Newspaper Opinion – Chris McGuire: Writer

How come fashionable parents look so cool?

Here’s a piece I wrote for Eastern Daily Press about my frustration with ‘Fashionable’ parents… How on earth do Fashionable Parents look so ‘together’? It really isn’t fair, especially when the rest of us look like we got dressed blindfolded… in a jumble sale. For a bet… Let me explain. These days I’m a Stumbler.Continue reading “How come fashionable parents look so cool?”

SIMILE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!

The word ‘like’ is one of comparison. It suggests that one thing is similar to, but not the same as, another. Yes, we all know that, but it’s important to state at this juncture. For some reason, however, the word ‘like’ has replaced ‘erm’ for many as an unconscious way of punctuating sentences.
As such – and my English teacher would be proud of me for this – we’re living in a world of similes.

When did we ditch niceness?

Now, I’m sure there’s a fair number of you queuing up to label me an overly sensitive snowflake. Fair enough, but I’m serious here. We, as a society, seem to have lost something. We’ve allowed ‘niceness’ to become a negative trait; something to be purged from our systems in case it shows up as weakness. “Show me a nice person and I’ll show you a pushover” is beginning to feel like the pervasive motto. I realised, standing outside that department store, waiting for in vain for my turn to enter, that I really miss niceness.
Can we have it back please?

Eastern Daily Press: Father’s Day Column

As Father’s Day arrives, too many of us are worrying about the superficial: “What can I buy for the man who has everything?” Let’s face it, it’s usually socks. Such clutter is placed in ‘that’ drawer with a multitude of similar gifts from down the years.
Instead of token items for dad, wouldn’t it be great if this year we could talk more openly about the role of fathers within our society?
The day of the distant dad has passed – so let’s celebrate the 21st century father.

Metro.co.uk piece on Bullying.

I still remember the whistling in my ears.
A sudden sense of the world being unsteady and the ground coming up to meet me. Landing hard, I was knocked out. Moments later, my eyes opened as several feet walked away. ‘You showed him,’ said an excited voice. The thing was, he hadn’t shown me anything. I still don’t know what I was punched for.