My 2020 Story

Over the Worst?

Could we be over the worst – or is this yet another calm before another storm? As the Prime Minister reveals his roadmap towards a new beginning, how are we all feeling?

The teenager is keen to get back to school and I feel his attitude towards learning has turned a corner in anticipation of return to the classroom. We will wait for an email tomorrow from the school to see how exactly this return will look of course.

My friends in the world of beauty have their hope pinned on a date in April – as do their now long-haired, grey rooted customers. I do feel a hint of ‘let’s not get too excited’ – or even a slight uncertainty in their hope – hoping perhaps their optimism is not misplaced!

Gym goers – goodness, will we still feel able to lift weights or participate at anywhere near our previous levels? Can our list fitness be regained – is the worst, for us, yet to come?

Are we a nation whose spirit had been dashed too many times and not quite believing that this is nearing over?

A Real Person

How often do we pick up the phone to deal with a big company – and how often so we get to speak to a real person?

TO the former, pretty often. To the latter – almost never. The problem of ‘press 1 for this, press 2 for that or press 3 for anything else’ has been steadily getting worse over the years. Often a wrong turn taking you down a rabbit hole to end in being cut off – or so deep within the system you forget why you called in the first place. Quite often, a few options later, I’ve lost the will to carry on a forgotten why I called – and held dangling for so long that if and when a real person does answer the phone my first few words are almost unrecognisable.

A few weeks ago I sent a parcel by a courier. The parcel got lost, there was no sign of it on the tracking system and only an email address to make a complaint.

Today a real person called me to say the parcel had turned up and where would I like it to be sent? A real person who had the actual parcel in front of her! Miracles can happen 😉

Home School Shaming

Every time I see a news program they focus on a family doing great at home schooling.

This family have overcome the odds – they’ve borrowed laptops from the school, they live in less than ideal conditions. There are 3 children of different ages. They sit down daily at 9am and do all the lessons prescribed by the school with parents – sometimes ones, sometimes two – overseeing their efforts and assisting with the lessons. Each parents taking up the slack if the other is weaker in that subject. Making the most of all the available resources on the internet. Substituting PE with Couch to 5K or a walk in the local park.

Fabulous.

Meanwhile a significant percentage of parents and children are desperately trying to hold it together, worrying less about completing the curriculum and more about their mental health. Claiming a success if the teenager gets out of bed before 2pm. Happy if the children are not lost in their internet world and still resemble human beings.

Great work for those home schooling heroes – but please – many of us just aren’t that good.

My body, My decision

Every day every single one of us makes decisions which directly affects our health. We’ll call those lifestyle choices. Some lifestyle choices are healthy and others are not. The lifestyle choices I make are my choice – and by and large no-one bats an eyelid what I choose to do.

The food I eat, supplements I take, the amount of sleep I get – its regularity and quality, my regular high intensity exercise, yoga, meditation. No alcohol, smoking, illicit drugs. These lifestyle choices amount to personal choices and no-one takes any notice. Those choices, of course, are based on research with the aim of living long and healthy. One of the outcomes will be a healthy and effective immune system.

There is a question currently on everyone’s mind – have you had ‘it’, and when you’re offered ‘it’ – will you be getting ‘it’. For me the answer is ‘no’ – or at best ‘uncertain so I’ll wait’. This seems to cause great upset in many people! – All of a sudden they want ‘the best for you’ – they don’t want you to risk your health by not making the same decisions as them.

Remember folk – my body, my decision.

Self-Motivation

My 8am yoga class gets me out of bed each morning. Sometimes I don’t feel like getting up – but there’s always someone going to be there waiting for me – so I’m up and ready. Always it makes me feel so much better too. Motivation is the commitment and the resultant feelgood factor.

Every day I commit to an often brutal workout – at this time of year it’s usually in my icy cold garage. Starting with 3 layers, gloves and a hat – and ending in hot air breath all around – what on Earth could motivate daily to even consider this?

Again – it’s the fact there are others joining me. We all make a commitment with ourselves and with the others that we will be there. And once the hideous workout is agreed on – we all just dig in and get it done.

Motivation is easier when it’s a joint effort.

Motivation

Having not seen the teenager before midday from the beginning of January, I took a chance this morning and woke him before 8am.

There was a blanket of fresh snow and the promise of more to come – the perfect conditions for sledging. Up by 8:30, schoolwork completed early and out the door by 11am.

Motivation doesn’t come in the format of threats to remove wifi or games, nor does it come in the form of financial reward. Motivation comes simply with a fresh fall of snow and the promise of sledging. Got to love snow days!

Home-Schooling the Teenager

All us parents of teenagers want our kids to go back to school. We’re all too aware that the daily battles of parenting our teens – riding the wave between administering rules and maintaining a relationship with said teenager (particularly for those of us doing it as single parents) – is stretched a bit too far when we have to additionally factor in housework, paid work and home schooling. Do we actually home school our teens? Getting them out of bed before midday can be regarded as a success in my book!

Thinking back to my teenage years – how could either of my parents possibly offer advice and guidance on the subjects I was studying? Despite having a degree I feel ill-equipped to be a substitute teacher. Yes the lessons are online – arguably all I have to do is ensure said teenager sits with his computer on and is ready to learn. I can tell you my priority remains to maintain good relations with the teenager – I’m not up for a fight!

Home-schooling for the teenager – is neither fun nor productive.

The Struggle is Real

Almost everyone I know is feeling the effects this week – of short daylight hours, miserable weather but mostly of being cut off from their regular activities.

Yesterday I considered staying in bed all day. I got up as I have an 8am yoga class to teach – but as for the rest of the day, might as well have stayed in bed.

Similarly today – as well as the yoga commitment I had said I would meet someone for a workout. I felt I should go. I went – and felt much better. A regular activity in a regular environment.

Not meeting up with real people and doing our regular stuff is having a huge impact on our collective mental health as well as out personal resilience. Our immune system, for example, needs constant challenge in order for it to be ready to respond – no good hiding indoors forever.

I need to get out. The struggle is real.

Mojo dip

Rain, wind, darkness, cold – these are some or my least favourite conditions. As a result of all these happening at the same time – my mojo is having a break. For the first time in ages I felt like a day of doing nothing would be a good option. This is not like me at all!

I decided to follow my instincts and after teaching yoga at 8am opted for a real go-slow of a day. Talked myself into a trip to the beach where the icy cold wind and waves blew a few of the cobwebs away – but not enough for me to feel like the workout I half-planned for the afternoon was a good idea.

To be honest, now I’m home and just out of the bath all I want to do is chill in front of the TV and go to bed really early – in the hope that my mojo will return soon!

Whilst the Sun Shines

The sun was shining yesterday from sunrise to sunset. The light low but with a hint of warmth. Although there’s always something that could be done – some tidying, a piece from one of my ongoing courses, some writing – a sunny afternoon should, in my opinion, be taken advantage of.

Having spent too many years in the office and in the winter barely seeing daylight, in the summer scarcely finding time to enjoy a quick ice cream in the garden before going in to sort the family – I’ve come to really appreciate those moments of sunshine. Those sunny afternoons that used to be infrequently acknowledged in passing have become the opportunity for getting out.

Sunny afternoon beach strolls have become a solo pleasure. Almost a must-do in the winter given that the forecast for the following week includes rain, sleet and snow.

My mantra is very much to ‘make hay whilst the sun shines’ – live for today – do it whilst you can. Walk on the beach whilst the sun shines.