There has been more of the same, and a lot of change since
my last post. Most notably the World Cup has been and gone. I am not a huge
football fan, but I did find myself sucked in to the wave of pride in the
England team- and dare I say it a large degree of nationalism. I saw Ian Wright
say that the country needed a win more than ever. It did strike me that surely
what this country needs are more schools, hospitals, trains running on time
etc. than a World Cup; however, I do see Mr Wright’s point. No one expected the
England to get as far as the semi-finals, but I think what was far more
important was the way they handled themselves on and off the pitch. There was a
real sense of integrity and sportsmanship displayed by the team, and this was
no doubt inspired by Gareth Southgate. So
for me what made this World Cup so special was the way the England team conducted
themselves, they looked like they genuinely wanted to be there. So while I do
think there is a lot that needs addressing within the UK- e.g. Brexit,
Healthcare, the growing polarisation between left and right, etc.- I think this
event provided welcome relief for a lot of people (myself included); it gave
people the opportunity to talk about something with each other that unites,
rather than divides. In this current political climate that is something I am
grateful for.
