From our President...
Dear fellow Rotarians and friends,
When I was preparing to tell my story at Friday’s meeting I was looking through photos and realized that many more photos are taken now due to cell phones and digital cameras than were ever taken when I was young. It seems like people are always snapping and posing these days – if you do not have a photo, it did not happen! Do you know how to take a ‘selfie’? “Research shows that taking lots of pictures can actually get in the way of us naturally remembering what we experience. Before you take your next photo, pause and take in the details of what you are seeing.” (thanks Pam)
I am looking forward to our story-telling event this week – I love a
good story. I remember clearly having books read to us as children and I loved
listening to stories on the radio. Have you ever listened to a book while on a
journey in the car? Nothing like it!!
Please read the latest Rotary Africa which should be in your email
mailbox – Mark Franklin says “The stories of young people whose lives were
changed by Rotary, and who then made major life commitments to Rotary are
wonderful."
There is such a lot to read – where to start? Make sure at least some of
what you read is positive – there is such a lot of negativity around.
No one ever injured their eyesight by looking on the bright side.
Smile through the coming week.
Ann
This Week...
Given the restrictions of the Covid lockdown our Club has been very limited with what we could achieve in terms of Fund Raising. However, our committee has not let this stop them and they need a huge round of applause and all the support we can give them in their sterling efforts.
We have had overwhelming support from members of other clubs and Friends of Rotary, but sadly it has to be said that the take-up from our club has been disappointing.
It is not too late to R.S.V.P.
The banking details are as follows:
Rosebank Rotary Club
Nedbank
Account number 1145 9991 23
Clearing Code 198 765
Reference: Your Surname - Caskie
This Friday...
Marelise Jacobs - Confidence and Conviction
Marelise Jacobs is an experienced problem-solver who helps new and established companies to renew and focus their brand message. Converting chaotic ideas into one coherent message is just one of her many talents. As a graphic designer and brand consultant, Marelise has worked with organisations and companies across the world which has taken her designs to numerous countries including the United States, South Africa, Brazil, Madagascar, and many more. Marelise believes in the power of making decisive decisions and communicating your intentions effectively. She has been running her graphic design studio for over four years after spending eleven years in the, often chaotic, publishing industry where she learned many virtues, including patience. Apart from being a business owner and speaker, Marelise is also an accomplished illustrator, facilitator, and wife.
Last Week....
Last Friday our President Ann had the opportunity to share her story with the the Club that she has been a member of since 2005.
I always wondered why John, her husband of 40 years called her Pinks, but in her opening statement she revealed that she had loooooooved the colour pink from a very early age, and so the nick-name stuck.
Her dad had been in the army and her mom was an air hostess, but they then established themselves on a farm situated 16 km away from Vanderbijlpark where she and her siblings grew up in idyllic surroundings.
After Ann matriculated in 1973 she was fortunate to be chosen as a Rotary Exchange student and spent an enriching and formative year in New Zealand which was the beginning of her future journey with Rotary.
She chose a career in nursing and a shortly after getting married to John they spent a year in Braunschweig Germany where John had been transferred to by Siemens.
She was blessed with three children (2 boys and a girl) and worked as a night nurse which must have been very hard for a young family. Eventually she changed tack completely and did a marketing and public relations course, worked as a caterer and then joined Microsoft, where she worked for 18 years.
Ann's interests are eclectic, from exploring her ancestry and collecting antiques, to entertaining and cooking, she has a passion for travelling and has been to Australia, the USA, she's ski'ed in Italy and Canada, loves hiking (she has conquered the Otter Trail), she reads and enjoys board games and has knitted truly intricate blankets for her grand children.
And throughout her story it is evident that FAMILY is everything to her.
Lorenzo's Covid Story.....
ITALY AND THE DEADLY VIRUS
As early as January the media started reporting about a flu virus that was prevalent in the north of Italy; that it had come from China and seemed to be seriously deadly. My reaction was that in the past in Asia these “flu endemics” had come and gone. But the news was insistent and it was serious. I then surfed the internet for information on “flu” cases in Italy and found The International Journal of Infectious Disease had published a study that between 2013-2017 on average about 20,000 people die of the flu, mainly due to an ageing population and fragile state of the elderly. At this stage Italy had not reached 20,000 deaths.
Having said this, simultaneously politics was playing its role by steering the nation to the right side of the road. The government with the Ministry of Health and the experts did all it could to take hold of the wheel and was battling to come up with clear line policies, owing to the fact that this was a new battle never imagined before. On the other hand, the right-wing party thought it a good opportunity to put up a fight because their supporters, the populists, saw this as the perfect opportunity to fight for “freedom” of suppression. The strong hold of the right-wing party is the North, especially Lombardy, the province that was most and still is the hardest hit; they were totally against distancing, wearing a mask and totally against closing down businesses. One of the striking moments came when the government decided to make many illegal migrants legal, a move that did not provoke any kind of outcry. The right-wing party opposed this in parliament and failed, so its leader and party members had to change and adhere. By now the virus had spread, and fast!
Italians in general are individualistic, especially from Rome down but in this case, everyone was shocked and all toed the line. Italians stayed home punto e basta and they became very inventive through in particular the arts, by singing or playing musical instruments from balconies that truly gave moments of spiritual upliftment, showing off the Italian creativity. YouTube proved to be one of the greatest innovations, bringing people together and also making people famous for whatever act they created.
Besides distancing, masks, disinfecting hands and gloves at all times, only one person of the family was allowed to venture out of home/apartment for shopping or, if urgent, accompany a person for medical reasons. Before leaving home you had to fill in a specific form in which you had to confirm where you were going and the police/carabinieri were around to stop and check and sanction those who did not conform.
But the most devastating consequence has been for the elderly folk of which Italy has a very high percentage. Those that survived lived at home, many alone, in silence in their apartments with no visits allowed. Every morning at 7am the Pope from Saint Martha Chapel said mass and gave a most interesting homily. Sunday masses were streamed by almost all churches as the young parishioners practiced their YouTubing knowledge. On the other hand, this period caused an increase of 30% divorces that most likely were in the pipeline. Overall, like many nations, this virus gave us a moment to pause and reevaluate our daily life and innovations.
Today we are still obliged to adhere to social distancing and wearing a face mask when in closed spaces while disinfecting is optional. No more gloves and filling in forms. Although people still adhere to these rules, often they are forgotten and although we are not out of the woods yet, it seems to be under control. But the future is unknown, and Italians are aware of the dangers of another lock-down. Now we must simply stick to the rules, hope, and pray.
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