Lockdown Social Life



OK, so, I haven't exactly been keeping up with writing recently. Lockdown arrived with a bang, and since then, I've juggled home teaching my 7yo and a newborn. 

Having a baby in a global pandemic is interesting to say the least. None of the stuff we look forward to is happening... No groups, no coffees, no meeting and making new friends. But, overall, it has actually been relaxing. The only schedule we've had to keep was our own.

The 7yo, is a different beast. She has missed her routine. But she also knows why it's not there (the Newsround obsession). Since restrictions were lifted a bit, she has loved being able to sit in the garden at her grandparents, pick their strawberries (not just ours), meet cousins for a walk. But there is a long way to go before we are anywhere near able to let our children have the old freedoms to disappear together and play unsupervised. Social distancing is hard, especially when you're 7 and excited to see people.

Most of her (and our) social interaction has been online. Zoom, Facebook and WhatsApp have featured highly in all our lives. Screen time limits have been abandoned in an attempt to maintain contact with family and friends, as well as do the work set by school. 

As those around me push for the easing of restrictions, to go back to normal, I find myself not really wanting to go go back to the old normal.  There are parts of lockdown normal that I've quite enjoyed if I'm honest about it... 
Not rushing about like a loonatic, 
Having time to prioritise the things that are important to us, not being dragged by someone else's priorities, 
Not feeling like I needed to schedule every minute of every day because that's what seems to be expected, 
Having time to sit back and think. 

One thing I am hoping for, is a return to the social life of my childhood. So my daughters can experience the freedom, the unstructured play, the random playmates, the impromptu last minute meet ups and drop-ins. 

As the restrictions are eased, I find myself getting anxious about the expectations that will inevitably reappear to join multiple groups, to visit multiple people in one day, to have large groups of people together. I'm pretty sure I'm not ready for that any time soon. I've been left to my own devices for too long. 


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