BY EMILY BROWN
Since the UK entered a national lockdown, there has been added pressure on social media to be proactive and productive. This endless free time pushed me to finally commit to learning sign language, something I have been wanting to do since I was given my late granddad’s ‘Dictionary of Signs’ as a little girl. Despite this, lockdown has left me feeling unmotivated.
Now should be the time for me to practice French again, to read, to get in shape, but, even simple tasks such as putting away laundry or cooking something other than cheesy rice seem to be an impossible feat. Should this make me feel guilty? No. I haven’t seen my family since December and had to be updated on my dad contracting and defeating COVID-19 via WhatsApp. These are not ‘normal’ times, so now is not the time to punish ourselves for what we do not achieve or learn. Instead, why not focus on what lockdown can teach us about ourselves?
These past few weeks, I have learnt that although my brownies are too rich and my cookies not gooey enough, I can make the perfectly moist muffin. I learnt that sunbathing topless on your roof terrace is empowering, but also risky. Some days, I will clean the entire kitchen and do an intense workout, whereas other days I’ll just lie in a ball on the carpet- lockdown has taught me that doing both of these things is OK.
Perhaps the most interesting thing I have discovered during lockdown is that, when you really miss the person who makes you smile more than you’re brave enough to admit, by tensing your upper back and shoulders, and closing your eyes, it feels almost like a hug.
We are currently living through a historical event that our grandchildren will one day learn about in school, along with World War Two, the Great Fire of London, and the numerous protests for peace and equality of the Twentieth and Twenty-First Century. Growing up a daydreamer, I always imagined living through historical events with such vividness, but never once did I believe that I too would live through such an event.
Without doubt, the main thing I have learnt from lockdown, is that living through historical change, with no clear idea of when it will end, is incredibly overrated.
Cover photo is credited to Aya Charuphan, a food blogger at (https://ayapach.wordpress.com/)