Firstly, a very Happy New Year to you all. I hope the Christmas period was a time you were all able to spend with family and friends, reliving old traditions and even starting new ones, or if that wasn’t possible then at least there were plenty of old classic films on the tv to catch up on (again!).
If the end of one year is a time for reflection, the start of a new one is a time to anticipate upcoming events. 2025 was certainly an eventful year for me. It was about this time last year I first wrote to Jean saying I’d retired, recently, and please could she send me details about joining the u3a as I’d heard a little about it. I start 2026 wondering what to write for my fifth “news from the chair” report and anticipating what we have planned for the year ahead.
2026 is a big year for Southwell u3a as it’s our 20th anniversary. There will be more news on that in the coming months but we’re looking at holding an event to celebrate that in July.
In this Newsline you’ll also find details of the extensive programme of short courses and workshops scheduled throughout the year. Hopefully, there’s something here to suit everyone, from those courses to help us (online safety, preventing cybercrime, safe driving) to a wide range of learning opportunities from the solar system to singing and archaeology. Please take a look through these and sign up for those of interest.
John has a full programme of speakers for the monthly meetings where we’ll get the opportunity to hear about things from the Beatles to writing detective novels.
On top of all of that are all our groups. We are aware that some groups are full and Jean is currently looking to see what might be done to improve the situation. However, a recent survey showed we still have over 50 separate activities open and available to engage you in a new pastime or learn a new skill. Looking back over 2025, I learnt so many new things through the various groups I have joined – Richard has shown me many new pathways and ginnels around the area I never knew existed; Rik has encouraged reading up about the history of global regions as we discuss the geopolitics of such as Japan or Russia; pleasant hours have been spent listening to scientific concepts I’d forgotten about since schooldays.
Lastly, I still chuckle about the psychology applied to the away team dressing room seen during the visit to Nottingham Forest.
What all these activities provide is the opportunity for companionship and friendship, to meet new people, spend the time to hear about the great things they’ve done and how they can help us continue with our lifelong learning. This is the great wealth of the u3a, and I look forward to many more such opportunities in 2026.
And finally, the one task I’ve set myself for 2026 is to try and get things done quicker and stop procrastinating too much – I’ll take a look at that in a few weeks’ time!