In another post dedicated to my kids, Benji and Ollie, today I want to tell the story of their first trip out in six weeks. For six weeks they'd been hidden behind closed doors. I'd been looking forward to this moment since the Spanish Government announced the relaxation of lockdown restrictions last week. I actually... Continue Reading →
The Quarantine Diaries 14: Parenting Magic
Today's post is dedicated to my children, Benji and Ollie, who have endured six weeks of total lockdown in Spain. They haven't been able to go any further than the garden. They've been absolute stars of the lockdown show. They've had to make their own magic, with a little help from mum and dad of... Continue Reading →
The Quarantine Diaries 13: 9 Months Sober
If my sobriety were a baby, I should be giving birth today, to a Brand New Me. Or perhaps just to the Old Me, which would be the Young Me, before I started drinking. Unfortunately, I've been through a tough time over the last few days, and all the old behaviours are coming back: shouting... Continue Reading →
The Quarantine Diaries 11: Back to Nature
The two of us looked out at the blue sky, the bare chestnut tree glistening with dew, the seagulls and other birds glinting with silver as they swooped through the air, and we were so moved and entranced that we couldn't speak.Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, 23 February 1944 As I write... Continue Reading →
The Quarantine Diaries 10: Consumerism Halted
In today's post I take a look at what's happening (or not happening) 'out there' in what used to be called 'the real world.' Commercial activities have been stripped down to the bare minimum, and many people have been brought to question their whole value system because of this. Empty aisles Yesterday, I ventured into... Continue Reading →
The Quarantine Diaries 8: Avoiding the Guilt Trap
I was doing pretty well in quarantine. You might have seen my earlier entries: they were all about 'finding balance', staying calm and facing our fears. Then my body threw me a curve ball. It's the same curve ball it throws me every month, but right now I'm finding it particularly difficult to deal with.... Continue Reading →
5: A Guided Meditation, Courtesy of Wordsworth
Poem of the Day: Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey, On Revisiting the Banks of the Wye during a Tour. July 13, 1798 By William Wordsworth. I've chosen this poem because to me it describes most perfectly the experience of meditation, of switching off the mind and making contact with the Divine. The... Continue Reading →
The Quarantine Diaries 3: Staying Grounded
With the level of societal anxiety running high, today I'm taking a different approach and offering some tips for staying calm in quarantine. I'm no expert: I'm very much learning as I go along, but I find that some of the work I've done on mindfulness and mental grounding prior to being confined is helping... Continue Reading →
The Quarantine Diaries 2: 16/03/20
The Dreaded Cough I woke up with it again this morning, 'The Dreaded Cough,' as I've come to think of it. So far, it's only in the morning, and it only lasts a few minutes. So far, so good. 9191 cases in total at today's latest tally. Borders closed. So far, so not so good.... Continue Reading →