To Bind Up Their Wounds..

I noticed in Sicily that most streets seemed to be named after famous Italians - politicians, soldiers, saints, musicians,artists, kings... Including Victor Emmanuel II. I know nothing about VE2 except that he led his troops to victory, alongside Napoleon III, at the bloody battle of Solferino in 1859. 
After the fighting had finished, a Swiss businessman,
Henri Dunant, toured the battlefield and was appalled at the sight of wounded soldiers left to die were they lay in the mud. This led him to set up both the International Red Cross[1863] and persuade many countries to adopt the Geneva Convention[1864]

Queen Victoria became a patron in 1860 - and then in 1908, Edward VIII granted the charter to the British Red Cross, and Queen Alexandra became President. During WW1 and WW2, medical help was provided, and food parcels were sent to troops and POWs - many owe their very lives to Red Cross workers.
The amazing work of the British Red Cross continues to this day - in this country providing first aid training, first aiders in hand at events, help for the elderly and disabled with independent living and mobility issues - and around the world providing on the spot relief in times of crisis and disaster. Right now there are B.R.C. staff helping with the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, supporting Syrian refugees, and taking medications, food and water to those suffering in the Yemen. This very week, the International Red Cross has been involved in the release of 21 of the Chibok girls.
Our Queen has been a patron for over 60 years, and this weekend, a special portrait to mark this was unveiled. It is full of symbolism - there is a bust of Henri in the background, and she is wearing Queen Alexandra's jewels.

I have the deepest respect for those who give their time and energy to work for this organisation - whether out in Haiti with blankets and food, teaching teenagers how to give mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and how to put sick people into the recovery position, or at a public event where on-the-spot medical help is needed, or in the community lending wheelchairs or fixing safety handles to baths...
The Junior Red Cross has a song with these lyrics
It's all about giving, it's all about trust

It's all about people, it's all about us
It's all about being human and having the heart
It's all about being human and playing a part
It's all about giving, it's all about life
It's all about helping, the weak survive
It's all about being human and be able to care
It's all about being human and ready to share

I hope the Royal Patronage continues - and that the great work of all the Red Cross Workers- paid or volunteers - is acknowledged, and goes on for years to come. We all have much to be grateful to them for.

Pinner Pin-up

Today there is a new museum opening in November London.  In the wealthy area of Pinner,  in the Borough of Harrow,  they are celebrating  one of their famous residents.  Actually,  I am not sure you are allowed to live in Pinner if you are not famous. This leafy suburb has been home to Mrs Beeton,  Elton John, David Suchet,  Olivia Newton John,  Antony  Newley, Lord  Nelson's daughter, Michael Rosen,  Ronnie Barker... The list goes on and on. 

But  this weekend's hero is William Heath Robinson, illustrator and artist.  He lived here for the second half of his life, 1903 till 1944. Here's the new museum which has a gallery of his works. 

His imaginative and detailed drawings, particularly of complicated contraptions,  mean that his name has become a byword for far-fetched gadgets  

He also produced advertising material for a number of British Companies

...and he illustrated a number of books, particularly for children - I love this take on Noah's Ark!

Described as a gentle, genial man, he was loved by all who knew him. His words were ever kind, no bitterness, no racist jokes, and he avoided politics - his work therefore appealed to a wide range of people.

Always encouraging others, with a cheerful outlook on life. With his brother Tom, he founded a walking group called the "Frothfinders Federation" - a group of like-minded friends, who spent their leisure time walking in the surrounding countryside, eating and drinking at local hostelries en route.

It's good that future generations will be able to enjoy his work. 

These days, when everything is electronic and worked by tiny chips, it is good to remember the days when things were mechanical - when you needed cogs and gears and pulleys and levers, hooks and bits of string to make things go.
Nick Park says H-R was one of his inspirations when he came to design all the Wallace and Gromit stuff. You can certainly see the H-R influence in the W&G films.
I hope they are queuing up to go and look at the gallery.

