A few Fridays ago I took a train from London to Leamington Spa, last visited by me over 50 years ago. To go to a pub called Murphy’s Bar on a corner in central Leamington to sing It’s Now or Never by Elvis Presley. Landlord Kevin Murphy gave the night over to a karaoke fundraiser for Safeline, a charity devoted to helping people survive sexual abuse, started 30 years ago. A third of people with drink and drugs addiction issues have been sexually molested in childhood and early life.
I was met at the station by a silent Rebecca Noonan, a new young local councillor for Leamington who had asked me to come along and make a fool of myself. Her silence was to last for 24 hours and was part of the fundraising for Safeline, with the silence to be broken with the karaoke show at 8pm.
How could I resist?
What a brilliant and lively and loud collection of largely young people, committed to turning the Friday night into a useful endeavour to aid people scarred by sexual abuse. To provide support that would help people heal and live a fuller life.
One can get very grey about the mind on occasions when you look at what bestial things are being enacted in the world. Certainly the New Year did not start well, with Gaza and Ukraine, to name but two killing fields. So I felt compelled not only to shake off dread but to touch base with our basic human desire to contribute to the wellbeing of others. And the opportunity to use my loud but untuned voice aligned well with the desire to just do something different but useful.
For Murphy’s Bar and the engaged community of Leamington to rally round a social supporter like Safeline was a magnet to me. Bringing me back to terra firma and the enthusiastic desire that many people have to simply do something useful with their time in the world.