Winter 2017

Just as spring seemed to be approaching, the weather at least in England, turns cold windy and snowy. A little like life more generally at present.

The most appalling photograph in The Times this morning is of a starving child in the Yemen under the headline:

"Half a million children are dying of starvation in Yemen says UN,"

Individuals or at least yours truly, seem powerless to ameliorate such hideousness.

According to the paper the starvation results from civil war  funded by "Saudi Arabia and its Sunni allies..."  on the one hand and "...a Shia group from the north backed by Iran..."  on the other.

In such  circumstances can even well intentioned  financial support  from ordinary people, actually reach the children?

Then on the other side of the world, record beating heatwave temperatures are sweeping some Australian towns and cities with Sydney's temperature hitting 42.9C its hottest ever.

The animals' kingdom also seems wreaked with death or misadventure  at present so  for example, whales  are stranded and dying in record numbers, on New Zealand's beaches.

Add to the above, the impending elections in Holland and France where  political  parties, which would have been thought of as extremist only a year or two back, appear to be making huge inroads into the more traditional and moderate  political parties' political support;  plus the election of a President of the USA  many might have regarded only a year or two back as  intolerant and divisive. the Brexit outcome of the UK''s  recent domestic referendum seems almost mild in comparison.

Hopefully just as the winter now descending upon England will lift soon and be replaced by spring, so too will the deaths, tragedies, heat and extremism around the globe, exemplified by the above examples, at least be begun to be replaced by life, liberty and cool love, around the globe.