And The Prize Goes To....Mr Zimmerman

How many roads must a man walk down

Before you call him a man?

Yes, 'n' how many seas must a white dove sail

Before she sleeps in the sand?

Yes, 'n' how many times must the cannonballs fly

Before they're forever banned?

The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind

The answer is blowin' in the wind

BLOWIN' IN THE WIND, 1962

Come senators, congressmen

Please heed the call

Don't stand in the doorway

Don't block up the hall

For he that gets hurt

Will be he who has stalled

There's a battle outside and it is ragin'

It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls

For the times they are a-changin'

THE TIMES THEY ARE A-CHANGIN' 1963

 

I saw a newborn baby with wild wolves all around it

I saw a highway of diamonds with nobody on it

I saw a black branch with blood that kept drippin'

I saw a room full of men with their hammers a-bleedin'

I saw a white ladder all covered with water

I saw ten thousand talkers whose tongues were all broken

I saw guns and sharp swords in the hands of young children

And it's a hard, and it's a hard,

And it's a hard rain's a-gonna fall

A HARD RAIN'S A-GONNA FALL 1963

 

Far between sundown's finish an' midnight's broken toll

We ducked inside the doorway, thunder crashing

As majestic bells of bolts struck shadows in the sounds

Seeming to be the chimes of freedom flashing

Flashing for the warriors whose strength is not to fight

Flashing for the refugees on the unarmed road of flight

An' for each an' ev'ry underdog soldier in the night

An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing

CHIMES OF FREEDOM 1964

And now he is a Nobel Laureate! Yes it is a controversial choice- but as the man himself said - don't criticise what you can't understand. 

Where There's A Will...

So there we are, last Thursday lunchtime, sitting at Catania Airport, waiting in vain for a flight to Rome.The smartly dressed lady next to me [clearly Italian] started up a conversation. 
She came from Messina, Sicily's third largest city. Had I ever been there? No, I told her.

Then she started telling me not only how wonderful her city is, but her favourite fact about the place. William Shakespeare came from Messina!
I kid you not. Her English was very good, so I was not misunderstanding her [and Bob was listening intently too]
She told us that his real name was Crolla-Lanza [Shake-spear] and that his family were persecuted Calvinists. Did we understand what Calvinists were? [Yes, we did!] They fled to Britain to escape execution by Catholics in the Inquisition. Furthermore, if we went to Paris, to Avenue Messine [near Boulevard Hausmann]where many Sicilians once lived, we would find a spot where there was once a statue of William Shakespeare. And how come so many of his plays are set in Italy, and he refers to streets that only a local would know about. Things like Juliet's balcony? I assured her that I would research this when I got home. We stood up to board the plane, and her parting shot was...
Shakespeare WAS a Sicilian, you know! 
OK, we thought she was sightly batty - but now I have had a chance to check up, it seems there is a genuine school of thought which takes this view about England's Great Playwright. It was first discussed in a book written around the turn of the millennium.

In 2002, Sicilian professor Martino Iuvara wrote a book entitled ‘Shakespeare era italiano’ [Shakespeare Was Italian] He suggests the Bard was not born in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon to a glove maker John Shakespeare [and his wife Mary Arden]. The prof claims that the same year in Messina, Sicily, a doctor and Calvinist priest, Giovanni Florio, and his wife, Guglielma Crollalanza had a son, Michelangelo Florio. This Protestant family had to flee Sicily when he was 15 because of the threat of the Inquisition.

