Let our hopes, not our hurts, shape our future!

I have yet to see the recently released and critically acclaimed film, Oppenheimer. I have no reason not to see it other than seemingly always finding other things to be doing for 3 hours. I’m sure I will see it at some stage. It has received some great reviews about the way in which the storyline closely reflects the development and deployment of the first atomic bomb. Now in my youth, I was an ardent supporter of the campaign for nuclear disarmament (CND). Formed in 1957, the movement is still functioning, although support for its work and membership numbers have sadly declined.

During much of the 1980s CND was associated with the world-famous music festival at Glastonbury. Throughout this period much of the profits from the festival were used to support the work of CND. In 1981, the CND symbol, designed by Gerald Holtom in 1948, flew from the top of the Pyramid Stage. The symbol has long been universally recognised as a symbol of peace. It was used at that other famous music festival, 'Woodstock'* back in 1969.

Despite my birth name being Anthony, for as far back as I can remember, I have always used the name Tony, and for years would sign my name with the CND symbol in the loop of the Y. Over the years my signature has become more abbreviated, as has the symbol in the loop.

Despite the continued calls for the universal disarmament of nuclear weapons, the war in Ukraine has underlined that the threat of a nuclear war remains very real to this day. It is to be hoped that sooner rather than later both sides get around the table and find the words that will bring peace back to the people of Ukraine and Russia. It was the British politician Pearl Strachan Hurd, who said of words ‘handle them carefully, for words have more power than atom bombs’, something still true to this day.

For example, you will have perhaps seen the story last week of India’s Supreme Court issuing a handbook for judges to use, requiring them to stop using words like seductress, vamp, spinster, harlot, and whore when talking about women. I thought these archaic terms that disparage women and perpetuate gender stereotypes had long disappeared from our everyday lexicon, but it appears this is not the case in India’s judicial system. The report perhaps again reinforces the notion that words are not just words, but that they can influence how the world is seen, and language can be the way in which perceptions and behaviours are shaped.

The second story about words to grab my attention was how the folk at the University of California had managed to capture and transpose brain waves into words using music. The story was totally fascinating, although the science was beyond my understanding. It’s an important story as the research could lead to the restoration of speech in patients who struggle to communicate because they live with a disabling neurological condition, such as a stroke or a neurodegenerative disease.

However, the other reason the story caught my attention was that the researchers were using the music of Pink Floyd in their experiment. The team were able to record the patients' brain waves as these were transposed to words of the Pink Floyd song, Another Brick in the Wall. Now whilst younger readers of this blog perhaps won’t have heard of Pink Floyd, they were (are) one of my all-time favourite bands. Back in 1969, their album Ummagumma, was the first record I ever bought. I was nearly 15 and had saved up my paper round money to buy it. Actually, it was a double album, both a live and studio record.

Over the years I went to see them perform live and of course bought every album they produced. Sadly, the original band split up in 1985, although they later reformed minus Roger Waters. In 1994 they produced the wonderful album The Division Bell. One of its tracks provided an introduction to a paper my best friend and writing partner, Professor Sue McAndrew and I presented in 2008 at a nurse education conference in Dublin. The papers title also played on the Pink Floyd name and our love for Sigmund Freud: Pink Freud: education, enlightenment and erroneous zones – in those days we did like to have a play on words! The words from the song we wanted to capture were:

While you were hanging yourself

On someone else’s words

Dying to believe in what you heard

I was staring straight into the shining sun

However, the most distressing words I heard last week were those used in finding Lucy Letby guilty of killing 7 babies and attempting to murder 6 more. It seems she may have attempted to kill many more, and the police are continuing with their investigations.

My PhD supervisor, Professor Joel Richman wrote extensively on the concept of evil, drawing on research he undertook in Special Hospitals. Evil is a strong word, but it is one that came to mind on hearing the guilty verdict. These were simply appalling crimes, and a unforgivable betrayal of the trust the public has in the nursing profession and the wider NHS to care for their loved ones. The recent documentary on Julius Robert Oppenheimer is called the ‘Destroyer of Worlds’. Well I think Lucy Letby did a similar job. 

Like me, I’m sure your thoughts are with all the families involved and my colleagues who worked, or are still working, at the Countess of Chester Hospital. I find I have no words of comfort to give them but borrowing from Roberts Schuller’s words what I will say is: ‘let our hopes, not our hurts, shape our future’. 

*One of my favourite guitars I own is a limited Woodstock edition of a Martin & Co acoustic guitar - which carries the CND symbol on it it. I managed to source a second one of these rare guitars, which I gifted to my childhood friend Keith who lives in Portugal. 16 months on he still hasn't received it and the guitar is believed stolen by someone unknown in the Porto Customs Department.