Happy Times

 Happy Times

Blissfully happy times.   Sun kissed days filled with love and laughter. Finally my spirits lift. 

My quiet home has been transformed into a chaotic madhouse, bursting at the seams with noise and fun as my son and family came to stay from Norfolk for half term.  Their last visit was a year ago, then as now I revelled in the release of lockdown restrictions, truly appreciating how lucky I am with my marvellous family. 

No matter the house is trashed, what matters is that we can gather together again. Last time the wee youngest was a baby, today she is a robust rising 2 year old, gleefully engaging with everything. Her eldest sister now 4 revels in the magical world of imagination, one I love to share and embrace.  

Did we adults ever imagine a year ago that we would have to endure endless months of more Covid lockdowns once more before another visit could take place? Maybe. I believe so. Our original terror and paranoia had given way to a sinking suspicion that the spring 2020 horrendous 12 week complete "prison type" lockdown had not brought more than a summer reprieve. 

Yet with the winter of discontent and endless wasted spring behind me now I find myself looking forward with more optimism. Okay so I cannot see into a Covid free future, no one is that naive any more, but I am simply past worrying, I am simply happy to savour every precious moment, living the present to the full.

I shall always cherish the happy times when my four grandchildren meet after so long, a crazy joyous mad day in the park and then in our garden. My four gorgeous girls tearing around in a whirlwind of play whilst their fathers, my sons, revisit their youth chatting together amidst the maddening crowd. 

I have not been so very happy for so very long.

My daughter hosts a bbq and pool day at her house near the beach. The sun shines, the smell of sun cream and sausages waft through the heat haze, I stand in the cool water of the paddling pool holding my granddaughters hands as they play and I want these moments to go on forever.

My heart is full with happiness, my mind is full of magical memories. I hold these memories tight as Covid has  brought home to us all how fragile life is, how precious time is, how unpredictable the future is.

For now at least the lurking cloak of despair which has haunted my life since the November lockdown  is (currently) vanquished, the ghost of lost times laid to rest by sheer joy in happy family reunions.

How long this freedom will last is anyone's guess and I m not going to think about it. The rise of Covid infections is steep due to the dominance of the Delta (Indian) variant and although so far our vaccines seem to be holding it at bay we are walking a tightrope. 

The Gov has decided against further foreign travel relaxations in a bid to keep the June 21st UK full opening date on the table, a measure of just how unsure scientists and politicians alike are about what lies ahead. Who cares, I am not going away, I am staying here with my beloved family. As long as I can see them, that is all that matters to me. 

Today I am happy, yesterday I was happy, last week I was happy. Next week will be whatever it will be. Ce la vie.