Isolation Day 51

No drama today. Just a little bit of nostalgia and melancholia.

It was an early start, welcoming in one of the community nurses first thing, who dealt quickly and efficiently with administering John’s antibiotics. As it was such an early start, it felt a little bit odd throughout the day and neither of us felt quite settled. John was at sixes and sevens because he was home and should be getting on. I was at sixes and sevens because he was home and I did get on with a few jobs, but really wanted to just spend time chatting or sitting with the ol’ man.

For the most part though, that’s what we did. It was such a glorious day, weather-wise, that we spent a good portion of it the garden. We had a lovely lunch, and a cheeky glass of white wine, at the table and chairs in the middle of the lawn, then had a little wander round the garden – me plucking at weeds, here and there; John doing laps of the garden to ‘get fit’; and Mum, telling us that it was too cold or too hot or too bright or too windy, depending on how the mood took her at any one moment in time.

But we did have the most enjoyable half hour or so this afternoon, all together – John sitting on my parents’ bench, and Mum and me sitting on the swinging chair in the blazing hot sun, our faces and eyes shielded by our summer hats – listening to the quiet of our surroundings and the birds singing and the chimes tinkling as the breeze caught them.

And for John and me particularly, we took the time to look back at the house and thrill at the achievement of the building itself, much of which John has created from scratch over the years; and then we reminisced over the boys growing up in it, the parties that had been held both in the house and the garden, and how the grandchildren are now making the most of it – and just the vibrancy of it all. It was lovely – albeit tinged with a little sadness as lock down continues.

So I can’t wait until the lock down is over and we can have the family round once again to run around and play up and down the stairs and in and out of the house. Harriet shared a picture of Lily and Freddie messing about in their (very large) paddling pool (I wasn’t jealous at all), and I thought I’ll do the same with our own little paddling pool when the time is right. I do love a paddle, so why not? Might draw the line at playing in the sandpit though!!

Then this evening rolled up and it was Quiz Night again with our dear Centre Stage friends. I had suggested to John that maybe we’d duck out this week, but he was keen to socialise, so we took part. Between us, I think we got about half a dozen questions right, as neither of us could really concentrate, so thank goodness for the rest of the team!! It was a fun evening, as always though, and there was at least one side-splitting occasion when at least three of us couldn’t stop giggling.

Other than that, the day was interspersed with the alarm going off on John’s phone at regular intervals to remind him to take his tablets, or have his nebuliser, or take a nap, or something, as well as the comings and goings of the nurses to check up on him and pump antibiotics into him. It was a long day for him and, quite rightly, at the end of it, he felt pretty exhausted.

And once again, I haven’t watched the news. Too busy watching one or other of the members of the household to do that, so I haven’t kept up. Suffice to say, too many people are still getting infected with COVID-19 (6,111) and too many dying (649 in all settings) according to today’s official figures.

However this comes out in the wash, however they play with the figures, however much they compare the UK to other countries, each infection and each death has an impact, not only on those friends and family members in direct contact, but on the daily lives of us all. It’s too much and I pray for the day when we can stop looking over our shoulders and stop washing everything in sight!!

God bless – stay safe and sane everyone.