We get great pleasure from wandering around our little garden every day, looking at which new plants are popping up, which are flowering and which are flourishing. Some, of course, have decided that this new environment is not for them, but the majority have been nurtured and talked to most days, and are growing despite our enthusiastic ignorance of horticulture. Weeds abound too, as do mushrooms, as it has been damp (and we put down a mushroom top dressing).
To get the best view, you need to sit on the bench in the shady corner and squint a bit. That way you can see the whole picture, and the weeds and mushrooms blend into the greenery and fill the gaps.
I am finding it more and more important to look at the big picture these day. There is no longer any point in getting hung up on the little details that don't have big consequences. Like traffic, or untidy rooms, and brusque strangers. This is probably one of my reactions to Covid. The important things to concentrate on are Life and Living.
TD is back at school. She goes every second day, having one week of two full days at school, followed by 3 days the next week. Inbetween she does her school assignments and learning at home. So far - and it is early days- this is working well. I can see the shift in TD's attitude to life as she is able to engage with her friends, and her work, on a more personal level. It suits her not to have to rush in the mornings (school starts an hour later, and the traffic is light) and in the afternoons (all extra murals are cancelled.) At the beginning of the year, we asked TD to take a serious look at all her commitments and choose which she could let go, in order to calm the rushing stress. She had trouble deciding, but Covid sorted that one out for her. The only after school activity she does is her double bass lesson, and that is something she loves.
You have probably read all the news reports about people with comorbidities needing to be extra careful about avoiding the virus. Sadly, statistics are showing the the most deaths happen to people who also have diabetes. The following infographic was supplied by the Western Cape Government on the 9th June.
You can see how scary this is for the T1 community. TD's endocrinologist, and the paediatric endos agree, that it is as safe for TD to go to school as it is for anyone else her age. The bigger picture is that young people have a definite advantage - they are likely to only have mild symptoms and recover quickly. The other mitigating factor is that the diabetes needs to be well controlled. This means we need to be extra vigilant to keep TD's average below 10. This is a huge challenge in such a stressful, unusual time, so we need to be extra vigilant. I am very grateful that we have resources and abilities to help TD manage her glucose levels. She will just have to be patient with me forever asking her to check she is not too high/too low. Moms worry.
The big picture is that the whole world -well, most of it- is fighting the fear of an unknown future. There is always the minority fringe who reject the unpalatable science for a more comforting fiction.
Our front garden is a contemplative space for me. The weeds don't bother me, nor do the fallen leaves or the mole tunnels. The whole picture, weeds and all, speaks to me of Life in adversity.
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| My thinking spot |
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