#AloneTogether April 2020: Daily Activities
st Wednesday 1 April It’s April Fool’s Day, so let’s start with a joke…. What did the pirate say when he turned 80? Aye Matey!
Task: Call someone up – it could be a friend, a member of the Cares team, a relative – and tell them a joke. Ask them to tell you one in return!
Submitted by Andy, Social Clubs Co-ordinator at North London Cares.
Thursday 2nd April Today is Maya Angelou’s birthday. Poet, activist and all round phenomenal woman.
Task: Write your own poem using one of Angelou’s most famous opening lines: ● Y ou may write me down in history… ● A free bird leaps… ● We were entwined in red rings...
Friday 3rd April Desert Island Discs is a much loved radio show, where guests become ‘castaways’ and choose their favourite songs they couldn’t live without.
Task: Imagine you’ve been invited on the show. Pick 5 songs that represent pivotal points in your life. Jot them down, then choose 1 luxury item and your favourite book.
Submitted by Olivia, Social Club Co-ordinator at South London Cares.
Saturday 4th April Children around the country are drawing rainbows and putting them in their windows so that people have something to look at when they walk around their communities.
Task: Make your own rainbow poster and put it in your window or on your door to make people smile when they walk past.
Sunday 5th April It’s natural to feel overwhelmed at the moment, but remember joy is everywhere!
Task: Draw around your hand. Inside the lines draw and write all the things in your life you ar e grateful for. Decorate it!
Submitted by South London Cares’ neighbour, Polly, and avid groover at our dance clubs.
Monday 6th April Meditation can be a really helpful way to distract you from your worries.
Task: Take a tiny piece of food (chocolate, raisin, nut, square of cheese...) ● Relax: Take some deep breaths, close your eyes and get comfortable. ● Sniff, lo ok and nibble: Really take in how the food looks and feels. Enjoy the aroma. Take the tiniest bite. Continue to breathe and focus. ● Sensations: How does it make your mouth feel? How about when you swallow? Focus on the piece you 're holding again. Keep breathing deeply. ● Savour: Take another bite. Relish it. Enjoy it.
Tuesday 7th April Think of someone you really like: this could be a long-lost love, your cat, an old pal or a famous singer you’ve always had a thing for!
Task: Take a piece of paper and pencil, and draw a portrait of someone special. The catch: while you’re drawing the outline you’re not allowed to look at the paper! When the outline is done, jazz your portrait up with bright colours (this time you can look). Voila – your very own Picasso portrait!
Submitted by Elena, 29, a theatre maker and volunteer at East London Cares.
Wednesday 8th April We’ve all got ideas of how to make our neighbourhoods better.
Task: Imagine you’re a town planner. Draw or write about your perfect neighbourhood! Think a bout what would be important to have, like green spaces, theatres and community halls.
Submitted by Hannah, our wonderful new Social Clubs Coordinator at North London Cares.
Thursday 9th April In many different cultures spirit animals are spirits that guide an individual on a journey and whose characteristics that person shares or embodies.
Task: If you were an animal, what animal would you be? What characteristics would you share? Draw your animal!
Friday 10th April Upcycling is taking something you might normally throw away, and repurposing it.
Task: What have you got lying around your house that needs fixing? It could be a hole in a top that you patch up, a tin can that you upcycle into a pen or a plant pot, a chest of drawers that need a lick of paint. What can you transform?
Submitted by Bob, 37, who can usually be found at North London Cares’ Movie Matinees.
Saturday 11th April Take your oldest item of clothing out of the wardrobe. Think about the life it has lived, where it has been, what events it’s witnessed.
Task: Write a short story from the perspective of that garment.
Sunday 12th April Wishing you all a very happy Easter Sunday!
Task: It’s a tradition to buy or make a new hat for Easter, called an Easter bonnet. Using o bjects from around the house, make your own Easter Bonnet! Send us a photo if you can.