The theory continues… they moved to Veneto to a house owned by a nobleman called Othello, who had killed his wife, Desdemona, years earlier, out of jealousy. The prof claims that Shakespeare travelled in northern Italy – Milan, Padua, Mantua, Verona, Faenza and Venice – and then to Athens where, at the age of 21, he became a teacher. The young Shakespeare continued his world tour, visiting Denmark, Austria, France and Spain before returning to Italy, this time to Treviso. The professor asserts that Shakespeare fell in love with a 16-year-old countess. But the girl’s family were against the union and she committed suicide. Her name? Giulietta, which translates as “Juliet”! This tragedy caused Shakespeare to head to Britain to start a new life. He concealed his identity by assuming the name of a cousin, William Shakespeare, who had died as baby. Iuvara posits that the cousin’s surname, “Shakespeare” is an Anglicisation of “Crollalanza”.

Iuvara suggested that Shakespeare’s Italian nationality was kept secret for nationalistic reasons. In an attempt to find evidence that Shakespeare was a Sicilian, Iuvara wrote to Queen Elizabeth II in 2000 asking for permission to research the poet’s private library. He received no reply. Undaunted, in 2002, Iuvara wrote to Prime Minister Tony Blair and again received no response.

So, that's where she gets her theory from [the French statue, by the way, was put up by an Englishman in 1888, and then melted down in WW2 - and the guy just happened to live in that street, and like Will's work. No apparent Sicilian connections] It strikes me as all a little far fetched. I know there is little historical data about the Bard's early life - and that some say he didn't write these plays at all. But I cannot quite swallow the idea of a wandering Sicilian Calvinist sitting down to write Richard III,can you? Is this a Comedy of Errors, Much Ado About Nothing...or just a Tempest in A Teacup?

However, I think there is material for a film here - rather like those crazy Nicholas Cage ones [National Treasure series] where NC finds amazing hitherto undiscovered historical documents in the White House etc.and has the FBI, CIA and all the rest chasing him. 

I'd cast the dashing Rufus Sewell [who played the suave Italian detective, Aurelio Zen, very successfully] as the Prof, racing down Sicilian side streets, unearthing information in Verona, and wandering pensively beside the Avon. And Helen Mirren can be her regal self, making a disparaging remark about his request to rifle through the Royal Libraries. Martin Sheen can be Blair again. Not sure who I'd cast Benedict Cumberbatch as though...

What do you think?

Monsoon And Hurricane

Today I am going to my first Women's World Day Of Prayer Preparation Day for the 2017 Service. The actual day is not till March next year, but over the next 4 months, committee members will be traveling the length and breadth of England, Wales and N.I. to help local groups plan for the event. As well as enabling people to prepare for the service, we will also share background information about the planning country [2017 - the Philippines] do some bible Study, and bring news of the work of WWDP both here, and round the world. At our last meeting, we allocated charitable grants to a number of good causes. I always find that both challenging and exciting - nearly a quarter of a million quid, given to help others. And that money is JUST from the offerings collected on the March Day of Prayer. People are so generous. We have recently had a report about a project we supported last year - in India

Empowering Women Socially and Economically (EWSE), aims to empower 1,500 women in silk production skills through silk worm rearing and silk processing. Zinda Jan,Herat Province, Afghanistan was once a famous stop on the Silk Road . It has a climate that supports silkworm rearing, and one in which mulberry trees, the only food that silkworms eat, will thrive. The project provides silk worms and encourages the production of silk products by women’s cooperatives.

This project is sponsored and run by Christian Aid. But interestingly, they also receive support from a company which uses the silk which they produce to create fashion for the British market. Popular high street chain Monsoon/Accessorise have a strong commitment to their workers in the third world, and they recognise the excellent work of the EWSE. WWDP has recently received a lovely thank you message and update on the project.

This is good news worth sharing with our WWDP supporters.

The other news is that we at WWDP have been able to send out this week a gift of ten thousand pounds, to help the victims of Hurricane Matthew in Haiti. Cholera is rife in many communities totally devastated by the storms- areas where people lack clean water, food and shelter. The generosity of our supporters makes it possible to respond promptly to such events, with practical action as well as informed prayer.

If you are reading this and have ever supported a WWDP event, then thank you. Your gifts are even now being used to bless others.

