C is for COPY

I grew up with Mike Yarwood. Not literally, you understand, but he always seemed to be on television every Saturday night and everyone waited to see whom he would try to copy in his next show. Sometimes, he dressed and added makeup to look more like the person he was imitating but, quite often the voice was enough to distinguish Prince Charles, Eddie Waring, Brian Clough, Harold Wilson, Alf Garnet, Frank Spencer or Hughie Green. He was know as an impressionist and he must have spent hours in front of the mirror and with tapes of his subjects just to get it exactly right. Many more followed him, some brilliant and others, poor imitators and the impressions became more sophisticated with greater attention to physical detail but he was the first who really grabbed our attention on the box. Unfortunately, almost all of the characters that he copied, retired or moved out of the limelight and their demise signalled a downturn in his career from which he never recovered to his previous heights.

When I was at school, copying was frowned upon and still is and it usually carries some form of punishment. I think this is based on the belief that someone who copies, receives credit for work they didn't actually do and therefore doesn't deserve such success while the work of the person they have copied is in some way undermined. I agree that this is a truly important misdemeanour that should be discouraged and dealt with appropriately but what a shock it is to go out into the world and discover that almost everyone is copying to some degree.

THe supermarket shleves are filled with copies of different brands that sell more cheaply, many new cars are modelled on those from other manufacturers, clothes shops exhibit fashions that mirror much more expensive items, jewellery and watches may carry a much sought after label but might only be a replica, CDs, DVDs and videos appear in our markets but line the pockets of pirates rather than the stars and even football tops of your beloved team may not be the genuine article. As you can guess much of the copying is illegal but a lot of it is actually allowed and above board and the general common denominator is that you only copy something which is successful or wanted by a lot of people, like mobile phone design, mp3 players, televisions, Cartier watches, pictures, expensive perfume or designer label fashions. They say imitation is the sincerest from of flattery. I don't know how sincere the copiers are with regard to that statement, but I reckon money is higher in the motivational list.

Last night I watched a new television programme all about imitators, in this case those who copy singers both in sound and appearance. Their prize for being the best copier will be a short residency in a Las Vegas show and judging by last night's first offering, they all have a lot of work to do to convince me that they are as good as Cher, Elton John, Frank Sinatra, Madonna, Robbie Williams or the like. Some of them already have made a career out of imitating their idols and the world is now filled with tribute bands that pay homage to the greats and make a tidy sum at the same time. Some years ago we went to see Bjorn Again, an ABBA tribute band that were just so like the real thing, they even speak with Swedish accents, even though they are Australian and their sound and performance was a real tribute to the original but recently I discovered that there are at least another seven or eight ABBA tribute bands around, half a dozen Beatles impersonators, several Kylies and obviously hundreds of Elvis Presleys. Why there are even people who make money out of being Alan Shearer, Michael Schumacher and Ronaldo. Those must be long acts! I also discovered someone who does impressions of Del Boy from Only Fools and Horses. How sad is that? Doing impressions of someone who is only an impression in the first place!

So the whole thing seems to have turned full circle since I was a child, in the days when you were punished for copying, now you are rewarded for doing exactly what someone else does. The world is indeed a crazy place!

Paul, in his writings to the Church in Ephesus encourages them to copy their Master when he says, 'Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.' A few years ago, the whole rage was to wear the WWJD wristbands that stood for 'What would Jesus Do'. It is always a great reminder as we face each day to think how Jesus would deal with some of the situations that arise and the more we imitate or try to cope Him in His perfect life, the more we understand what He would do. To be a good imitator or to make a good copy takes a lot more work than we imagine and to copy Jesus in everything means that we have to work at it on a daily basis, learning from what we read of Him in the Bible and then putting it into action. I want to be more like Jesus, to imitate Him in every area of my life, but it doesn't happen overnight and without a lot of dedication on my part. And though I can never be perfect like Him, with His help I can be closer each day and that is my greatest tribute. What sort of impression does He leave with you?