The Pramble is over, but the campaign is not.

Well what an experience it’s been. It’s easy to underestimate the sheer scale of what we’ve put into action over the last 2 weeks of March. The planning stage began back in the summer as a follow on from the re-launch of the maternal mortality blanket at Manchester Cathedral. The original launch of that blanket was around 3 years ago. Back then the number of women dying was 1400 a day compared to the current 1000. At least some progress has been made, even though there’s a long way to go….

When we questioned under-secretary of state for international development Stephen O’Brien in parliament on the penultimate day of the Pramble, I’m glad he said that“women and girls are at the heart of our development plans”. This is as discrimination against women is a huge barrier to development in a lot of the poorest countries. Furthermore the reason why our Manchester Oxfam Group chose to campaign on maternal mortality rates is that it is the least performing of theMillennium Development Goals set by the United Nations.

I can honestly say being involved with the Pramble has been a great experience. I’ve met lots of new people, seen lots of new places and developed a lot of skills. All of which has been part of an enjoyable and worthwhile campaign. There is nothing like taking positive action for what you believe in.

This has been recognised for thousands of years, indeed Aristotle said in the 4^thcentury BC that ‘active citizenship’ was an essential part of the good life. Things we take for granted in our country today like freedom of speech, votes for women and most relevantly free health care would not have been achieved if hundreds of thousands of people hadn’t campaigned on what they believed in. So for me campaigning with organisations like Oxfam is more than an ‘extra-curricular activity’ or ‘a bit of fun’ it’s who I am. If we as humans don’t have our principles, then what do we have?

On the whole most people in the UK are better off than the majority of countries around the world. People’s relevant comfort is probably a reason why a lot of people don’t see the point in campaigning for a more just world. I think another reason is the habits of the mainstream media, tending to focus on stories which only affect this country and are often not significant to key humanitarian issues. However I’m confident that anyone who takes part in a charity project like this one finds it rewarding and often will go on to do more voluntary work. If everyone in the UK spent just half an hour each week doing some kind of voluntary activity for the benefit of others, I’m confident that the nation would be much happier as would the wider world.

The campaign to save the lives of women all over the world goes on. Everyone can play a valuable part in that; you don’t need any qualifications, just a heart. Our Manchester Oxfam Group will now decide what other issues we want to turn our attention to, and how we want to campaign on them. The group is open to everyone and their ideas, so please contact us if you want to get involved.

I want to say a big thank you to everyone who has made the Pramble campaign possible. It’s a great achievement that a large number of people have between them managed to walk from Manchester to London with 4 prams, 1000 cubes and lots of other equipment!

Here’s to campaigning, justice and mums…

The deep benefits of meditation

I used to think meditation was some kind of ‘new age’ practice done by the sort of people who were just into the latest fad, or trying to seek attention by standing out. Of course to call meditation new age is laughable. It’s been around for thousands of years, especially in eastern cultures and religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism. Indeed most religions involve a form of prayer, which has marked similarities with meditation – closing your eyes and concentrating on a kind of higher power or life force, for a greater sense of well-being and connectedness.

Meditation can be most simply defined as bringing awareness into the present moment; to become aware of one’s own emotions, thoughts and surroundings at a particular time. So how does this help? Quite simply, the more awareness we have of something, the better we can deal with it. This is why we have an education system. Meditation is what they would teach in the ‘University Of Life’. It is an education on how to manage your emotions and thoughts effectively. I can say definitively, even from my relatively small time of practice that such an education makes a big difference.

Just think about it, how many times in human history have people suffered due to the irrationality caused by poor management of mind and emotions, by themselves or others? In other words, how many times could a clear head and a more objective stance have improved someone’s actions? Countless, these mistakes are made every second of every day. Of course everyone is human and many of these things will be small, but many larger ‘unconscious’ happenings have scarred the very legacy of humanity.

If you’re aware of your thoughts and emotions, you don’t get taken over by them. You don’t get trapped in your head and lose focus on the bigger picture. The failure to do this is a common element of many mental illnesses like depression and anxiety disorders. More broadly the Buddha’s explanation for all human suffering as an ‘attachment to desire’ can be interpreted as this same failure to be aware of one’s own state and surroundings. Perhaps the most basic human instinct of all is to avoid suffering.

So just how do you meditate? Well there are a variety of ways to quieten the mind and become more still. A common way is to sit somewhere free from distraction, close your eyes and notice how you are feeling. Take a few seconds to notice any emotions you have, and then a few more to notice how busy your mind is. You may then move your attention to your breath in order to quieten the mind and further increase your awareness. There are loads of guided meditations freely available on the internet, mostly lasting between 5 and 15 minutes. It may seem strange or even pointless at first, but if you stick with it you will definitely start noticing the benefits.

I’ve written this because I think there are many people suffering on this planet at the moment due to a lack of human awareness. There is much inequality, violence and hardship which is the result of many decisions taken from a state of unconsciousness – being consumed by mind and emotions rather than observing them objectively. Human intelligence is far greater than the simple tool of thought. That may sound strange, however if you try meditation I think it will seem less so.