Underpin and Makegood

We came up behind a van on the M25 yesterday afternoon with a list of the company services on the back - scaffolding, foundations, piling, construction - and this lovely phrase 'underpin and makegood'. 
Isn't that a fabulous term? The idea that they go and strengthen the foundations of buildings, and make good any defects. I discovered that the company actually calls itself U&M

When I was working regularly as a Supply Teacher, a lot of my time was spent helping students who were struggling to achieve the level they should with their SATs tests. My role was to underpin the [sometimes shaky] foundations of the knowledge they already had, and to make good any gaps in that knowledge. Maybe if we laid more emphasis on 'underpin and makegood', we would need to do less 'make do and mend'
We are home in Dorset now - I'm conscious I have been 'on the road' non stop for a fortnight, and have travelled almost 4000 miles, and slept in so many different beds. It will take a while to sort out all our Sicily photos, but some of them will appear sometime. 
The icing on the cake was to return via Norfolk, and meet up with the family and friends. Adrian and Marion came with Bob and myself to the shawl exhibition, in the Cathedral and I was overwhelmed with excitement to see my teacosies had a red dot on the label. SOLD! [I wish I had set the price a little higher now] Rosie is growing fast and such a contented child, full of giggles and smiles.
The Sicilian Holiday was truly magical - thank you Liz and Steph for such a generous and creative 60th birthday gift for your aging parents. 

Trolley Dollies

Our stopover  in Rome meant that we ended up spending a fair bit of time in the airport. I am not really a very experienced foreign traveller. I was 45 before I went in a plane,  and have only flown abroad about a dozen times. Consequently I still find airports fun places to explore.  I am like a kid in a candy shop! I look in the duty-free shops and marvel at the overpriced goods. I wonder who would buy random things like striped socks for €35  or a pencil for €15.  
On Friday I tried on the tester perfume in Victoria's Secret.  It was called Very Sexy Now. It was coconut based, and left me smelling like a melted Bounty Bar! Not VSN if you ask me. I had to spray on Elizabeth Arden Green Tea to mask the sickly sweet odour. The Burberry Raincoats and Hermes scarves were so elegant, but incredibly expensive. I saw some sweet cashmere baby socks, but Rosie won't be getting them, at €33 a pair.

But the most elegant fashions I saw were the new uniforms worn by the Alitalia staff. 
These have been in use for just a few months.  Main outfits are red for cabin crew and green for ground staff. Jackets, trousers, skirts and dresses, in a discreet print, topped with beautifully cut woollen coats. Their shirts are white with a red print. Their felt hats have a ridged design, based on the terraces of Cinque Terre on the Italian Riviera. 

The girls wore contrast accessories, gloves, tights and shoes, and carried splendidly capacious leather bags.The scarves are not knotted, but threaded through nifty little plastic buckles, to keep them neatly positioned.  I quite fancy a pair of chic green leather court shoes with matching bag, gloves and tights! 
But sadly I am not really in a position to make a career change, reading the spec for Alitalia staff.  I cannot speak fluent Italian, and I am not a strong swimmer.  
Maybe I could work on those two requirements - but I definitely cannot get to be 15 cm taller! I remain in awe of their apparently effortless style, and amazing poise as they push their trolleys down the aisles of the planes, dispensing drinks and snacks.

  

Better To Light A Candle...

... than curse the darkness. 

I've been thinking a lot about my responsibility as a Christian to be a light in a dark world.  My good friend Chris Duffett calls his blog 'Be the Light'.  There's so much that is evil  around us, and I  must stand for what is good,  and true,  and right.  And work to shine the light of God's love into the shadows.  We used to sing in Sunday School 
Jesus bids us shine with a clear pure light
Like a little candle burning in the night 
In this world is darkness, so we must shine 
You in your small corner 
And I in mine 

 I still light my little candle every Sunday lunchtime . 
Two remaining  thoughts.  

