airing too. A bit of charity admin was on the agenda and dealt with as appropriate; there`s no let up in that.

Some people of my vintage are less keen to consider the future, perhaps because we know that for every one of us, there`s mortality somewhere ahead. There is a future beyond me though, not in any kind of immortality I hasten to add, but some of my projects will live on, indeed they must outlast my presence hereabouts. Some of these, one in particular, is about young women in rural Kenya, their education, and from that their dreams and aspirations which we have set in motion. That’s quite a responsibility; one not to be taken lightly.

A single day does not exist in isolation, but if it's to be of any use to me, or more especially anyone else, it's inexorably part of a journey.

I wouldn’t have it any other way folks.