My friend Pam has great success using Google Forms over in Portland where she runs her fabulous tree planting and climate events. We’ve been a bit slow to this party – not wanting to be asking people for their time in an email to be honest, we have an email backlog to work on (thank you so much to Sean who has arrived on a – metaphorical – white horse to assist, if you are waiting for an answer we will be streamlined sooooon).
What a JOY to find these responses just now – I had been looking in email but you have to look at the actual survey under “Responses” – possibly you all know that, I am putting it here in case I forget! I will be so happy to report these to Aideen next week, who has been such a support through the @RethinkIreland accelerator programme. She suggested this sort of question, I think they are great, we did adapt them ever so slightly. Have we missed any good questions do you think? You can send us a tree mail on orla@easytreesie.com
How did attending our event make you feel?
Responses;
uplifted
I really enjoyed the q and as.
It was live, which was great.
I was really happy to be participating in a national and capital-city event like Culture Night safely on zoom. It was a wet night so it suited me not to be out and about and I did not have to travel to a venue which was useful at that hour in the evening, I did not have to dress up.
I found it exciting to see reactions in the chat. It was exciting that it was free. It was restful.
The films were very “feelgood” with jaunty music. I found it great that the event was not recorded because it made it very special to be there. The poet came across as very thoughtful, his poems were clearly frequently personal. It is very cool to hear a poet hear his own work, you get so much more out of the poems hearing it in his voice, with his accent and I always love hearing the back story to a piece of art, it makes all the difference and makes it memorable. It was great to see people I know who joined all the way from the continent who are working abroad. Being able to respond in the chat and being invited to do so is great, much easier than getting up the courage to put up your hand at a live event.
I felt it was a lovely start to the weekend and listening to the poetry was very relaxing. It made me appreciate the beauty around us.
Relaxed
My poet brother was contributing and I appreciate the importance of planting more trees. So it was a positive way to spend time.
Why is that important for you?
Responses
I’m glad that there are so many people who appreciate how beautiful and important trees are, and biodiversity in general. and people who are willing to stop talking, start planting!
I enjoy meaningful conversations. I get a sense of belonging from taking part in big events and feel I am contributing. While I enjoy poetry I do not often get the chance to enjoy it and I feel it is important because it engages a part of the brain that does not get stimulated often.
It’s important because sometimes we get caught up in the hustle and bustle of daily life and we can sometimes forget that beauty is all around us and we must give ourselves time to appreciate the good.
Because I work in a challenging environment. Trees are important for the health of the natural environment and for people’s health and delight.
What difference does that make for you?
There is a lot of very negative news on the climate front at the moment – this really helped to balance all that doom and gloom. I feel engaged, connected, part of the wider community. I like to support artists and the arts and this was an easy way to do so.
Relaxing is important for recharging the batteries and being in nature is important for your spirit and your soul. It lightens your heart. And I felt after this week having experienced a loss of a dear friend that making time to sit and enjoy the event lifted my spirits again.
It keeps me chilled
Every small step is important.
Were there any unintended negative consequences to attending this event? responses; no
Because it clashed with live events it meant you actually might interfere with them on another year if you wanted to go somewhere else as well, often I go to a few events on Culture Night.
Not at all. I was delighted to attend.
NoneIt was a bit careless but I was late when I logged in, mic and video on, and apologies for that.
Would you recommend our event to a friend?5 responsesYesNo100%
| Yes | 5 |
| No | 0 |
Have you any suggestions for our future events or anything else to add?
5 responsesA bit of live music would be lovely, if you could mange it? I have some very musical friends who love trees and nature… Also, a very small matter – it would have been even more lovely if Anto could have shown the picture/photo related to each poem, as he was reading it, rather than just flashing it up afterwards.Recommending a donation amount would be a good idea. What about a poetry workshop where you could write a short poem yourself, I would like to learn how to go about that or how you set about making a film even down to the practical tips.I think it went great. I think that perhaps a singer and musician could have added to the mix a little. But nothing else to add. Thank you Orla
Include a musician to sing a NATURE song
Maybe a little background music for the poetry reading
Easy Treesie 