This is a time to be bold.
Not bold so you can break the rules of
lockdown. I heard that in Greater Manchester, in the UK, police have had to
break up over 500 parties. Lockdown isn't a punishment. It's in place to
protect you and your loved ones. Do you want to be responsible for killing your
grandfather?
No. By bold, I mean
it's a time to step outside of your bubble, not your house.
Are your neighbours
okay?
My friend, who lives
in a miniscule apartment in Palma, waves to the old man who walks around the
rooftop on his zimmer frame every day. He waves back. Human connection. I'm
sure it brings a moment of comfort to both of them as they go about reinventing
their daily routine.
I'm saying wave at the
neighbours you would never have waved at before. Perhaps you'll become good friend
after all this.
 |
| Open those windows and wave! |
I saw a post on social
media in which an elderly resident in an apartment block had left a note on her
door which said: if anyone is going out, can they bring me back three bottles
of milk? The next photo was of three bottles of milk on her doorstep. Okay,
between you and me three bottles does seem a lot, but the point is you have to be bold to ask for
help and bold to answer the call.
There are only three
occupied flats in our block. The rest have chosen to stay in their native
countries or with friends in rural properties. While we chat regularly to the
Aussie neighbour below us, we've barely seen our other middle-aged Spanish
neighbour. In the five years we've lived here there's only been small talk
between us. Still, we have each other's number and we have taken to asking each
other if we need anything when we are about to go on a rare trip to the supermarket.
Last week we asked him
for potatoes. He dropped off a sack and today I went to his door to pay him.
Now I've been assuming all this time he's wanted to keep himself to himself.
He's a really outdoorsy type. We know because we've seen his trainers and ski
boots drying on the balcony. I thought he was the self-sufficient sort who
doesn't need anyone else.
After our chat on the
doorstep I realised I might have been wrong about a few things.
Evidently he
had been reading a lot of news, was feeling restless, and on day 26, was not relishing
the thought of continuing at home, alone, and uncertain of how much longer the
situation was going to continue.
I admit, as a mother of a toddler, I've felt pretty
judgmental of people professing to be bored. BORED? What a luxury! But perhaps
I've been too harsh. Our days are so busy with our daughter, and I'm still
writing for the magazine, so neither me nor my husband have barely had time to
look at the headlines. We don't have to time to worry or speculate. I had to
google what day of lockdown it was today because I've lost track. We've adapted
to our new life.
But today, after
talking to my neighbour, I realised social distancing doesn't mean hiding away
and forgetting everyone else in society. On the contrary it means checking in
on everyone. After I spoke to our quiet neighbour we sent him a message to tell
him that we could always have a drink from one balcony to the other. He replied
instantly. He said that would be very nice. Perhaps we'll finally get to know
each other. Perhaps we'll become good friends. Or perhaps we'll just be there
for each other when it mattered.
Thanks for reading! You can find me on my Facebook Author Page or on Instagram.
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