1. Donald Trump - how is it that people still consider him fit for office? (any  office not just  POTUS)  
2. In reading all the recent hygge stuff,  I  found a lovely new word.  lyseslukker is the Danish word for spoilsport,  and it means the one who puts out the candles.  I love that! 

When In Rome, Live In Luxury!!

I am a little too tired to blog properly.  Things did not quite go to plan! I set up a few posts in advance, as I expected to be flying back on Thursday. But there were major thunderstorms, and we were late leaving Sicily, and missed our connection in Rome. Alitalia put us up overnight in the luxurious Marriott Hotel.  I don't think I have ever stayed  in such a luxurious place before,  and all at the airline's expense too. What an unexpected treat! Now it's 11pm and we are settled in at Cornerstones, for 3 days, as Bob is preaching here in Norfolk on Sunday.  I  will post more about our fantastic holiday next week.  It has been utterly amazing!   

Porridge!

 I haven't watched any of the new 'Porridge' sitcome on TV - and I admit I didn't watch that many of the original series either. I was a student then, and didn't have much access to TV [how times have changed]

But it is October and we are well into the having-porridge-for-breakfast routine. I cup of oats, 1 cup of milk, and 1 cup of water, plus a pinch of salt [and it has to be the stainless steel measuring cup which makes exactly the right amount for the two of us] into the pan, and cook till done!
I am indebted to my friend Jim, from Living Wittily, who pointed me to this informative website about porridge nearly ten years ago. Not only did I learn much about the health giving benefits of oats - but also added a new word to my vocabulary - panicles [these are the clusters of grains at the top of the stem]  Quick pause for a burst of Hot Chocolate's song "I believe in panicles..."!

The worst thing about porridge is cleaning the pan afterwards. My preferred approach is the moment the porridge is served and the pan is empty, I fill the pan to the top with warm water and leave it to soak 
[after running the washing up brush round the rim, to dislodge any spillage] That way,  even if we are in a rush to get on with the day, nothing sets like concrete, and can be easily cleaned later. Years ago Liz brought a poem home from school which we all loved for its glorious onomatopoeic language. It is by J A Lindon, and called "Sink Song"

Scouring out the porridge pot
Round and round and round!

Out with all the scraith and scoopery,
Lift the eely ooly droopery,
Chase the glubbery slubbery gloopery
Round and round and round!

Out with all the doleful dithery,
Ladle out the slimy slithery,
Hunt and catch the hithery thithery,
Round and round and round!

Out with all the obbly gubbly,
On the stove it burns so bubbly,
Use the spoon and use it doubly,
Round and round and round.

Autumn Is Upon Us

It will not always be like this,
the air windless, a few last
leaves adding their decoration
to the trees’ shoulders, braiding the cuffs
of the boughs with gold; a bird preeningin the lawn’s mirror. Having looked up
from the day’s chores, pause a minute,
let the mind take its photograph
of the bright scene, something to wear
against the heart in the long cold. 

Thank you to Jan for the great graphic and Kate for the reminder of the lovely R S Thomas poem 'A day in Autumn'. Other people's blogs can bring so much pleasure sometimes, don't you think?

All Good Things...

Less like this

More like this

A Postcard From Catania

We are staying on the east side, quite near Etna! 

Sights And Bites

 

Lots of new sights to see, lots of new tastes to enjoy.

Easy Peasy Pici

I watched Jamie making his Spinach Pici Pasta, and thought it looked delicious - and simple "I am going to try that" I said to Bob. Last week I was on my own at Cornerstones for a few days - delivering my teacosies and attending a special preview of the Exhibition. Rather than lazily cooking myself beans on toast I thought I would try out the recipe.

