Big Dreams and Big Ideas

Sunday evening 10.50pm and my first chance this week to sit and stop, well sit and type. Today alone has been full on with rehearsals, singing lesson, running my lovely girl around for each social event that her diary holds, washing and ironing school uniform ready for the morning, cooking Sunday lunch and trying to unblock my sink. Even after almost flooding most of the kitchen and using every towel and T cloth that I own and the sink remains blocked. At bedtime it was all made perfect when I was told that I would live way beyond a thousand years and I would have bedtime stories and cuddles forever. Sounds just perfect! And you know what? The sink will still be there in the morning, blocked I’m sure! So what has the rest of my week involved? Well, two amazing days with the Government’s Big Ideas Wales scheme mentoring young international students at Gower College and Ystrad Mynach. This project continually surprises me on so many levels. Last week I was retelling my Mum’s story of how she managed to speak to Spielberg, and how Spielberg allowed Carmarthen to premiere his blockbuster movie Jurassic Park. But before I could finish, the tutor, Steve bolts up and informs us that he was at the Lyric all those years ago. He was with his daughter and remembered the theatre with such fond memories. Steve beamed as he recalled his story connecting dinosaurs and my home town. Small world or what! I hope that people will continue to create fond memories of the Lyric for many years to come – please look after this majestic building. At each mentoring session I ask each person to tell their dreams. There are dreams that might be possible and then there’s the  one that could blow you out of the water. Presenter Chris Evans says – change one life and you have changed the world. I believe  with every inch of my body we can all do that. We can all change the world with a smile and an act of kindness. It doesn’t have to be something huge like climbing Everest – although that’s cool.   I hear so many truly inspirational stories that really affect me along with the amazing reasons why people strive to achieve certain things in life. Last week I was speaking to 32 trainee plumbers and  their aspirations were just as inspirational. I’m told most things from the expected ‘plumber’ to professional sportsmen, property developers, drummer, rich, happy with a beautiful family etc and then the last young man sheepishly told me “I want to sing to touch people’s hearts and souls”. The room was silent. Not a single person laughed. In fact they applauded. So I threw down the gauntlet and offered the young lad singing lessons. They start this week in between me taking part in a couple of concerts.  A centenary concert for the ladies of the WI on Thursday and a Remembrance Service at the Lyric.  Hope to see you there! This article was originally published in the Carmarthen Journal in Mark’s weekly column for the paper.