Well, we’ve managed to get through the first week of lockdown without any major issues thus far. I did managed to dislodge my root canal, tooth cement on its way thanks to Amazon (who knew they sold this stuff and filling sets too!) and remove a thumb nail but otherwise things are relatively calm at chez knollys. I took a chance and pootled off to Sainsburys earlier in the week, I have to admit I thoroughly enjoyed the serene glide of socially distance trolleys and lack of screaming toddlers. No red wine though unless you wanted to pay twenty times your normal budget for a bottle of Merlot. Aside from such essential shopping, the daily dog walk has been our only trip out in the community. We are taking self-isolating seriously.
For someone who has spent so many years chasing the clock and appearing to thrive on being a control addict, the enforced down time has had an unexpected consequence. I still keep a routine, I think for all of us this is important especially if you are used to having one. I walk the dogs every morning even if it means battling the new swarm of pests called joggers ( social distancing doesn’t seem to apply to the swift of foot), I do my yoga every day and continue my French lessons online. Being one with a slightly elevated cleaning obsession means that the house, I hope, is well sparkly. Yet, it’s the lack of work stress that has had the biggest effect on my physical and mental health. Between the hours spent actually talking on the phone and not texting and discovering new video apps allowing me to have a virtual houseparty with the girls, I have pondered over jigsaw puzzles and warred with the NY Times Spelling Bee (very addictive). And I can feel my body and mind relax. I’m sleeping better for the first time since Tony died, I’m eating healthier and not reaching for the glass of wine as soon as the clock strikes 6 p.m. The dogs seem calmer too, although this is very subtle when it comes to Arry naturally but they are definitely responding to my change of mood. As someone who is self-employed and supposed to be moving across the pond, I surprise myself with my ‘que sera sera’ mindset.
I make it a point never to read the papers and ignore those pessimistic posts on social media. I’m determined to remain one of those who looks at life through a filled glass. Yes, it may take months for this insidious infection to leave our planet but there is little point in being dour about it. I’m going to take this time whilst it’s available to take a step back and look at what’s most important. And I hope once this is all over, I continue to ring friends and family instead of messaging and I remember how grateful my mind and body have been because I have taken the time to calm down. I wrote a blog last year in which I suggested we should be ‘more dog’, living in the present rather than worrying about what the future entails. WE WILL get through this and I WILL get to France, it just might take a little longer than planned. In the meantime, there’s always a phone call, a jigsaw piece or a French verb that needs me….
“Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend. Inside of a dog it’s too dark to read.” (Groucho Marx)
Widow plus woofs 