Rainbow's End

Discussion at a Lions Club meeting about a possible children's outing reminded me of something that happened quite a few years back.

It was in 1990 that we received a letter from Salisbury Lions Club.  They had written to a number of Lions Clubs, of which Brighton was one, asking each of the clubs to write a letter as if it was from a gnome who was travelling round the country.  The letters were to be sent to a bed-ridden lady in Salisbury, who was in considerable pain, in the hope that they might brighten her days a little.

As it happened, Brighton Lions were organising a day's outing to an activity park at Bognor Regis for disadvantaged children.  This seemed an ideal subject for a letter from the gnome, who wrote:

"Wow! What a weekend that was! I finally made it to Brighton - a place that I have wanted to visit for years. The weather wasn't really beach weather though, and in any case the beach is all stones. At least, that was all I could see, but the locals assured me there is some sand when the tide goes down a bit.

"The Lions Club felt it might give you the wrong impression if I told you that I spent the weekend in Brighton, so they very kindly took me on an outing they had arranged for disadvantaged children from the town. Apparently this was the second such outing this year. They must be mad! There were over 50 children involved this time and the Lions took them to a large playground-come-activity centre called Rainbow's End in Bognor Regis, which meant an hour on the coach each way.

"It was after lunch that the fun really started. One little boy - only about 4' 6'' tall, but 10 years old - claimed he had been pushed into the pond by a duck. After consoling him, one of the Lions suggested he should sit in the sun for a while to dry off. No fear, he said. He was 'going back to kill that bloody duck!'"

~~~~~

I have no pictures of ducks, but you might like to try this.