Sunday. A change of pace normally, when I stop for a short time and catch up with myself. There was no catching up with myself needed today, but I still paused to be still and ‘re-centre my scattered senses’. I ‘went’ to church. I have got used to the on-line service now and am especially thrilled that Kim, our choirmaster, has started to play all the hymns each week and, as requested by me and others, played the intro and the ‘outro’ music today. He is such a talented musician that it’s an absolute pleasure to listen to him play. Rachel read the New Testament beautifully, while Alison gave us a wonderful sermon. And, of course, I sang my head off as usual. Mum and John were still in bed, so I don’t think they heard my howling – well, they made no comment anyway.
After ‘church’, I made myself another cuppa and then went back upstairs to ‘Zoom’ in for a coffee chat with other members of the congregation. It was so nice to see everyone, and we had a good old natter. It was interesting to hear about the plans for the future and how services will be delivered. As John and I are continuing to shield, I was heartened to hear that there is an intention to buy equipment for streaming the live services online. Good-oh.
Once again, I had no plans for the day. So, after the ‘Zoom’ coffee chat had finished, I stayed upstairs in the computer room to sort through all the stray papers that were littering the bed. I have folders for filing letters, bank statements, tax affairs and so on, but habits of a lifetime mean that I don’t file things away immediately, so they float about the premises waiting to be dealt with for weeks on end. I am still looking for the receipt for the TV, just in case that goes on the blink again, but even a deep dive into the papers revealed nothing. Goodness knows what we did with the blooming thing.
John was all about the Lotus today. He’s putting all the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle together for sound-deadening. Fiddly bits of felt, pre-prepared, that seem not to fit anywhere, and then new pieces that he’s bespoke tailoring to fit. The ‘cabin’ is all finished; starting on the boot tomorrow. Overdid it, of course, but I think he’s enjoyed himself.
John is also pleased with himself. Bit by bit, he’s finding things to sell. The latest was one of the kids’ boom boxes from when they were teenagers. We have (had) two, carefully conserved, just in case they ever wanted them back. I don’t know who we’re kidding, us or them. They had them when they were teenagers for goodness’ sake and they are in their thirties now…… Anyway, John advertised them locally and one of them has sold. A little bit more pocket money for the Lotus. Oh, do I hear you wonder why we’re not handing the dosh to the kids? Storage costs – that’s all I’m saying.
Mum has also had a good day. She can’t remember anything of course, but she’s been happy. Emerged by one o’clock and had a sandwich before settling down to watch Songs of Praise that we’d recorded. She, too, was singing her little heart out to the hymns she recognised. Then I suggested she help me make some lemon curd. I like to use Delia’s recipe. Delia says, ‘Home-made lemon curd is so easy even a child can make it’, so I thought Mum might manage it and get a sense of satisfaction from working alongside me. She did, although she had to abandon ship before we were finished.
She was nervous about cracking the eggs, not having done that for a long time, but managed it beautifully; then needed reassurance that she was mixing them properly – which she was; then ever-so-carefully measured out sugar, spoonful by spoonful, before adding the butter. All good. The recipe asked for the mixture to be frequently stirred on the hob while it was cooking. Well, Mum is about four foot nothing now and can hardly reach the pavement, let alone the cooker, so she started the job but found it just beyond her, so I finished it off. She was delighted once she saw the results potted up though.
After our evening meal, we decided to see if there was a film to watch on TV. There probably was a much better option, but we chose to sooth ourselves with Downton. Mum loved it. We had seen it before, but still found it pleasant and even funny sometimes. Suited our moods just fine. Not challenging, but a reminder of times gone by when the gap between the haves and the have-nots was very marked. We were wondering whether today is any different to those times where even today the rich are very rich, and the poor are very poor. Couldn’t make up our minds as to how well our society has moved on in that respect.
So, a quiet day in which we were very busy doing nothing much at all but enjoying it, nonetheless. Feeling helpless that we can’t rush over to help out with the kids to give their parents some respite, though. The latest from Sutton in particular is that we hear the new baby is sleeping very well – during the day. We understand he’s enjoying being nocturnal and just dropping off to sleep as the rest of the household wakes up. I can provide matchsticks but that’s about all…… And we hear from Kenilworth that the TV is an excellent babysitter when the parents have ‘working from home’ duties. Oh, we’d love to be there, playing. Well, I would, anyway.
The NHS report, up to five o’clock yesterday, records just 3 deaths in hospital and 18 the day before. The government reports 96 deaths in all settings, and 901 people infected. It may be the ‘weekend’ syndrome and both figures will alter significantly tomorrow, but I do hope these figures indicate a real levelling off.
As another week beckons and the loosening of the strings kicks in, may you all encounter nothing but goodness and love along your way. God bless.