Be the lightness

I don’t know about anyone else but February is such a down month.

It seems to be even worse this year, after the long dark days of Winter, we are all eager to see the signs of Spring, they are there but we need to take notice of them.

Never did we think that a year ago we would still be in the lockdown situation we are all in, not just here but right across the world.

It was always clear to me the the mental health of the nation would be a major concern, and we are now seeing those problems in those we love.

For months now parents have had their lives turned upside down, they have tried to juggle working from home whilst trying to do their own work from home. Many parents I know don’t actually start doing their own work until after the children have gone to bed and are working through until 3am.

Our amazing key workers all have been working so hard and beyond the call of duty to try and keep all services going for us, so often the unsung heroes. We just expect that loaf of bread to be on the shelf whenever we want it, but there are hundreds of people involved for it to be there. We take it all for granted.

I was so pleased to have been invited for my vaccination this week, and I was so impressed to see how everyone was working together, most of them volunteers, standing outside in freezing conditions, all with a smile on their faces. There was such a positive atmosphere, and a wonderful feeling of gratefulness. I made a point of thanking them all.

There is no doubt that the pandemic has highlighted the loss grandparents are feeling not able to see their precious grandchildren, for thousands who are suffering from unjustified estrangement this loss is something they have been living with for many years, in some cases.

There was a feeling of expectation with many, that surely whilst we were facing this catastrophic disease, that estranged family members would contact family members. Sadly that has not been the case.

Many grandparents are now thinking that if this state of emergency is not going to bring family members back into their lives, then nothing will.

How do we deal with this?

There is no magic wand, or some clever answer to this.

It is vital that we look to ourselves, that we take stock of our own well-being and well-fare. We must learn to self-protect.

We have to dig deep.

As I have said so many times before, we can not be responsible for other peoples behaviour,  we can only be responsible for our own and that includes how we live our lives.

So as we slowly crawl through the month of February, take note of the small things, the Robin chirping in the tree, tiny shoots of growth are everywhere, lambs are appearing, the days are lengthening everyday, I could go on, but you have heard it all before.

I know that when you are a your lowest ebb, you don’t want people to keep telling you all this sort of stuff,  but what is the alternative?

We are here on this beautiful earth for such a very short time, never more poignant when we remember the hundreds of thousands of those taken too soon this year, we owe it to ourselves and those who are around us to live it in the best way we can.

If this horrible disease has taught us anything it has to be to be grateful for what we have got and to reach out to others who might need some help, helping other people is the best therapy there is.

Everyone we meet will be facing their own personal hell, we can be the light that shines through the darkness.

 

 

About Jane

Jane setup Bristol Grandparent Support Group in 2007 after a string of incidents led to the loss of contact with her Grand Daughter.

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