September in Review

This month will last long in our nation's memory. The passing of Queen Elizabeth II set a sombre tone on what has been an eventful few weeks. 

Despite being far from a royalist, I was nearly moved to tears at some points. A contagious feeling of mourning spread through the country, focussed in the capital. Freud labelled the spread of emotion in crowd "Oceanic," and it is undoubtable that the tide of patriotism washed through many of us. I found Simon Armitage's poem Floral Tribute deeply moving, it reminded me of the power of art to condense our experiences into a more pure, distilled form; the golden glow of a late afternoon the perfect metaphor, certainly for my lived experience, of our late monarch. I was left wondering whether the monarchy is approaching its own evening, the pomp and ceremony at once feeling out of place and like a faded shadow of what it was.

Liz Truss has divided opinions since being appointed Prime Minister, with the "mini-budget" being badly received in the city, causing the pound to hit all-time lows against the dollar. Speaking to Rushcliffe residents I was confronted with a dramatic range of opinions about the changes. One student said, "They call it common sense economics letting people keep more of their money, but really it makes no sense at all," later, an elderly woman told me "There's no support for people like me who don't work, and we need it the most with bills going up." In her column for the West Bridgford wire, Ruth Edwards labelled the support the government is providing as "huge," but most of those I have talked to about it say their bills have gone up much more than the current measures can account for.

For me personally, September has been a busy month. The return to school has heralded the near end of my school life, a journey of almost 14 years and one that I am sure will have an immeasurable impact on the rest of my life. This has made me consider what, perhaps, I would change to make the experience easier or more fulfilling. The disruption caused by Covid-19 had one benefit in this respect, it has convinced me that the GCSE system is one that needs reform at least. I am not radically opposed to examinations at 16, but there seem to be significant advantages to alternative systems that are currently ignored because it is easier to just keep with what we know. I hope one day to find the answer, but for now philosophising is being pushed to one side, in favour of knuckling down and focusing on doing as well as I can this year.