I forgot to buy basil when I was in the supermarket [in Dorset, I have been plucking fresh leaves from my pot on the kitchen windowsill for months] and knew I wouldn't be putting parmesan on, for the 'silky sauce'as I don't eat cheese. I decided to stir in some beaten egg at the end, rather like a carbonara.
But it was so easy to make. The gorgeous bright green playdough was such fun to roll out [it stains your fingers though]
I don't think I rolled mine thin enough - the pasta swells when it cooks. I had a pan full of things looking like fat runner beans, not delicate French ones.
Oh, but it tasted good, and was done and dusted within the half hour.
I shall be making this again - in larger quantities next time, to feed Bob as well.

When you read this, I hope to be on a plane with Bob - our girls gave us a wonderful 60th birthday gift last year - a cheque, with the instruction to 'have a proper holiday. Somewhere abroad, not a week at Cornerstones. Go on a plane. This is not money towards the mortgage, or household necessities" Thank you girls!
So we are having a break in Sicily - land of Arancini, Cannoli, Mount Etna and Montelbano.
You will have to wait a few days, until I get back, for blogposts about shawls and Sicilians.
Ciao!

The Stones Will Cry Out

I was pleasantly surprised to find a letter* which had arrived in our church letterbox - addressed to me, all the way from South Carolina, USA. Lesley, who reads my blog, had come across this anecdote in her bible reading notes. It reminded her of my Hope Stones, so she kindly sent me a copy...

Last year, before Easter, our pastor preached a beautiful sermon about Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. He spoke about how important it is for each of us not only to live a Christian life, but to proclaim and share our faith with others. As we left, the ushers gave everyone a small stone, as a reminder of His words "If they keep quiet, the stones will cry out"I carry that stone with me almost every day. Whenever I reach into my pocket for my car keys or change, sand touch the stone, I am reminded of God's love for me. At that moment, I say a prayer of thanksgiving.In this day of impersonal contact through cellphones and social media, I think what a blessing it is to be able to pray and know God loves us and is listening to our concerns, regardless of our circumstances, It is also a blessing to be able to share that love with others.

Thank you Lesley - I know won't mind me sharing it on the blog. *Our Administrator pointed out that I have now had three pieces of post arrive at the church from blog readers. I think it is very exciting, and love having contact with people like this - especially when it is friends on the other side of the world!

If You Happen To Be In Norwich...

Here's a shameless plug for the exhibition which is displaying my tea-cosies!! Norwich Shawls: Past Glory, Present Inspiration – The Costume and Textiles Association will be celebrating the Norwich Shawl with an exhibition of rarely-seen Norwich Shawls held in private collections, and with it an open selected exhibition of contemporary textile art created in response to this theme [further information here]

[I am a little confused by the poster- as I am attending the opening followed by a Private View, which happens at 5.30pm on Saturday 1st, so I am not clear as to whether it is open the the public today ]

Spouse's September Stuff

My September crafting has not been very photogenic- mending jeans and tops for the girls, organising the Christmas Tree Festival with women and church, and lotsof wood polishing. Bob, on the other hand, has been relaxing with all sorts of little projects and produced some lovely items.

Before we went to Cornerstones in August, he dismantled his trolley BBQ and took the top part and installed it on the concrete shelf next to his smoker.

 

This left him with a black trolley [well, four uprights and a set of wheels] he put a top on this, made from an old piece of wood, and polished it. Then added a handle at one end, and a row of black painted hooks at the other [my tea towel rack from Kirby]. That is now a useful addition to the kettle BBQ here.

I have been struggling with my die-cut activities, with little bits of paper stuck in the dies "I need a proper pokey tool!" I said, as I wrestled with a pin. Bob took the pin, and fitted it into a handle [free chopstick which came with a takeaway, painted black] and then found an old syringe cover to make a safety cap. That's £4 I shan't need to spend at Hobbycraft. 

His final craft activity this month has been a hat rack in the hall. Four out of five of these hats are his, and they look so much better on hooks. It is easier to grab the right hat on his way out of the front door!

Well done Bob! Thanks for all the DIY. By the way, did you see that in Sweden they plan to give tax breaks to people who make-do-and-mend. If you get your white goods, or bike, or clothes repaired, you can claim half the tax back on the cost. Mind you, that's not going to benefit people like Bob and myself who usually do our own repairs!

