REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL

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For all those employed and working from home:  The world has stopped for a moment.  Have you never wished it would?  Now you have time to catch up with it.  Become a culture vulture.  Binge on box-sets.  Rock that onesie!  Take stock.  Declutter.  Gain a fresh perspective.  Discover your ingenuity.  Emerge stronger with a newfound self-sufficiency. 

Many folk were floored by the last recession and had to adapt to frugality.  No regular well-paid job means a limited social life with nothing nice planned.  No onwards and upwards for them.  If you currently feel frustrated at not going anywhere, welcome to their world.

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For all those missing friends and family:  Prolonged physical separation from loved ones is tough, especially when they are elderly or unwell.  If you can keep in touch with them remotely, be grateful.  And feel lucky that you have love in your life. 

 

Staying at home means that some of us stay alive.  It is that stark and scary if you are high risk.

Some endure the constant anguish of physical distance from ailing parents.  We send photos and cards they do not understand and write letters they cannot read or reply to.  We miss any precious lucid moments.  We grapple with unbearable guilt and worry.  We live every day with the awful reality that we have no hope of getting there in time, should anything happen.  Others are grieving those already lost.

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Try to find peace with what you can’t control.

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For the Carers:  From the day-in, day-out, underpaid or unpaid, selfless souls - to the many random acts of kindness.  And big it up for the altruistic shy ones; the socially awkward volunteers who “don’t normally do this sort of thing.”  Heartfelt thanks for restoring our dwindling faith in humanity.

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The Nightingale Hospital in east London has popped up – just like that!  All thanks to a superhuman effort by our peerless NHS and military – with two more planned in Birmingham and Manchester.  We are clever and resourceful.

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The old and the new:  Many of those considered at risk are elderly and disconnected from the 21st century.  Helping them will mean we rediscover conversing by landline and writing by hand.  For the tech-savvy, reaching out is but a click away.

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Sunshine:  Spare a thought for those stuck in small flats with no private outdoor space.

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Clear skies | Quiet roads:  Should improve our air quality and not distract the emergency services from where they are needed most.  Remember that plenty of good people give a shit.  Just hope that they outnumber the idiocracy.

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Music:  It really does make the world a better place.  Get nostalgic or stumble serendipitously across new tunes.  Celebrate our creative flair and an eclectic, endless playlist.

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Dogs:  For their pure joy and unconditional love.  Glen of Imaal terriers in particular!  Social media tells us their global presence is growing.  Proof that one rare breed of domestic animal can be saved.  We are more than capable of protecting all the others.