Pause

467 days ago my life changed when I decided that my best plan would be to keep out of the way of this dreadful virus.  Soon afterwards the law made that policy compulsory for everyone.  I sat down with a large drink and decided that I would just have to make the best of it and I am pleased with how I have coped.  In the beginning it was simple.  No contact with anyone.  It wasn't easy but it was simple.

And we all longed for things to change again so we could see our families and friends, laugh with them, cry with them and just be with them.  To help we kept contact through technology or pen and paper.  We found things to do, we caught up on all sorts of projects which had been neglected, we sorted our homes and waited for the viral storm to pass.  

And while it hasn't exactly passed, we are now freer to do much more than we could a year ago.  We can meet friends in parks and gardens.  Clubs and groups are beginning to meet up in person.  And we are mixing far more.  

But life is feeling more complicated and, for some, it is feeling overwhelming.  The other people with whom we longed to mix are now feeling so demanding.  Things which eighteen months ago would have been so simple now feel so big.  Maybe this is an older person thing: we especially were urged to stay at home and given support to help us do so.

For myself, I am enjoying going out a little but I am saying no to quite a lot of suggestions for socialising, especially in groups.  I am refusing to put too many things on my to-do list.  I am safeguarding time on my own and trying to be gentle on myself.  In this last week I've been shopping, to church, for a family picnic, for a meet with a friend in a local beauty spot (we each took a flask of coffee), to visit family, to arrange a funeral and to arrange a re-affirmation of marriage vows.  But I've said no to other invitations and (for the most part) not felt guilty about it.

Please cut a bit of slack for people who need to take this re-entry fairly slowly.  

Early to bed and early to rise . . .

 . . . can be pretty boring!

I'm an extreme lark.  I usually wake sometime around 4am and when I wake I really am totally awake.  In the summer I make myself stay in bed until at least 5am but in the summer I get up any time after 4am.  In some ways it's great.  I get loads done before most people are even conscious, but sometimes it feels as though I have to wait a very long time for the rest of the world to have its essential first cup of coffee.

This morning I was up at 4.05am, a time which many people think shouldn't exist.  I sorted my finances, did a few surveys, entered 189 competitions, answered my e mails and then thought about other things to do.  

I decided to go to Brigg.  In fact I was in Brigg by 7.30am.  A quick look around the fruit stall on the market and a visit to the hole-in-the-wall and I was ready for anything but the shops weren't open.  Hmm.  So I decided to go for a (trundle truck) ride along the tow path.

Even in the town centre bushes and wild flowers have been allowed to grow but the cut grass shows them to perfection. 

In the quiet morning I could see the beauty around me.  I felt this native elderflower was as gorgeous as any foreign rhododendron.

The wild roses are at their peak at the moment and this bush flowered generously.  

I thought this gentleman had a very good idea taking advantage of the picnic table as he enjoyed a flask of coffee,  

And I was still able to join the queue waiting for Lidl to open and eight.

And have a very nice snooze after my lunch.

Places

Gunby Hall

This morning I read a post by Sue at My Quiet Life in Suffolk which I thought was brilliant.  She wrote about tennis (not interested in that, I'm afraid) but then she gave a list of local places she hopes to visit in the near future.  Sue describes herself as proud of being Suffolk born and bred and she knows her county really well.  It will be interesting to see her reports of the places she visits and maybe if I plan a holiday in Suffolk, to re-read her many posts about local places of interest.

Clumber Park

Well, I'm proud of being a Yellow Belly, - in other words I'm proud of being Lincolnshire born and bred.  I know my county pretty well and earlier this year I made a list of local places of interest which I hope to visit before too long.  

Gunby Hall

Clumber Park

 Elsham Hall Gardens

Thornton Abbey

Normanby Hall

Gibraltar Point Nature Reserve

Whisby Nature Reserve

Cleethorpes, 

Baumber Walled Garden.

All these have areas which can be visited on my trundle truck but some have areas which will be inaccessible to me.  Some of these I have been to before, some will be new to me.  I wonder if I can visit them all before the end of the year?

Somewhere for a picnic lunch

 Meet-ups with friends have been difficult until recently but I'd long been promising Katy that we could meet for lunch.  I'm still not happy going into cafes and restaurants so we decided on a picnic during her lunch break and we decided on the churchyard.  I don't think I've ever picnicked in a churchyard before but I shall certainly do so again. 

There are memorial benches along the pathway so Katy sat on one of these while I sat in my trundle truck.  

There are pretty flowers which have been allowed to grow wild

The trees are all very mature and they create lovely views,

All this and a lovely picnic and conversation with a friend.  Bliss!