…and other things that we can forget if we are not careful
An excellent thing happened at the weekend, that was too good not to write about.
So, lots of you that get this email/read the blog, will have been involved in this, for those who weren’t – here’s how it went….
It was (unusually for a UK January) bloody miserable weather.
Children back to school, tree was just about down, and back to the rather bleak reality of day to day life
(with the spectre of the January bank statement looming)
Then I remembered something that we had done in our local mums FB group a couple of years ago –
a prize draw!
Inspired at the time by The Gadget Show (fellow nerds? Anyone? No?)
Well anyway – The Gadget Show is presented by a really rather annoying bald man with silly glasses,
but the stuff he talks about is really cool.
And the COOLEST thing about is it’s PRIZE DRAW. You win every possible gadget you can imagine.
Top end bikes, Laptops, Tablets, Remote Controlled Servants, things that make you levitate
(well, not quite, but you get the drift.)
Just a ridiculous number of things. And it made me think – couldn’t we do a mini version of that!?
So we did.
The Mums group was about 200 people at the time, and the deal was; everyone who wants to be in the draw donates a prize that they would like to win (however small) and one person wins all!
(in fact I was talked into 2 people sharing 20 prizes between them – but that kind of caused a whole new heap of logistical stuff)
Nice.
Was a feel-good thing for everyone.
So this January; with the bills and the cold, and the dreaded school run back I thought it would be a nice time to do it again.
But this time, bejaysus, there are over 1000 in the group and a very brilliant active group it is too.
And we got 115 prizes donated.
Everything from Zoo passes, to Amazon Vouchers, homebaked goodies
babysitting, ‘I will clean your car’ and literally EVERY nice thing you can imagine in between.
There was not one prize I wouldn’t have loved and would have made my day on it’s own…
And THEN the deal was that everyone TOOK their prize to the winner on the day. For MAXIMUM excitement.
So here’s what they were waiting for:
(excuse the silly hair – had just been exercising like a madwoman for the previous couple of hours – ended up like Jedward after a gangland mugging)
n.b. was only teasing about the bitchy ones…but you know that
I used to get thrown out of lessons for similar showing off
Can’t help it – it’s like Microphone Tourrette’s.
Anyway a lovely well-deserving mum of FIVE!!!! won the prizes which had her shaking and squealing with excitement.
What was so lovely – is that whilst folk would naturally have liked to win they were super excited to be able to deliver their prizes, and just so happy for her.
And Lorraine (our winner) got to meet all these lovely generous women who live nearby – on a really happy, no strings, no agenda – just LOVELY occasion.
Like a mass random act of kindness. No down side.
That kind of thing doesn’t happen often.
But why shouldn’t it?
OK it was only a Prize Draw –
but it was also a collaboration of lots of people from different backgrounds with the very levelling common thread of being local mums – joining them all together.
Everyone gets to feel a bit better about where they live. It feels good to be generous –
(arguably better than being on the receiving end)
Tiny little pictures on FB profiles turn out to be real people, with different skills and talents, and ideas for what would be a really welcomed prize.
And one person gets a MASSIVE boost!
That’s because people are, by and large – excellent. We hear about the nutters and the baddies on the news and it’s easy to forget that nasty people ARE the exception.
This group of ladies (aside from solving every conceivable problem or issue within a 4 mile radius)
are, I imagine, a pretty representative example of groups of women up and down the country.
And they did this.
A bit of fun.
But a rather gorgeous, kind, bit of fun.
This is how people are….it’s easy to forget that.
Humans seem to have a tendency to err on the cautious… be a bit guarded, make people EARN their trust. Just in case someone is a baddie.
(and occasionally someone will be – Oh well, gonna happen)
But that kind of thinking, would NEVER have got this draw past the idea stage.
“What if it’s a fix?”
“What if the winner sells the prizes”
“How do you knows someone won’t try to poison the winner
with their Victoria Sponge Cake??
Assuming people are generally brilliant, is a safe assumption. And that kind of attitude of trust and generosity gets things done.
Changes the status quo. How we think about ourselves.
Like a little local draw, or an Allotment Co-operative, or a Credit Union or The Suffragettes.
People ARE awesome.
And working together for the common good – things get happier for everyone.
(obviously you get the odd bastard every now and then but that’s life!)
So congratulations to Lorraine, and to all of you for your generosity, time and kindness.
Let’s do another one in May.
Lots of Love
Tanya & Claire
www.wiseandgorgeous.com
We gave one of our Fat Loss Cookery Books & Ebooks as part of
our prize donation.
Here’s a free sample for you!
Click the book – Eat Gorgeous – and enjoy