Sultan Qaboos of Oman

Camels in Salalah, Sultanate of Oman

I was so saddened to hear of the death of the Sultan, which was expected but came to his people as a bit of a shock.
Tales are told that the Sultan yearly did a “meet the people” tour and people would present their petitions to the ministers. The ministers some of whom were fairly overweight and had to run up the sand dunes and come back and listen to their problems. Everyone had the chance to speak.
We were living in Oman for 6 years and those years were a highlight of our lives and I would like to thank the Sultan for the opportunity it gave us. I was teaching while I was there, and got the school I was with to start an Arabic class after school once a week, as I thought that was such a
an opportunity to learn the language!

It is such a difficult language I am still learning! The fireworks in Oman were amazing and I believe that is due to the Sultan. May he rest in peace.

And Happy New Year Again

Just wishing everyone a Very Happy New Year, difficult to do so with parts of the world being destroyed by fires in the Amazon Jungle remedies that have not been discovered yet but are there in the Jungle and like the indigenous people there have lived in harmony with the special plants.
I have written a piece on Orangutans and the Pangolins which are on the verge of extinction unless  we can break the habit of using palm oil and destroying the jungle by doing so.
One thinks that there are so many creatures that are endangered one's that were very common but mow are rare to see. So a Very Happy New Year to you All!
From Veronica, I do hope that it is a Peaceful one

Happy New Year!

All my friends and family all over the world have a very joyous and Peaceful new year a new decade and a new start for all of us. I am sure we all pray for peace all over the world, whether you believe in God or not Psalm 91 is very comforting "in you I will trust He will cover you with his wings you will be safe in his care" That is a lovely thought to carry with you all, a Very Happy New Year to you all.

Soya beans are destroying life for those in South America.

Soya Bean Image by Jan den Ouden from Pixabay

Soya beans are destroying life in South America as there are huge areas where large areas are planted with Soya beans using a lot of land which can be used for other products. Do you buy Soya Milk? It was all the rage and a healthy alternative! But in the Rainforest they are cutting down the trees ploughing the land up and this is happening a world away but at what cost to the world!

Then there is Palm Oil which is in many products, mayonnaise and hand creams, can we not do without these?  Buying in a supermarket one should spend a long time reading the labels, and why don't the shops accentuate the ingredients. They seem to have a conspiracy among the Supermarkets to make more money than they should. After a most indulgent Christmas for we of the First World, where does our rubbish go? Into land filled all over the world and we are responsible for the removal of all this detritus! It is concerning that there seems to be little for us to do but it is by example things can change and by talking to friends, hopefully things will change. I pray that will happen.

The demise of the Orangutans

It just keeps me awake at night remembering a solitary young Orangutan reaching up to a machine trying to fend off this machine from destroying a burning tree which is his food that is disappearing his life and his vanishing food! The Forest is being destroyed and her food as well.

Judi Dench has adopted a couple of these animals. When I was travelling in the area after University I was hitchhiking round the near East through Bali, Indonesia and Sumatra where I was lucky enough to see them. This was 40 years ago!They were on one of the islands, in an area of forest which was destroyed by the Loggers. The Indigenous tribes are in trouble too.The tribes are under threat; one had no idea what would happen to this part of the globe! They are sure that they will be murdered very soon. Will we hear about it! :/

It is so sad that the creatures that seemed easily seen are now under threat, when we travel up to London we used to have the wind screen covered with insects, but now we hardly see any. All the birds that are now on the endangered list, in the garden here there are so many Goldfinches being fed by there mothers. But all the animals that I saw as a child are now quite rare from harvest mice to Red Squirrels, Polecats further North towards Scotland, it is so sad that my Grandchildren may not be able to see these lovely creatures.

Meanwhile some good news to end with. I have seen lots of Goldfinches in the garden today and the Mums being called over to feed the babies - two lots they did if not more!

Again Blue Tits and Coal Tits, and again a few more butterflies - including Painted Ladies that have flown from sub Saharan Africa. It is amazing how these tiny fragile things travel all that way and we must protect them. 

The Demise of the Pangolin

How many people know what a Pangolin is? I was watching a programme on the Pangolin that were smuggled over the border in Malaysia alive but soon to die, and how many are there left? A lady had brought up a Pangolin and become very attached to this individual. Very few people have heard of these creatures, but I feel that they need protecting. This lady had brought up this individual and when she put her hand by it it began to suckle her hand, so you realise how much this individual meant to her. I saw a programme last night about these creatures nobody knows much about them, they are distributed throughout the rainforests of Asia                                                    

Life with MS

It is the most frustrating disease, the body is willing but the body is weak and wobbles about all over the place, I used to be a dancer in Australia and hitch hiked all the way across the Continent which was much bigger than I expected! We have no conception of the distances that the population in OZ treat as just down the road! I expected that I would travel with a friend but one meets people on the way, I met a Canadian girl on the quay going to Tasmania and I asked her which way was she going and she said to the left so I went the same way. I was at Exeter University Training in Dance and Drama. So I hitchhiked on the Tarmac and we got a lift to the Flying Doctors in Derby and they gave me a lift to a Station in the Kimberleys where I got a job as a cook and teacher to the Family called Quilties. My friend Irene was at another station next door and a couple of months We split up and I suddenly saw her and stopped the bus and rushed down to see her. She was very laid back and just said "Hi". We were able to share a tent until we met up with the other people on our little expedition.
I suppose I am saying if you are diagnosed with MS it limits you in some ways but they are making such advances and hopefully there are such advances and keep hopeful.
Maybe they will fined a cure before too long!