2020 has thrown up more than its share of curveballs. Pressure around jobs, income, cancelled plans, changing circumstances and breaks in our day to day structure and routines impacted most people.
True to the nature of Tough Guy Book Club - it’s much more than just books - the focus on the mental and physical wellbeing of all the guys, a strong sense of camaraderie and of wanting to look out for each other meant a whole lot of efforts made around helping one another get through.
After all, after meeting and building your list of mates, you want to keep them around. Looking after them makes you the best kind of mate.
Month to month there are challenges to all the guys to do things. To be better humans and better men. It could be be building something, looking after your health by getting your blood pressure checked, making contact with someone you haven't seen in ages – all of it trying to help us be more than who our jobs say we are, feel part of something bigger, and be better at looking after ourselves and one another.
When it seemed like the world was closing up shop and words like lockdown and isolation became everyone’s reality, it would have been easy to circle the wagons, hoard the groceries and hunker down to see it out.
Not for this club.
Values is a word thrown around easily. Living and leading by it is less easy. But not long after things got real, the first call went out. Check in on one another, make a call and see if everyone’s sorted.
Then it was 'check and see if anyone needs some groceries'. Then it was; “I’ve got a ute and a trailer – anyone need anything?” “I work in IT – if you need your internet sorted to find / start / keep work, hit me up!” “I’m off work for 4 weeks – who needs a chat? If anyone wants to have coffee..” “Let’s stay healthy – I’m running 5k Tues and Thurs mornings. Join me.”
The challenge became ‘Help Someone Sort It’
That’s why this club is much more than just a book club. This club embodies the values of the heroes of the literary classics and puts it to the men that every day is like a page where the hero is challenged to be better. Every day there’s the opportunity to lead by being kinder, to recognise the value of doing so and by being better humans, value ourselves.
Bernie Foster (Yarraville Chapter)