Monday 13th April Sometimes life doesn’t always work out as we planned. We’ve all got other dreams and paths we sometimes ponder. Those what ifs and maybes….
Task: If you could have any job in the world, what would it be and why?
Tuesday 14th April We may be spending lots of time in our homes, but we bet there’s plenty of things we own that we’ve forgotten all about!
Task: Find objects around your home that start with each letter of the alphabet. If you can’t find one, imagine something you’d like to own beginning with that letter. Submitted by Katie Cole, 23, who you’ll find at Liverpool Cares’ craft clubs.
Wednesday 15th April On this day in 1452, the famous painter Leonardo di Vinci was born - famed for painting the Mona Lisa and The Last Sup per. Task: Sit in front of a mirror. Draw a self-portrait without the pen leaving the page.
Thursday 16th April On this day in 1963, civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. wrote one of the world’s most famous letters - now known as a Letter From Birmingham Jail.
Task: Write a letter to a friend you haven’t spoken to in a while. Share a favourite memor y of the two of you together, a song that reminds you of them and something you’ve enjoyed doing in the last year.
Friday 17th April Today is International Haiku Day. A Haiku is a short poem, with three unrhymed lines. The first line has 5 syllables, the se cond has 7 syllables and the third has 5 syllables. Here’s an example:
The blossom tree sways Pink petals dance in the breeze Spring - my friend - is here.
Task: Can you write a Haiku about where you live? Can you write a Haiku about Nature ? See how many Haikus you can come up with.
Submitted by Heather, Social Clubs Coordinator at Manchester Cares.
Saturday 18th April Today is International Day for Monuments and Sites.
Task: If you could build a monument, where would it be and what would it be for? It could b e a bench for someone special, a plaque for a famous person, or a huge tower for a moment in history. Draw your monument and tell us why it’s important.
Submitted by Jane, Managing Director at The Cares Family.
Sunday 19th April There’s always that one household task we put off for too long…
Task: Choose a room, a cupboard or something to clean or sort. It might be a drawer or a bookshelf you want to get in order, or some cutlery or mirror that needs a polish. If you can, take a photo before and after - it’s much more satisfying!
Monday 20th April Love makes the world go around!
Task: Write a love letter to an inanimate object. It could be a favourite car, a bicycle, a countr y, even a type of food, it just can’t be a person... Dear Pizza, you’re the best!
Tuesday 21st April You don’t need any training to be an artist - everyone has a unique way of interpreting the world around them.
Task: Choose a favourite photo or painting you have at home. Make an abstract repres entation of it. You could use pens, pencils, paints or objects. Think about what colours and shapes represent the mood and the landscape and/or the people in it.
Wednesday 22nd April Today marks 50 years celebrating World Earth Day!
Task: Make a pledge to do something environmentally friendly. It might be turning the lights o ff when you leave a room, or not wasting any water by running taps too long.
Thursday 23rd April Though we’re not entirely sure of the exact date, playwright William Shakespeare’s birthday is usually celebrated today.
Task: Write a short speech, story or a poem using one of these famous lines: ● I a m one who loved not wisely but too well… ● If music be the food of love, play on… ● To thine own self be true…
Friday 24th April Whilst we can’t enjoy a party together, that doesn’t mean we can’t dream big!
Task: Imagine you’re throwing a dinner party. What would you cook? Which five celebrities (past or present) are on their way? Tell us why you’ve invited each one.
Saturday 25th April On this day in 1874, Guglielmo Marconi was born - hailed as the inventor of the radio!
Task: Imagine you have your own radio show. What would it be like? What music would you play? Who would you invite on? Why not have a go at recording it!
Sunday 26th April Collages use lots of different materials to create a picture of something.
Task: Make a collage of somewhere you like visiting in your community using old newspapers, magazines and paper.
Submitted by South London Cares’ neighbour, Polly, and avid groover at our dance clubs.
Monday 27th April On this day in 1994, anti-apartheid revoluntionary Nelson Mandela became president of South Africa.
