“I grew up in Scotland and took it for granted. There is a plaque on the ground that I have passed by on the way to work for years before I stopped to read it. It was for the last two highwaymen that were hung in Edinburgh. I had no idea. I ate dinner in a hotel in the Grassmarket district and learned it was built on Bedlam Asylum and the poet Robert Fergusson died there. There is so much to Scotland and I am trying to make myself pay attention.”

I don’t get why people don’t talk anymore. It is sad when people don’t have someone to talk to. We all have our problems and just need to slow down.

I am a family officer and work with families who are going through a tough time and need extra support and help. So many people are one check away from homeless. They look stable on the outside but things may not be so good on the inside. I remember being at nursery school and wanting to work with kids. We all need help, even wee ones. They need a good start. The disadvantages are not fair, and some are unseen. It’s not just poverty, there are addictions and financial problems in every walk of life. The clean kids need support, too. If you can communicate and care and nurture, that has got to rub off.” (Edinburgh, Scotland)