So, with all the worrying events of the last few weeks we, like everyone else, are at home staying safe. Days are a combination of the four of us trying not to lose our minds, homeschooling, working remotely and enjoying lots of creative time, baking and just stopping.
The thing I have noticed is there are less aurguments. The kids are loving all the time together and we are all finding things to keep us occupied and happy. This may only be a temporary pause, but I think once we speed up again, I will miss this time together.
And although days might seem hectic at points, while trying to juggle everything, I am getting more me time than ever before. Meditation and long hat baths, drawing (which I haven't done in years), finally learning the guitar and my keyboard has been calling me to write again. There are lots of incredible creative pieces of writing pouring out of peoples homes, and this is my contribution. For some reason the words 'we paused' stuck in my head a couple of days ago. I couldn't shift them. So I sat and wrote, and this is the result. I hope you enjoy it.
WE PAUSED, by Kylie Rathbone.
We paused and shuddered at the news, all those months ago. Shaking our heads in disbelief that a country so far away was battling such a terrifying and invisible enemy.
We paused and gasped, as it began to march across the globe. Hijacking its way across the land and seas. Shaking our heads in disbelief that familiar places, not so far away, were starting to fall to this invisible invader.
We paused, heads in our hands, as our boarders were breached. And now the unrelenting savage was here. Attacking us! Our much loved neighbourhoods, towns and cities. Our whole way of life.
We paused, putting on our bravest faces, as we shut down. Stopped trading. Cease to serve. Education re-shaped.
We paused, took a deep breath and transformed our homes. All at once, it was a place for learning, for virtual meetings on beds and sofas, and socially distant cafes in kitchens.
We paused, faces pressed against the cold glass to stare at the strangely empty skies and eerie dark roads. To smile at the strangers walking past. All of us knowing that one unwashed hand could invite this thief of life into our homes.
We paused, and all the while, outside our four walls, heroes stepped into the breach. To fight the only way they knew how. To care unconditionally for each and every desperate soul that crossed the hospital threshold. To hold hands. To keep hope alive. To be there, where family could not.
We paused, as the clocks ticked louder and the days lost their names. The lists of the simple things we longed for grew longer. Park visits. Cinema trips. A pint. A hug from a parent. A far-off daydream.
We paused, as we vowed never again to take these things for granted.
We paused, becoming those people who go the extra mile to help a stranger. Knowing that even though days may be filled with sadness, frustration and disbelief, that we were becoming stronger. Becoming a community to be proud of.
We paused, to turn up the music. To bang drums and clap our hands. To dance in the kitchen, on roof tops and balconies. To celebrate the light. Because, it is there if you look.
We paused, and became creative again. Learning skills we had yearned for, but never had the time. Doing those jobs that always rested firmly at the bottom of the to-do list.
We paused, and began to ask, was the slowing of time really that bad?
We paused, and learnt to make memories in a different way. To talk more, to laugh more, to take this once in a lifetime chance to stop, all at once.
We paused, momentarily. Let us not forget the people we became.
Written 3 April 2020
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