Saints Alive: Stanhoe and Barwick Newsletter

July 2020

Stanhoe Parish Council Matters:–

• COVID Help:– Our Elderly continue to defy expectations and leave our volunteers all still readily available. Please remember to call us if you need help or company.

• Broadband:– Openreach and BBFN (Better Broadband for Norfolk) are gradually expanding the network through Stanhoe. With the first two Solutions (phases) completed, some 116 properties now have superfast (FTTP) broadband and a further 24 are planned in the third phase which is scheduled for completion in the spring of 2023.

• Playground:– In accordance with the latest Government guidelines, it is with regret that the children’s play equipment must remain closed. The guidance is there for people’s own protection and the protection of others they may then come into contact with. There are lots of surfaces that could be touched and no sanitising or hand washing facilities nearby. These play areas represent a risk that is not easy to mitigate and that is why the Government has not lifted the restriction.

• SAM 2:– the speed sign is out of commission but we hope to have it returned and working soon.

• Council Meeting:– The last meeting was held by remote means through a BT teleconferencing facility. Surprisingly quite a lot got done. The next Parish Council meeting is scheduled to take place on 9th July. Unless Government restrictions are lifted in the interim, the meeting will be held in a similar fashion and limited to Parish Councillors and the Clerk. Should you wish to raise any issue, please contact the Clerk on 07789 887380 or parishclerk@stanhoe.org.

Stanhoe Open Gardens:–

Due to the cancellation of Open Gardens in Stanhoe this year, it has been decided instead to have what we hope will be the first, and only “Virtual Open Gardens” on the Stanhoe website.

The owners of the eight gardens which would have been opened are to submit photographs and descriptions of some aspect of their gardens to our webmaster, and we hope that the feature will be available to view towards the end of June, for those who are able to use the internet. There is a provisional plan to hold a public exhibition in the Reading Room later in the year, as well.

And finally:–

Some ‘Lockdown’ poems with thanks to Ledbury Poetry Festival:–

Neologisms – by Emma Williams

It’s funny how
A word
A phrase
A term
Comes from nowhere.
Six weeks ago
Many of us
Had been
“Locked out”
A door slam
A forgotten key
Some of us
With old doors
Rusty locks
Rotten wood
Had even been
Locked in
None of us
Had been
Locked down
The irony
Of course
Is we’re
Only locked in
“Locked down”
For 23 Hours
With 65 inch televisions
83 rolls of toilet paper
1 or 2 people we love
We call it
“Locked down”
But shouldn’t it be
“Locked up”
For this is far more
Freedom than some.

The Human Touch – by Linda Michel

Who knew one could miss so much
the human touch
The reassuring pat on the arm
The soft sweet feel of a baby’s downy crown.
The chubby little hand that grasps yours so tight,
The masculine hug of a team mate that bonds
The kiss on the lips which leads to much more,
The clasp of the hand that says, in you I trust
The brush on the cheek that says au revoir,
The blow of a kiss and a promise to meet.
So know we must wait for a suitable time
When its safe to embrace and we can forget
When a touch could be toxic,
Too close might be deadly,
And time it stood still.
While we wait for a cure all
From the scientists skills
The days of confinement
Weigh heavy with dread,
Of the plight of our loved ones
We miss them so much.
Now we know why we cherish
The memories we hold
It gets us through dark days
And gives us the hope
That soon we can go back
To what was before,
And appreciate the human touch
Like never before.