I need this to be a happy, upbeat blog. I felt so bad when an ex colleague and good friend told me that she reads my blogs to cheer her up! Over the last few weeks I have used them to vent my spleen!
On Sunday afternoon I ignored the weather forecast (three apps on my phone) and invited four friends over for drinks in the garden. After spending many hours of lockdown weeding, planting and maintaining the lawn, it paid off and the garden looked really good! Even if I say so myself …..
All afternoon the sun shone, then vanished behind rolling dark clouds, then proudly reappeared to give a false sense of hope! At three o’clock we had a few spots of rain and it looked as if two out of the three forecasts were going to be correct! They had predicted a 50% chance of showers. We still had an hour to decide so bravely soldiered on, wiping down the garden furniture.
At half past three my glass overflowed as the sun made a successful bid to fight off the storm clouds gathering ominously in the distance. I went upstairs to remove my ‘glad rags’, which have become a second skin and ‘frock up’, to smarter casual. Winter clothes packed away last week and replaced by summer wear, I was spoilt for choice! But the sun was still shining so, decision made, I was back downstairs and ready to put cushions on chairs.
I was very careful when arranging the furniture. Leaving at least two metres apart I placed two chairs alongside each other with a small table in the middle. Singing happy birthday twice as I washed my hands, then bathed them in sanitiser, I got three bowls and three ramekins from the cupboard. I carefully poured crisps into each bowl and hummus into the ramekins. Ten minutes to go and I was ready. The sun was still shining.
It was so good to chat to someone other than our partners! We laughed about holiday mishaps (all desperate to get away!) shared our experiences of our wonderful trips to Namibia (another couple had visited as well) and thoroughly enjoyed the occasion! It was so novel and really exciting! Socialising for the first time in over three months was exhilarating and such a rare treat! The weather did try to spoil our fun, periodically clouding over with a threat of rain, but it was only two hours later that the first drops brought play to an end!
Within a few minutes friends had left and the garden was empty. Zoom meetings and FaceTime are all good but nothing beats physical contact, albeit two metres apart! For the first time in weeks I felt confident that we had turned a corner. Things were going to get better. A tiny taste of normality was all I needed to peer over the dark clouds and see the rainbow. 👠
Jenny Burrell 