"at the end of the day we have an expensive car and they haven't"

having three young kids comes with certain logistical considerations. take getting in and out of cars for example. easy- unplug your seatbelt. be pounced upon by one of your children who was that much faster than you. the others realise the one that got away and start to request, if they are polite, but more realistically scream, for equality of freedom. hands, yours, by now, are pinned down by a heavy child. 3 voices increasing in decibels.

that's before you open the door.

in this particular sunday afternoon we had parked the car. angie went to get joshua out and as she had eventually climbed out she went round to get him. he was kicking against her playfully and with a step back she accidentally knocked the car next to her. the lady screamed "CAREFUL!" we apologised quickly as we were at fault.

angie went in to the supermarket with two excited boys.

the owner of the victim's car came back and after hearing of the knock examined his car. i apologised again. he accepted it and said "after my day, this is the least of my worries"

then as he left he shouted at the kid on the other side of his car for having their door open. whilst pulling away he said to his girlfriend about the knock: "at the end of the day we have an expensive car and they haven't".

he's right however, he must have spent a fortune on his car and it is, "at the end of the day", an expensive one. Certainly more than ours. In fact most cars are more expensive than ours as I have never bought a car.

So we now have a new PM

as I write the bbc are showing the clips of Gordon Brown's resignation and David Cameron's declaration of his new role and service to the country.

i'm reading a lot of notes of disgust and many of relief, some even ecstatic about a change. many opinions. many voices.

public service as got to be one of the hardest roles.

i always loved how socrates described this harshness when describing his "philosopher gaurdians":

...Those who belong to this small class have tasted how sweet and blessed a possession philosophy is, and have also seen enough of the madness of the multitude; and they know that no politician is honest, nor is there any champion of justice at whose side they may fight and be saved. Such an one may be compared to a man who has fallen among wild beasts --he will not join in the wickedness of his fellows, but neither is he able singly to resist all their fierce natures, and therefore seeing that he would be of no use to the State or to his friends, and reflecting that he would have to throw away his life without doing any good either to himself or others, he holds his peace, and goes his own way. He is like one who, in the storm of dust and sleet which the driving wind hurries along, retires under the shelter of a wall; and seeing the rest of mankind full of wickedness, he is content, if only he can live his own life and be pure from evil or unrighteousness, and depart in peace and good-will, with bright hopes.

election fever

voting. hung Parliament. proportional representation. coalitions... it's all happening here.

it's been an exciting race. the anticipation and desire for change has been exhilarating. i was up late last night watching gleefully at the commentary, speeches and it was great tv.

however, i'm still slightly worried that i'm voting for somebody and someone who i don't really want to be there. all the candidates had their merits. but i really find myself not trusting politicians with my precious "trust" to run this country. it's more like i'm voting on who i don't want to be there. i value my vote and value this amazing right that i have been given to do it, but i just don't like the who i'm voting for.

i kinda like caleb's suggestion the last time i was in this place.

a few snaps

skywalker

"I was in a plane and we were high up. I stepped out of the door and was walking in the clouds with God. I asked him: "how big are you?" He said He was 30. I then got back in the plane."

... caleb recounting his dream to me. wow.

sleep

i fell asleep putting joshua to bed at 7.15pm... and then transferred myself to my bed and got up proper at 6.30am. interestingly, i woke up with joshua in my bed, but i'm pretty sure i didn't transfer him.

more sleep in a single hit than i've had in a long, long time... felt like a teenager again.

birthday parties

just back from a 4th birthday party for caleb.

7 words: insane, frenetic, exhausting, fun, 55kids, survival and insane.

a walk in the park

Davos#9: rest

from this...
to this...

(David Livingstone enjoying the snow- he came from temperatures of 35 degrees to -10 degrees... nearly a 50 degree change!)

(the team)

Davos#8: Jeffrey Sachs, Websites and Social Media

effectively there have been 3 things that we have been involved in here at Davos:

firtsly, the refugee run. nuff said.

secondly, the launch of the new business.un.org website. this had its annoucement made in style here at WEF. UN Global Compact, a UN body aiming to get businesses to align themeselves to international principles, several senior business folk and jeffrey sachs.

at the end of the session, they were refugees, stripped of identity. a nobody in the basement of a old hospital in one of the world's most prestigious places.

the effect was powerful. some amazing conversations started to flow and creative ideas to see solutions was banded around.

the next day, there was social media focus event with the likes of the Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia, Sheryl Sandyberg, Chief Operating Officer of Facebook and several people from Microsoft. Again at the end of the experience the question: what could we bring to assist with a problem such a refugees. fascinating discussions followed.


the last thing: to quietly flick the switch to a new GH website ushering through more ways to allow the power and resources of businesses be used to meet needs.

