Splashes of colour for needy children.

Nancy Merrill has a ‘Photo a Week’ challenge. This week the subject is ‘Splash of Colour’.

When I was in England recently, visiting my 101-year-old Mil, I saw next to the sofa, a couple of plastic bags, one of which contained balls of brightly coloured wool.

The other was filled with little woolly hats and mittens which she had lovingly crafted for needy children in some far off country.

I asked her about this project, and she said it was organised by the Women’s Institute of which she has been a very active member for many decades. The hats and mittens would be put into prettily decorated shoe boxes, together with other items which little children would love. These shoe boxes would then be given as Christmas presents to children who may otherwise not receive anything.

My dear MiL is herself a wonderful ‘Splash of Colour’ in her community, and over the years, must have baked hundreds of cakes and knitted millions of stitches for various charitable causes. The Women’s Institute was founded two years after she was born, to revitalise rural communities and encourage women to become more involved in producing food during the First World War. It’s now the largest voluntary women’s organisation in the UK, with over 212,00 members. I hope that she will live long enough to help them celebrate their centenary next year. She looks pretty good for her age, doesn’t she?