Maybe his whole family dynamic ran on ‘fight or flight’. Why do we tap in to that when the stress trigger is activated rather than zen calm. I guess Buddhist monks spend years teaching themselves how to tune in to inner calm when triggered rather than the ‘fight or flight’ response, so I shouldn’t be too surprised.
Day 23 of lockdown, we are all feeling the pinch, the kids really want to go swimming, the joggers don’t want to be puffing past, they want to be on a treadmill at the gym, which was once part of their morning routine, on the way to work., now they’re working from home. Everyone knows the acronym WFH.
7 of us got together last night online, it was daylight when we went on and dark when we got offl. We did a quiz, I had a cup of tea, some had wine, one an Easter egg, another a beer. The quiz was light-hearted, it was lovely to see everyone. We all found the filter button, backgrounds were changed, suddenly the Easter egg eater was in the jungle, my Spanish friend didn’t really say much at all, thinking back, I should call her. Katherine, the GP said there were no babies in her surgery, which isn’t good as it means no one is coming in for vaccinations.
The Easter holidays are over. The sun is out.
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| cherry blossom 2020 |
Erbie and I walk down the railway path, cow parsley, dock, hawthorn buds about to burst, bee-flies and honeybees buzz past. The pink cherry blossom is already fading and clumps of it litter the gutters. No bunches of lilac from the florist this year. I wonder where Kate Moss is? Highgate or the Cotswolds.. Where is Mick Jagger, where are all the famous people? I heard Marianne Faithfull went into hospital with coronavirus but that was 2 weeks ago.
I have lockdown belly. My shoulders ache with stress, yet I’m not really under any stress, I’m obviously under stress, we are all under stress.
I called my auntie yesterday, it would have been mums birthday, she was on a ladder in the garden talking to the neighbours saying: ‘it would have been my sister’s birthday today’. They haven’t been out for 4 weeks. My cousin shops for them and drops it off.
We’ve been shopping for the Belle Mere, the shopping lists are obtuse. TheGR was instructed and duly got a pineapple and green and blacks organic cocoa powder, plus 4 pints of semi skimmed milk. I did the next round, 4 pints of semi skimmed milk , 2 bottles of tonic water, a double pack of Lavazza coffee and a melon. We don’t question it.
It transpires, of course, the BelleMere hasn’t been obeying lockdown rules. She’s been popping out daily for her paper and fags and probably got a few trips to the supermarket in as well, judging by her insider knowledge on the queues and shelf stock situation. We’ve just been getting the heavy stuff for her! She goes very quiet.
The BelleMere is convinced she has ‘the virus’, ‘I know I have it’, she calls 3 times in the middle of the night, my phone is on silent. I email to say I will call at 11.30am, I know she’ll be asleep before and I will panic if she doesn’t answer the phone.
I call at 11.30, she has the poorly voice, I tell her there is nothing to do but stay in, look after yourself, stay hydrated, take paracetamol, eat well, watch telly, sleep, don’t go out to get the paper or fags. Call 111 if you can’t breathe.
She calls the next day to apologise, she’s fine, false alarm, the threat of no paper was too much. Actually that’s unfair, we are all ‘the worried well’ and slightly hysterical, have I got it, what’s this cough?
I’m doing a 1000 piece jigsaw swap with friends.
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