You know what? Even in isolation there are obstacles. You get up in the morning thinking you are going to achieve x, y, or z, but in reality achieve none of things you wanted to do that day. I had it all planned: get up early, yoga, shower, breakfast, gardening, lunch. Then sort Mum’s hair, more gardening, evening meal, watch Jane Eyre from the National Theatre, bed. Simple.
My reality was: got up early, faffed about, galloped downstairs to answer the front door where a food parcel had been deposited, tried to flag the driver to say we didn’t need it, but too late, spent a good half an hour cleaning every item and putting it all away, then breakfasted. By then it’s nearly half-past ten and Mum isn’t up. And I’m not gardening. John, on the other hand, has got up, had breakfast and is out putting the fascias on his ‘man shed’. I winkle Mum out of bed, make her tea, supervise her getting her breakfast and suggest sorting her hair out then, instead of later. It’s before lunch, but in hindsight it was a very wise move.
To clarify the term ‘sort Mum’s hair out’ is to say that I planned to give her a home perm. I have not ever done anything like this before and I’m a bit nervous. I have bought all the right equipment, I have the model and just need to execute the deed. Three hours later (literally) Mum’s hair is done. But what a palaver. And it’s not a great look, if I’m honest. The trouble was, that a) Mum’s hair is very sparse, and b) the curlers I bought are a couple of sizes too big and kept falling out. And I don’t have a hooded hairdryer like they do at the hairdressers……..
It wasn’t all bad though. Mum really enjoyed listening to me reading her the book I’d bought her for her birthday, as we sat and waited for the perm to ‘take’. We had some giggles while I was putting the curlers in, over and over, as they dropped out. And we whooped with laughter as I nearly drowned her trying wash the lotion off.
Not long after I closed the hairdressing salon, the doorbell rang, and it was a Tesco delivery. John had managed another delivery slot!! More ‘shopping cleaning’ and I am still not in the garden.
Conscious that we really don’t need the food parcel from the government, we have asked for John to be removed from the list. Many items are on John’s dietary ‘avoid’ list so, as we’d found someone who could really use them, I re-packed the box. Still not in the garden, folks…… and now it’s time to prepare our Good Friday evening meal.
As we sit to eat our meal, a wave of guilt storms in. I thank the Lord for our many blessings, but oh, my goodness, what of those who have very little; or those working hard to keep us safe, or are suffering from the virus? With today the worst so far, in excess of the worst days in Spain and Italy at this point, there are 5,706 infected and 980 deaths. Can we do as we’re told do you think, and stay at home to combat the virus? I am hoping so, but not yet counting on it.