HORTON FLOWER SHOW - COMMUNITY COHESION

Since moving to this area over 30 years ago, one of the things I have appreciated most is the strong sense of community; the way in which people work together, often for free, to achieve a common cause.

In the case of Horton, I well remember the ceaseless, untiring efforts to raise funds for the new village hall, and the small part I was able to play in that. It hardly seems credible that it was 10 years ago; what a huge success it has been.

During the summer months I especially like to participate in the many activities taking place. As I am usually fully committed on the work front in July and August it is difficult, but this year, rather at the last minute, I decided once again to enter ‘The Flower Show’.

I am not the world’s best baker, largely because it is not something that particularly interests me, so I decided not to enter a Victoria sandwich cake; the omnipresent stalwart of all village shows. A bit of trivia for you – apart from the Queen Vic connection (she was partial to the odd slice or two, as her expanding girth showed all too well) Victoria sandwich cakes really took off with the advent of baking powder, created by Alfred Bird (of Bird’s custard powder fame) and because of its sensitivity to temperature, oven manufacturers use the recipe to test their ovens.

So, never one for doing things by half, I got rather carried away and ended up entering a total of 15 items; baking, jam making, photography and flower arranging. Oh, the stress of it all! Trying to produce tempting, yummy, perfect specimens sufficient to impress the judges, is far from simple. I have a tiny, ill-equipped kitchen, and for some baked goods it is better to have produced them on the day. Hence, many hours spent burning the midnight oil, then up at the crack of dawn. Trial and error, trial and error…… three batches of chocolate chip cookies!

Come the day of judgement, I was absolutely thrilled not just to have gained three 1st places, and three 3rds, but also to have won the Roy Grinter salver for the most points in the cookery classes and the Bindon Cup for the most points in the cookery and preserves classes. To say that I was thrilled is the understatement of the year!

During the afternoon, as I watched the crowds milling-around I could not help but notice that the majority of us were what one might describe as being of a ‘certain age’, and middle class. I worry that we have a lost generation for whom learning to cook, at home or at school, has been superseded by the popularity of take-aways and ready meals.

Then there is the cost of entering village shows. The high cost of electricity to keep the oven going, in addition to the baking ingredients required, are likely to be beyond the budget of many people, especially those on low incomes or those struggling to get by on a pension.

In the coming year I am going to put on my thinking cap to see if I can find a way to address this imbalance, in the interests of maintaining that all important community cohesion and inclusion, and a sense of belonging.