Blog
The Small Things
This social distancing is tricky.
There are days when I wake up convinced I’ve mastered lockdown living, but there are others where the whole day stretches out endlessly before me like a bad dream.
Recently, someone told me it feels worse at the moment because we aren’t counting down the days towards a confirmed end date, and there is probably some truth in that. You only have to compare the present situation to the opening of the first day of your Christmas advent calendar every year - when it always seems like an eternity before that twenty-fourth door will be opened - but the excitement builds each day to help us along. We just don’t have that mounting enthusiasm in our present socially-distant world.
I haven’t been fortunate enough to experience the endless ‘free time’ my social media feeds have promised, but I have at least learned how to “Zoom” and video my own lessons.
What we’ve all had to learn, though, is to navigate the lockdown situation as best we can and without any instruction manual. There’s always a fine balance to be struck between doing the right thing, and trying to avoid doing the wrong thing – and sometimes it is so difficult to know which is which.
Regardless of how well each day goes, there remains the great unanswered question: “when will we be back?” And that is usually swiftly followed by its cousins, “who?” and “how?” I think of these questions as The Big Things in all our lives right now – the elephant in the room, if you like – and many of you will be juggling other enormities besides these. They remain there, in the background, whilst we get on with our daily lives: homeschooling, teaching, shopping, working, cooking, cleaning, worrying…
How do we deal with such monstrous uncertainties, when we have so little control? I think that’s the role of The Small Things – the phone call to a distant friend, the letter to a care home resident, the lawn-mowing or shopping for a vulnerable neighbour.
The Small Things make such an impact on the recipient – it’s a wonderful feeling to know that someone is thinking about you – and, don’t forget, you can be the recipient, too!
Our #BeKind initiative reminds students that looking after our own mental health is important – a walk in the park, a cycle ride through the woods, a daily run, or a family board game is not an extravagance; it’s an important life skill, but it can be the first thing we jettison at times of anxiety and uncertainty.
This brilliant video arrived in my inbox today:
It sums up my sentiments - and those of many of my colleagues - perfectly. Students: until we meet again, support one another, bring joy to others, be determined, courageous, kind – and show the world what we see in you!
We miss you, but now is your opportunity to spread our community spirit further. Please tell us all about The Small Things you have done – we love to hear about them – and they will help us to remain positive while we work towards solving The Big Things.