Interlude#2: Blue Sweater Story

interlude: moral heroes

the current football england captain, john terry, is under fire. he had an affair with a former team mate's girlfriend.

i'm not a chelsea fan nor do i particularly think that john terry is the best choice for england captain. neither do i feel sorry for him, he's an adult and responsible for his actions.

but what i am astounded by is the need we have for purity. the desire to have a hero that is capable of footballing & moral perfection. i find myself feeling that whoever is in that hot seat is destined for failure. why. because they're not perfect. they maybe good, even brilliant. perhaps even worthy of stories... but none are perfect.

i write this as the whole MP expenses scandal takes over our country. those in public service are accused of stealing from those they serve.

we expect perfection of those in public life. but is anyone able to deliver? there's really 2 courses of action: one do we change the goal posts and embrace imperfection as virtue or two, hold out for the one who is perfect.

there may, however, be a third option. a sort of inbetween: imperfection is the norm and its those that face adversity and overcome, be they themselves imperfect. this way it's not so much about the imperfection, but rather the spirit and determination to live with such imperfections and strive for virtue or moral purity. certainly for me, my heroes are those who have learnt to live with their "thorns in the flesh" or disabilities.

i hope john terry will come through this and obtain redemption and maybe even earn the captainacy for england again.

Davos#7: Business.un.org

5 years in the making. But the UN-Business website launched in style. Jeffrey Sachs (author of the “End Of Poverty”, CEOs, UN representatives and the GH president announce the arrival of this website designed to create partnering between businesses and the UN.

Behind it a greater purpose to push partnering proposals to the greater charitable community. It seeks to create a “global common” between interfacing intermediaries, such as this UN system and others like it, for business and charities serving to hook up resources available in one system to the plethora of needs across the world.

Each representative mentioned a tribute to the determination, despite elongated processes and bureaucracies for those behind the scenes.

I recall sitting in the Foreign & Commonwealth office, just after the tsunami, with many businesses in a meeting that was hosted by the UK’s Business in the Community screaming out for a need of a system that can facilitate offers and requests from humanitarian and business communities. Their template brief document looked strangely familiar.

I recall Bill Clinton hailing out for the need of a “humanitarian” eBay around the tsunami time too. He's here, at Davos, appealing for 100 trucks for Haiti.

It was an awesome moment to hear the words of the Global Compact (the UN body for business) to proudly announce this tool.

After the panellists took part in the Refugee Run with some humbling outcomes, insights and suggestions.

My friend the Popped Kernel puts it way better than me in his blog: http://thepoppedkernel.blogspot.com/2010/01/davos-business-meets-goodwill.html

Davos#6: refugee run quotes

"Reading 1000 books would not teach me what I learned in the past hour"

Lord Malloch Brown, former UN Deputy Secretary General and senior execuitves took part in the refugee run yesterday. A "very humbling" experience and "a compelling way to remind one what it's like" for refugees around the world.

Director Francesca Martonffy, Global Change Makers said, of the session, "It was a really powerful experience and one we won't forget!".

“Very humbling”

Davos#5: refugee run photos

Davos#4: The hills are alive

Today was a day of rest and we took a walks in the hills. A truly glorious place.

Davos#3: Low Flying

Continuing with David L. I heard when a few people visited him several year ago he drives fast. So fast that it’s referred to as “low flying”. He laughs when I tell him this and I laugh with him. He replies: “Yes it’s true. But the reason is I don't want the rebels to take us...” and finishes “...not like they took me.”

Davos#2: “Women are giving birth at the side of the roads like animals because there are no hospitals”

Kitgum is a city in northern Uganda. Bordering a war weary Sudan whose Comprehensive Peace Agreement hangs on threads. Near to Rwanda which had a fierce civil war. Kitgum, itself a place that has hosted a war and is seemingly coming through trying to rebuild.

I sat in car chatting to man, David L, who will be involved at the Refugee Run that we are together involved in at the World Economic Forum’s Davos conference. A gathering of the world’s elite. He is telling me of his home in Kitgum. He has great vision for the place and so desperately wants transformation. He talks of a need for a hospital and utters the words as we approach the prestigious ski resort town: “Women are giving birth at the side of the roads like animals because there are no hospitals”

Davos#1: Flüchtlings-lauf

The refugee run is back on. We're in Davos, Switzerland. It's beautiful. It's cold. It's also this year about about a Business-UN platform and a new GH website.

It's exciting.