Integrity And Entrapment

I know almost NOTHING about football. I am rather glad that my spouse doesn't feel the need to watch Match of the Day every week, or spend £400 p.a. for a season ticket. As far as I can recall, I have watched only two games in their entirety in my entire life.
The first was the World Cup in 1966. We were invited as a family to the Archers Farm for tea [not not them, this was a real family who belonged to our church] so we could view the game on their big TV. I can only remember that England won, the cakes were good, and someone taught my little brother to whistle.
Ten years later I watched the FA Cup. Second Division Southampton were playing the mighty Man United. I was at Uni, and I seem to recall it was some sort of student get together. I can only remember that the underdogs won, and their manager was a Geordie called Lawrie McMenemy.

I think the commentator hadn't got much background on this man - he kept saying "Lawrie McMenemy, a man of great integrity" over and over. It was as if there was no other interesting fact he could share with us.
I later discovered he was an ex-Coldstream Guard, and had been a professional footballer till injury ended that career and he became a coach. 
A few months ago, he published his autobiography "A Lifetime's Obsession" 
Sitting for an hour in a traffic jam on the M3 on Tuesday night, I listened to interminable sports 'pundits' on the BBC discussing Sam Allardyce and his fall from grace. This man was earning THREE MILLION POUNDS A YEAR - that's £8000 a DAY - in one week, his salary was the equivalent to that of the average Brit working for two years. That's a lot of money. But clearly not enough - because Mr A was caught trying to earn another £400,000 by nefarious means.

I wouldn't recognise SA if I met him in the street. His comment following his departure from the job of managing the England Football Team was "Entrapment has won". No I don't think so. Decency, honesty and integrity have beaten cheating and greed. He is probably feeling 'totally gutted' and 'sick as a parrot' at being found out, and losing his high paid job. Well, tough!
According to the BBC, it has been his lifetime's ambition to be England Manager - and he will go down in history as the man who held the post for the shortest time, and who threw it away in a moment of naive avarice.
Lawrie McMenemy has called his book 'A Lifetime's Obsession' - he too has devoted his career to 'the beautiful game', and was at one point assistant manager of the England team. But how different their paths have been.
And as I sat in the traffic queue, I found myself wondering this - 40 years ago, when the BBC chap kept referring to his 'great integrity', may be it wasn't that LM was such a colourless guy that they couldn't find any trivia to report. Perhaps it was that when the researcher prepared the notes beforehand, everyone who was asked said things like "He's a good bloke""You can always trust him""Real integrity" "Honest as the day is long" etc. It seems that the key thing about his character was that he was a man of good character.
I found an article online, written in the Independent, 20 years after Lawrie's golden day at Wembley. 

In an age when football is fast losing touch with its traditional roots there is still a place for big characters who know about life beyond the corner flags and try to instil a sense of perspective in young players. McMenemy feels there is a moral dimension to the job as well. "All clubs are an integral part of society," he said. "I was struck by aerial shots of St James' Park ,surrounded by streets. Now it's not as if the stadium was just plonked down in the middle of them. It arrived with the houses... It was a place where people came to get away from the drudgery of daily life. That's always been the message I've tried to hammer home to players, that they're privileged to be able to do what they do."

When McMenemy was manager of Grimsby Town in the early 1970s he took the team to the docks one morning to give them a taste of the trawlermen's lives. At Southampton, the players were on a rota for visits to local organisations and charities. McMenemy is heavily involved in such causes. "I'm a great believer that if you've been in a town a long time and you're invited to do something for the community then you should do it. It's not a question of being a do-gooder. But if someone thinks it would help their cause to stick my name on it then who am I to say no?"

If English football is going to have a part on the world stage, we need more like McMenemy, people of great integrity - and fewer who are motivated by personal ambition and greed.