Hi, hope you are all safe and well and staying sane during this third and hopefully final lockdown. For us as a family this one has been the most difficult, as I’m sure it will have been for a lot of people. The snow and dark nights combined with lockdown and the usual January blues have combined to make the beginning of this year the longest ever. But we are starting to see signs that life may be returning to normal, we’ve had some sunshine, the sun is setting later, washing lines are being used again and soon we will see flowers starting to bloom and temperatures increase.
Combined with the latest news that we have a plan for coming out of lockdown and children will be returning to school on 8th March it seems like a time to start feeling more optimistic. While I am relieved that the home-learning nightmare will be ending soon and that my youngest children will be able to return to school and see their friends, I’m painfully aware that my oldest daughter who is in her first year studying for a law degree has not even set foot in her university yet, she hasn’t met any of her cohort, she missed out on freshers week, making lifelong friends and is unable to enjoy the social side of university. We can only hope that life is returned fully to ‘normal’ by September/ October so that the next year of students don’t also miss out.
As the roadmap has been revealed, and the vaccination program progresses it seems like we can start to make tentative plans for meeting up with friends and family. It might be an idea to think about the things that we are unable to do now, that in the past we have taken for granted, such as having a coffee with a neighbour, hugging family, going to the theatre, cinema or gym, going to the park and meeting friends, browsing clothes/ shoe shops, going out for a meal or a few drinks because soon enough we will be doing these things without a second thought.
Enjoy these moments, the first time you hug your nan, the first time you take the kids to the park and they spot a friend and run off to play together, the coffee in Costa with the friend that you don’t see as often as you would like. These little moments are the NOW that we live in and shouldn’t be taken for granted.
While I’m sure we are all looking forward to street parties and delayed get-togethers which will likely be filled with emotion, its important to remember that live goes on in between these big celebrations. If this year has taught me anything its that we should all be more mindful and take joy in the little moments as much as in the big celebrations.
That’s not to say I’m not planning the mother of all parties and have already started pencilling in some dates for family get togethers and an old fashioned street party, but I am also enjoying the Sunday afternoons we are spending time playing monopoly and trivial pursuits as a family.
Its these little things that will get us to the end of the tunnel, the light of which is starting to peak through!
Take care and stay safe.
Vicky
Community Spirit Support CIC 