Spot the difference! Is this a Cornish Chough?

Don’t say I didn’t tell you! A much more mundane two weeks have gone by! Not to say that I have been sitting at home doing nothing or haven’t driven very far. The Government is certainly getting more than its fair share of income from me in the form of Fuel Tax and VAT, especially as the price of petrol is rising rapidly again. But all these journeys have been smooth, even if I did get held up by tractors and roadworks!
I have kept up the pace with visiting Rotary Clubs around Cornwall, none in Plymouth or Devon, recently. I have also been up to Alcester, to the Headquarters of Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland. I was there for a day long committee meeting to discuss the progress being made and future plans for the various activities and projects being undertaken by Rotary Clubs in these isles to help the youth and elderly, the disadvantaged and those in need, of our own communities and those abroad. What a lot is being done! I might be accused of bias but I have to say “Well done, Rotary”.
I was amazed at just how much was done to help the victims of the flooding in the Severn Valley and in the North East and, of course, the international aid to disasters around the world being provided by Rotary’s flagship programme, ShelterBox.
Competitions for young people in the areas of music, singing, public speaking, cooking, technology and art, to name a few, are all about to get underway again very soon. Watch out for news items in the press and on the TV.
Of course, 24th October was World Polio Day. Not really a celebration. It is more of a recognition of the fact that, although we in Western Europe have not seen an epidemic of Polio for more than 50 years – in fact, many of our younger generation don’t even recognise the name or know what Polio is – there have been some 1000 new cases registered in a small part of northern India, in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria, so far this year. Rotary International has been working with WHO and UNICEF since 1985 to try to eliminate Polio worldwide. They have almost achieved their goal but the final push has to be made. Type ‘End Polio Now’ into your search engine and you will be given dozens of links that will tell you more of what is being done by Rotary and its partners. Go on! Give it a go!
Even better still, get involved.