What solidarity really means…
An illustrated poem for all our health service workers out there on the front-line, all the sacrifices they are making, and all the appreciation we can muster for those facing the hardest and most challenging of times with dedication, dignity and respect. The very least the rest of us can do is STAY IN. A careless walk may cost lives. Be well. Stay well. Flatten the curve.
The border is full of symbolism: Starting in the sides in the middle we have the red staff with snake entwined which is the Rod of Asclepius, the Greek deity of healing and medicine, below and above that the Wiccan ‘Spiral Goddess’ represents the ever continuing cycle of life, death and rebirth, then the golden triangle is the pagan symbol for ‘air’ representing the transmission of the virus, followed by the Chinese symbol for ‘strength’. The four paddles, or ‘Tabono’ in the Adinkra language of Western Africa, is a symbol of unity of purpose, strength, confidence and hard work to reach a destination or goal, and lastly the Celtic symbol for ‘storm’ for the one we all face. In the corners we have the Red Cross and Red Crescent, representing international medical relief work globally, and in the centre at the top and bottom is ‘Aegishjalmur’ or the ‘Helm of Awe’ a Norse symbol of invincibility. Finally the purple concentric circles symbolise the Celtic for ‘Truth’. We are about to experience some hard ones, together. And we must ensure we heed their message.
Ed Gillespie is a writer, speaker, futurist and poet. In 2007/8 he circumnavigated the world without flying and wrote ‘Only Planet — a flightfree adventure around the world’. He is a serial entrepreneur and an adviser to or investor in a number of ethical businesses. Ed is also a facilitator with the Forward Institute’s responsible leadership programme, a Director of Greenpeace UK and Co-Founder of Futerra
