Hello lovely people! It has been a whiiiillllleeee, I trust you are well. My last post Calm in The Storm was published last year May when the virus was still quite new, and the whole world was on lockdown around the same time – that first lockdown when TikTok dance routines, banana bread, and #DontRushChallenge (followed by several other challenges) took over our lives.
The boundaries that separated our work life and home life became blurred, as the majority of us began to work from home (Thank you to all front-line workers for their selfless service in this period). Simple actions like shaking hands, giving hugs and supermarket runs which we did so mindlessly are now more cumbersome – washing and disinfecting our hands multiple times a day, virtual parties/hangouts and wearing masks (Several times, I forgot to wear a mask until I was halfway through my journey, which meant I had to go back home to pick one up or buy a new mask #smh)
2020 was a hand full. Several people passed away. Mental health hotlines blew up; people desperately needed to talk. If there was any time for us to be kinder and gentler with people in our worlds and the people we come across, it is now. More importantly, we need to be kinder and gentler with ourselves. It is a privilege that we are alive and we get to continue to experience and explore the gift of life.
How are you?
How is your soul?
What support systems have you put in place, to ensure you are wholesomely (spirit, soul and body) taken care of in this period?
Are you learning a new skill, sleeping a lot, or watching a lot of Netflix? Whatever your choices, make sure you are doing the very best you can do for yourself. You deserve to be full of joy and happiness, pandemic or not.
Each time I tried to write in 2020, especially after that May 2020 post, nothing seemed to come out. There were so many ideas in my head, and many things I wanted to write about; there was ink and there was a quill, but there was no will. Out of my 2020 experiences, there is a particular one I know I have to pen down. If I do not, I may remain stuck. I need to safely lay it out and gently blow it bye-bye into my field of flowers and memories:
Leatherhead
A miracle brought me to Leatherhead and a miracle called me out of Leatherhead.
South Bermondsey to Wimbledon; Wimbledon to Leatherhead.
South Bermondsey to Tulse Hill; Tulse Hill to Sutton; Sutton to Leatherhead.
Gravesend to Waterloo; Waterloo to Leatherhead.
Fortnight Friday trips to Parsons Green and crossing Putney Bridge.
Train delays and train cancellations; in the hot summer and in the snowy winter.
Leatherhead was where I first genuinely started to like living in England.
Perhaps, it was the green fields of Surrey or maybe the friendliness of the people.
Who knew my foundational learnings of the aviation industry would be laid here?
Cessnas, Beechcraft, Airbus, Boeing; appraisals, models, research and avigeeks.
King's Head Alley.
The quietest Lidl bakery I have seen; organic food from Waitrose that Daniel fast year.
Sainsbury’s sandwiches and Greggs’ chicken bake.
Costa’s cinnamon brioche bun – my morning ritual.
And of course, that new Japanese place and that Brazilian grill where I cried a bit.
Gelatos and mango sorbets on walks to clear my head.
That tiny street in the small town centre.
UCB Radio and my obsession with CityAlight.
I checked for the origin and meaning of Leatherhead, she means ‘public ford’
I googled the meaning of ford: a shallow place in a river or stream allowing one to walk or drive across
It all makes sense. It does.
I was in an arid place when I arrived at Leatherhead.
I waddled through the stream; it was warm, healing and peaceful.
Now that I am on the other side, I say thank you.
Thank you, Leatherhead, for being a bridge; a friendly bridge.
My favourite moments were spent in the fields in front of that ancient church
The vicar was lovely and I once had the best chat with Rosalyn Landor and her dog.
I looked up to the hills, fell on my knees and prayed.
Many a lunch break; I cried, I prayed, I cried, then I prayed some more
The knot was loosened.
I walked out of Leatherhead freer than I walked into it.
A miracle brought me to Leatherhead and a miracle called me out of Leatherhead.
Phew! Glad I got that one out.
The first month of 2021 is almost ending, the pandemic is yet to be fully curtailed and everyone is truly tired. Here in England, we are on our third lockdown, everyone is eager for this pandemic to go away, so we can go back to our normal lives… what exactly is normal again? The pre-covid era will be different from post-covid times, if there is anything we know about us humans, it is that we are resilient, and we always bounce back and forge forward, so whatever post-covid era chooses to look like and bring, I am pretty sure that we will be fine.
In the meantime, we take life as it comes; second by second; minute by minute; hour by hour; day by day. Remember to cast your cares always, no matter how minuscule, and trust that God will provide your daily bread. Lean into healthy relationships and friendships around you and draw strength from them. I am incredibly grateful for my family, as well as the girls in my sisterhood connect group – God bless those girls and our weekly Thursday zoom meetings.
I am currently reading Dear Elona by Joy Ehonwa, and I cannot stop listening to Tracy Chapman. Plus, I binge-watched Girlfriends and Bridgerton on Netflix in a matter of days.
I pray that if by now, you have not been able to find some form of structure and support that uplifts you and increases your serotonin levels, that you find it. And if you already have something that works for you, that you continue to experience joy and health in your bones.
There is always something to be grateful for. There’s always something and trust me, you do not have to look too far to find it.
I pray for divine wisdom for the governments of the world and pray that God’s will be done.
I pray that COVID-19 goes away fast, and never comes back again.
Toodles
xoxo
