Uncertainty is something we are all getting used to, but it doesn’t make it any less unsettling. We had planned on visiting my brother and his family in New Zealand over the summer. We are ready to start renovating our house after twenty years. Obviously, those plans are on hold. On the plus side, our family are all in public service, so our jobs are secure.
But putting life on hold is frustrating. We have had a site visit by a masked man wearing gloves who talked to us from a safe distance about the work required on our 1960s semi, Work won’t start until next year some time, so we’ll have to be patient.
Looking back to 2019, my mother’s 90th birthday get together, watching rugby at a packed Twickenham, going for a pint/meal/haircut…I took all that for granted. Nowadays cabin fever is reduced by frequent outings on my ebike, retail therapy is delivered by amazon, and our son delivers our shopping and sits in the back yard chatting with us despite the wet and windy weather.
We should count ourselves very lucky not to be facing redundancy or waiting for surgery, or coping with isolation on our own. The new normal is more painful for some, and it will take years for economic prospects to recover. The young will be the ones paying higher taxes to reduce the national debt and care for the increasingly ageing population. Climate change is a reality that is becoming harder for the likes of Trump to deny. Finding the political will to tackle economic decline and save the planet might not be mutually exclusive. Lockdown let us hear the birds singing as the rumble of traffic ceased and the skies were emptied of jet planes.
On our brisk walks around the neighbourhood people are very friendly and we often stop to chat. Life goes on despite the health restrictions and regulations, There is no alternative, so like everyone else, you adapt and hope that brighter days will appear before worse damage is done to our communities. That’s when we will be able to make travel plans and usher in the builders.
odespinner 