Day 24 Lockdown
19 April 2020
3158 cases
Recovered: 903
Deceased: 54
Today was really a tough day for me, in many ways. I have only left the house twice since lockdown was implemented, and both times was an interesting challenge, as I had a bad fall earlier in the year and injured my right knee and ankle. It happens to be the leg I need to drive. I tried getting around with a moonboot, and our team leader drove me around for a couple of days, but we found it was problematic with both of us out of the office. My head of admin lent me a pair of crutches, but I never quite got the hang of them. So when lockdown happened, my husband was our link to shopping. Most online grocery shopping is backed up, and when the orders arrive, they are incomplete. Now with him in hospital, we have to man up.
I left it to the absolute last minute, but we really needed essentials today. I couldn’t drive AND go to the shop, so Evelyn came along, which meant the twins had to come along as well. All masked up, we sat outside in the car. We ended up visiting two shops to get about 70% of what we needed. Some stuff just can’t be found anywhere. And now, I am dealing with an ankle that is letting me know in various ways that it is not best pleased with the outing today.
My husband’s diagnosis is pancreatitis. He is, according to the ward sister, still in a lot of pain, and hardly awake due to the pain medication he is being given via IV. It is impossible to know when he will be discharged, as his condition seems to have stabilised, but he is still in intensive care. This whole situation is just impossible. My in-laws are in an absolute state, and they are trying to understand how he managed to get this ill before any of us even noticed anything. It is hard that he cannot have any visitors, and my heart goes out to him all alone in the hospital.
I read a post online today which really made me think. Now, with all of us in lockdown, priorities have changed. It doesn’t matter anymore what we drive, as all cars are stationary. Our jobs/positions at work have equalised us all, because we’re all at home. What clothes we own doesn’t matter either, whether designer brands or bargain bin buys, because we are all dressing in our most comfy outfits. Holiday destinations are not a priority, what is a priority is that we have a roof over our heads. The real heroes, and the way it should be, are the front-line people – the people who put their lives on the line every day to serve.
There are so many wistful and yearning posts online about life “returning to normal”. I don’t think there will be a normal that we know after this. And whatever life does stabilise to after lockdown, I hope that we take some of the values we’ve learned along with us. The air is cleaner. We are learning to be more compassionate and have empathy. We are going back to a slower lifestyle, spending more quality time as families, cooking more intricate meals, experimenting with baking and gardening. We are learning to get along, because there is nowhere else to go.
I found this post online, and would like to share it here:
Written by a school principal (school unknown)
COVID-19 Kids – what if?
When people say kids are going to be ‘behind’ I say, behind what?? Not each other- they’re all in the same boat. Only ‘behind’ the age expectations of a curriculum that currently has limited context due to these extraordinary circumstances. In front of so many other more important fronts I say.
What if instead of “behind” this group of kids is advanced because of this.
What if they have more empathy, they enjoy family connection, they can be more creative and entertain themselves, they love to read, they love to express themselves in writing.
What if they enjoy the simple things, like their own backyard and sitting near a window in the quiet?
What if they notice the birds and the dates the different flowers emerge, and the calming renewal of a gentle rain shower?
What if this generation is the one to learn to cook, organize their space, do their laundry, and keep a well-run home?
What if they learn to stretch a dollar and to live with less?
What if they learn to plan shopping trips and meals at home?
What if they learn the value of eating together as a family and finding the good to share in the small delights of the everyday?
What if they are the ones to place great value on our teachers and educational professionals, librarians, public servants and the previously invisible essential support workers like truck drivers, grocers, cashiers, custodians, logistics, and health care workers and their supporting staff, just to name a few of the millions taking care of us right now while we are sheltered in place?
What if among these children, a great leader emerges who had the benefit of a slower pace and a simpler life, who has a fine sense of empathy and care and concern for fellow humans.
What if he or she truly learns what really matters in all this…
faikonta 