Last night I received a delightful note from Daniel Webb.  Danny is a really bright child simply beaming with energy and drive.  All of 9 years old, he dressed up in his finest and presented us his tidied room on arrival to his home at Christmas.  There was a gift on the bedstand and a Christmas ornament he’d just made.  There are signs all over his bedroom walls with Daniel ‘isms’.  ‘Yes you can’ is widely displayed.  With an engineer’s heart, tape is one of his prized possessions.  To make it is better.  He is one idea after another.  A sign posted on his desk notes his business on advice and insurance.  He is a budding star and a bright light.  Having recently seen a deck of cards full of English insults, I couldn’t resist picking it up and sending it to him.  The thank you note received last night had me in hysterics.  I’m sure he will dazzle everyone around him who will be wondering what hit them when he launches his new tools.

On an earlier visit Daniel was reciting poetry that he had written, memorised of course, and enjoying every second of his limelight.  What is most remarkable is his ability to fit in with adults as well as his twin sister, older sister and friends.  I see plenty of children in our tiny village who totally clam up and walk away rather than engaging in something or someone that would test them and encourage them to go beyond the tried, true and comfortable.  Danny is a gift and you know what, there are more Danny’s and gifts out there of all ages.

The foundations on which many of us have built our lives are being shaken.  How we respond to this shaking, will determine the future of not only our lives but the lives of everyone in the world around us.  There are opportunities in this gloom.  In all the strangulating cut backs, we must keep our vision, figure out what is most important, and move forward.  Follow the lights and don’t look back.