Task: If you became prime-minister, what would be your manifesto for a better world? Write o r record your speech, including 3 things we could all do to be happier.
Tuesday 28th April Poetry can be found anywhere and everywhere - you just need to see the world with open eyes and an open heart.
Task: If you have old magazines or newspapers lying around, cut out some words and phrase s, and piece them together to make a short poem. If you don’t want to cut anything up, scan a couple of pages of a favourite book and jot down the words that stand out to you - write a poem using all of these words. This is called “found poetry”.
Submitted by Abbie, Social Clubs Coordinator at Liverpool Cares.
Wednesday 29th April We all have special items that we cherish that tell a story about our lives.
Task: What is your most cherished possession? Share your favourite item from your home a nd why it means so much to you.
Submitted by Annabelle, 28, a Manchester Cares volunteer and regular at Desert Island Discs.
Thursday 30th April There’s always an excuse to have a little party… so we’re having a party!
Task: Get your gladrags on! Wear an outfit that makes you feel good. Do your hair and put on your best lipstick. Give yourself a spritz of perfume/aftershave. Now put the radio on and have a boogie. Send us a photo of you all dressed up if you can.
Submitted by Craig, Social Clubs Co-ordinator at East London Cares. Our neighbours have been getting in touch to see how you’re getting on and sending over best wishes, poems, crosswords, drawings and letters, because they’re missing you! Here’s a selection of our favourite things that have been sent in:
Poem written by Zoe Peel, aged 29, from Walworth..
South London Cares
South London lovely neighbours and their social club volunteers,
I’ve always loved the monthly events, the dances and pub club ‘cheers!’
There’s choir, quizzes, films and tours, and then there’s script reading too,
Whether Walworth, Streatham or Bermondsey, there’s always one for you,
It’s nice to see the joy and smiles on all the familiar faces,
People gathering together from all ages and different places,
It doesn’t matter who you are, be that old or young,
Everyone is at the club, to try things new and fun,
I’m grateful bumping into you while riding on the bus,
In a city now so different, good to see kind folk among us,
A bit wary sometimes, overwhelmed, different people day by day,
But social clubs they connect us, a sense of community coming back into play,
There’s Enoch and Olivia, the SLC team are fab,
They’ re there for our craft or tech needs, and the cuppas aren’t so bad,
I’m writing this from Brixton, while the traffics moving slow,
And although things are cancelled, I just wanted you to know, A crossword created for you by Lily, aged 33,
from Bethnal Green. That at this time when the virus is out, even though we are all apart,
Keep safe and know that as part of the Cares family, you are always in our hearts ♥
Drawings by Ellie Goffe, 27, Balham – can be found hitting the high notes at choir club
Submitted by Claire Frogley, 28
Written by Tony Dennis, a much loved SLC neighbour, who’s attended over 130 social And the people stayed home. clubs. And read books, and listened, and Rested, and exercised, and made art,
And played games, and learned new I am ways of being, and were still. And Not listened more deeply. Some Worried meditated, some prayed, some Or Insane dance d. Some met their shadows. I fret And the people began Not for To think differently. A gain The world
And the people healed. Outside -, And, in the absence of people living A hurried Strain In ignorant, dangerous, mindless, The World And heartless ways, Within More Tame The earth began to heal.
Poem submitted by Steve Moran, 39, often found enjoying a pint and a natter over at Men’s Pub Club.
New Every Morning
Every day is a fresh beginning,
List en my soul to the glad refrain,
And, spite of old sorrows And older sinning, Troubles forecasted And possible pain, Take heart with the day and begin again.
Poem submitted by Hollie Webb, 33, often found boogying at Desert Island Discs.
Today, breathe.
Today, breathe. Listen, behind the factory noises of your panic The birds are singing again The sky is clearing Spring is coming And we are all encompassed by Love.
Open the windows of your soul And though you may not be able To touch across the empty square, Sing.
Crossword created by East London Cares neighbour, Lily, 33, from Bethnal Green.