A LITTLE HUMILITY...MOI?

Years spent in advertising somewhat blunt one’s ability to be humble. No. Uriah Heep would never have made it in Covent Garden – perhaps in Social Media? No, not even there.

There’s something about the thrill of the chase and the kill in capitalism which makes for great dinner parties but I’m not so sure it’s always all for the good of society.

Reading that back it’s hopelessly squeamish isn’t it? Sharp elbowed winning and the naked,  competitive urge make for a lot of misery for those who can’t catch up.

But it needn’t be like that need it?

I met Elisicia Moore five years ago when invited to write about a charity new to me by a pro bono marketing site called “Pimp My Cause”. I chose Petite Miracles. Elisicia who started it and runs it is an astonishing, vibrant source of energy and self-belief.

Here’s how she describes the PM mission on their website:

“Our aim is to encourage participants to explore and understand the process of interior design, develop their own DIY skills and use upcycling as a vehicle to improve their living environment, to build confidence, to reduce social exclusion and provide opportunities for further training and employment.  

We aim to reduce homelessness by providing Interior Design consultation to newly housed people.” 

Which is, Elisicia, you -  the tornado of optimism, a bit underwhelming as a positioning statement, compared with meeting you and hearing who you are and what you do.

Try this…..

Petit Miracles teaches, inspires and enables people in hardship to make beauty out of ugliness. For instance: take a battered old chair destined for landfill, repair it, make it beautiful (more beautiful than it’s ever been), sit in it and say “Yes! Yes! I did this” then sell it for quite a lot of money and become an entrepreneur. This organisation really is creating fairy stories in a cynical world.

A bizarre, classist mind-set led councils and retailers to suppose the poor had no taste nor could be educated to appreciate beauty. Petit Miracles hits this old shibboleth firmly on its nasty head.
What Elisicia has managed to do in a magical good-news cocktail is combine style, aspiration, inspiration as well as leading a crusade against waste. So when I went to their party and met a bunch of excited people and saw some of their work which was adventurous, classy and fun I felt just a little humble.
There aren’t many people around trying to lead people to a better life by creating style out of strife or beauty out of beastliness.

No. I didn’t just feel a little humble….I felt a bit in awe.
Tell your friends … it’s a good news story for the summer.