Preparation and Responsibility by Sheila Johnson

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 This week is a week of preparation for what is/was the biggest event of the year in Cheltenham, where I live. What is it? The Festival. No, not the Literature Festival, that is quite big and one of the oldest in the country. I'm talking about the Racing Festival. Our Festival is one of the biggest on the racing calendar, bar Ascot and the Grand National. To win at Cheltenham is a great accolade for jockeys, trainers and owners alike. I have been there as a visitor and I have worked there in a corporate box and for the last few years I have hosted bed and breakfast for Irish and English racegoers.

Cheltenham, a jump racecourse


But this year feels different, like a lot of things, due to Covid. For a start I only have two guests all week, one Irish, one English, instead of my usual 7-8, and last year the event was cancelled and we had no one at all. 

This week I have to clean and polish everything thoroughly, after all, the one Irish man who is coming and has come for the last 8 years, is a health and safety inspector! I also have to prepare my invoices and my breakfast menu choices. I have a responsibility to my guests to make sure they have a great time at the races by leaving my home well fed and well cared for. 

As writers we also have to prepare for publication. That is to say, we have to get our manuscript as good as we possibly can, edit and edit again. Then we have to seek out a proper bona fide publisher - this has been my problem on the last two occasions - and then there is more editing and more work to do in order to get the book into the best possible form. I feel I have to get it right this time as I am editing and collating a tribute book to a Ethiopian lady who dedicated her life to helping the poorest of the poor in her capital city, Addis Ababa. I have a responsibility to showcase her writings to the best of my ability so that her work is noticed after her death as a life well lived. 

Ultimately, with all we do we have a responsibility to God to make sure we do everything we do to the best of our ability. 

Sheila Johnson lives in Cheltenham and is a qualified journalist who has written for a number of publications both local and national. She has also written two books under her pen name Sheila Donald, Alpha Male and Waireka. Her website can be found at www.journojohnson.com

 

 

Comments

  1. Aggie C12 March 2022 at 08:32

    Yes, indeed

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  2. SC Skillman12 March 2022 at 10:58

    Very true Sheila and the great temptation for self published writers is to try and bypass the work of professional editors and proofreaders. It's such a challenge to accept that a manuscript needs several pairs of critical eyes over it before it has a chance of being as good as it can be.

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  3. Veronica Bright12 March 2022 at 14:37

    Sometimes it's so difficult to see our own errors. Because we've read our work so many times, we can so easily overlook something that needs to be changed. Likewise with us, I think! Our first Lent group was interesting, and we were left with the challenge of deciding one thing to change about ourselves in the coming weeks.

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  4. Olusola Sophia Anyanwu12 March 2022 at 15:16

    Certainly Sheila! In everything in life, it is the best principle to apply.' Do it as unto the Lord Jesus!' Blessings and thanks for this lovely post!

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  5. Ruth Leigh12 March 2022 at 18:30

    What a lovely post, Sheila. It really touched me. I love to think of the warm hospitality your guests receive and it's a great analogy all round.

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