Dreaming of the day when I can sit and watch the waves again
IDID not enjoy the ice age conditions the other week and for once was pleased to be confined under house arrest! I am not sure I can remember going out with my children when they were tots to build a snowman and attempt an igloo, but I am sure I must have done. Now I just watch the families close to us doing just this and do hope I spent this sort of quality time with my two.
They have now reached the age where they are the next in line for what is today described as “the jab”. Thereafter I guess they will be waiting to learn when their spells of constant home working are going to be lifted. I am sure they initially enjoyed the cancelled commute and the added time in bed in the morning… but I am also sure they are ready to return to their normal office environment.
I recall it is seven years since I retired from work completely and I was pleased some 16 years earlier to have opted for a voluntary redundancy from my daily commute to Birmingham.
I was relieved to take a sabbatical for a while, but I did need the fresh challenge that I found with a consultancy role to keep my grey cells moving. That took me all over the UK, and a different hotel each week soon became the norm.
I have now long forgotten what regular paid work was about, and gladly enjoy both holidays and days out when the mood takes me – or I did until March 2020 when I learnt that being forced to stay at home is not quite the same as choosing to do so.
It was three weeks ago that senior management and me had our first jab. We also have our recall ticket for our top-up second jab booked for April.
Assuming Bojo has decided the time has come to let us all loose, we will start to think about a Uk-based holiday, and I am already thinking about sitting in the sun and listening to the waves as I smell the sea air.
We did not get a holiday in 2020 and I really do want to return to this normal for the summertime this year, even if I have got to wear a mask!
Meanwhile, I am trying to concentrate on how our granddaughter is coping. She misses her friends as well as her teachers, even when she sees them all daily on the internet. Somehow this is no substitute for the usual school day.
She is missing the sport breaks and although she does not mention it, I do not think languages and music can be taught the same way. She wants to get back to regular school straight after Easter, or even earlier if that is allowed.
She has missed nearly a year of normal school and despite having only got to Year 8, I am sure this loss will take some work to recover. I feel very sorry for all the Year 11 and Year 13 pupils who have to attempt key exams this summer. I wish all pupils facing this challenge the very best of luck and hope they will get help from the Government to ensure they are treated equably with children from earlier years who may well have now finished school.
I am determined not to feel sorry for myself. I had a great time in my schooling, and was able to follow this with a fabulous career doing exactly what I wanted to do.
When I look back, I am absolutely sure I would not wish to change anything.
My particular worry now is for single parent families trying to exist in a very limited space. The sooner some normality returns for them, I shall then relax as life for all can begin again.