Diary of Covid-19 confinement, day fifty-five, the end.

Morning coffee and bike ride, within 1km from home

Day fifty-five, 10^th May 2020

The End.

We have officially reached the last day of confinement and as of tomorrow there will be no forms to fill out every time we leave the house, no restrictions on how long we are out or where we are going, although we do need to remain within a 100kms radius from home. Most shops are reopening and many people will be going back to work, with remote working still the preferred option where possible, and as I’ve mentioned before, bars and restaurants will remain closed for now. 

I am not really sure how I feel about it except I’m in no hurry to rush out and do anything that involves mixing with people I don’t know. We will continue to shop once a week, as we have for the past two months and if I can get away with it, I’ll leave that up to Adrian. We have made plans to meet up with friends in the village and enjoy a bike ride together and we will also be celebrating Ed’s girlfriend Pearl’s birthday with afternoon tea at her parents this week, outside if the weather permits. I think that will be more than enough excitement to cope with for now. 

There have been lots of positives to the last two months, especially having Adrian and Ed at home with me, but the time has come to get used to sharing Ed with Pearl once more. Whether that means the two of them returning to Poitiers or splitting their time between us and her parents is still to be worked out, but they have coped so well with an almost nine-week forced separation, we will do all we can to make something work for them.

The orchard, potager and garden are looking so much better than they would if I’d have been home alone and the pool is now a dismantled jigsaw just waiting to find a new home. I’m not really surprised that I never finished the big, long overdue clear-out of ‘stuff’ indoors, but at least I have made a start. Confinement really has kick-started my motivation for so many things, including writing a daily blog update, even on the toughest of days, and I’m determined not to let things slip. It will be a while before Adrian’s work is able to resume, but we have each other, and plenty of jobs around the house and garden to keep us busy.

It is still very difficult to think that although life may be starting again, for so many people it will never return to the same as before lockdown. We still can’t jump in the car and visit our family in the UK or know when this will be possible, and having lost our nephew Ben, family gatherings will never be quite the same. With family in the ‘at risk’ category, the situation in the UK is still a big worry for us. 

For Ben; To Turkey and Back

For Ben

Please can I ask you to take a look at a fundraising event that has been created in our nephew Ben’s memory? Ben was a member of the Typhoon Squadron, DTUS (Defence Technical Undergraduate Scheme) and loved being on exercise with his squadron. One of the things they had planned to do this year was a Trans-Europe exercise from Loughborough to Istanbul, that had to be cancelled due to the pandemic. His friends have decided to undertake the 4,600 miles as a virtual team event and raise money in his memory to help other young people struggling with mental health issues. They have had a fantastic response and in the first twenty-four hours they have raised nearly £6000. As well as the squadron team, there will be family team who will also attempt to clock up the same miles and Adrian and I will be doing our best to help out here. I’ll keep you posted with our progress. 

You can watch the moving video tribute his friends put together to launch their event on their For Ben; To Turkey and Back Facebook page and follow their progress on Instagram. 

If you can donate, we would all be very grateful and the JustGiving link is here. Thank you.

For Ben