France and our neighbouring countries Switzerland and Italy are cautiously entering a welcomed phase of de-confinement. You can see verified information on this in our latest news post.
We are very aware however that this comes with a risk. We know that the virus is still out there and therefore leaving our homestead and venturing outside our new-found “comfort-zone” poses a risk. There is an element of fear that has crept in, which now that we can go out, has become more “real”: We need to be careful, watch out or you may get ill, or worse, hurt someone else more vulnerable than you.
Therefore, should we stay at home, sheltered where it is safe?
Well, if I want to take as little risk as possible for myself and others, I will have to stay home. And if possible in a place with padded walls and nothing sharp. And without family members who could cause me upset or I them. I must only to drink treated water and eat boiled food. And the truth is, if we all did this, there would be far fewer “avoidable” deaths in our world.
However, we can never avoid death itself ... so in the end there will be death - but how much less living?!! If we really try to guarantee our total security, it is our freedom itself that will wholly disappear. The balance between freedom and security is surely a delicate one. But by staying contained, in the end, it is not simply that we dodge death – we bypass life. And this concerns me.
We have learned these past few weeks how to give ourselves over and instead of being in charge of our lives, become passive and let things wash over us. But I don’t want to stay that way – I want to get out there – grab life, enjoy it.
I want to take my deeper respect for nature and DO something about it. Take my feelings of connection to the rest of the world and SEE IT. KEEP my bond with my family and manage our lives so that we CAN go out and do all the thing we have been fantasising about all these weeks.
Don’t get me wrong, I have young children, grandparents and friends who are more vulnerable than myself. And I will go forwards very carefully in our new reality, mindful of each and every thing that I can do to minimise risk. But I’m not going to give in to fear or lethargy. We have been given a gift - an insight into how we could live our lives better - and I’m going to get out there and live it!
So WHEN we are allowed (please don’t think I’m an advocate for not upholding the lockdown restrictions!)I vote "carpe diem"! It won’t be the same, we will have to be more careful, more thoughtful and more restrained – but we have learned that in these last few weeks and it doesn’t have to be a negative thing. When we can meet-up, eat out, travel and enjoy time together, WHEN that is possible - lets all seize the day!
