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Crisis, catastrophe and coronavirus: what now?

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Reading the news I am struck by the sheer volume of crisis headlines over the past few years: the country splitting apart over Brexit, refugees seeking safe haven from warring parts of Europe, climate change spawning storms and floods on our very doorsteps and the mass extinction of species, and now coronavirus. A roll call of Biblical events foretelling the end of times? Certainly I have no reason to doubt the gravity of all the situations I read about. I am left wondering “what am I to do? Which crisis can I help avert and how?” And then I stop and take a breath. I need to broaden my focus to get a sense of perspective. I realise I have been stirred up by a 24/7 rolling news feed and that of itself deserves a little exploration. News used to be a daily affair in the papers, each with its own bias and tone. News today means money: advertisers and programme makers need to show results to their funders. Funders need to see high numbers of viewers/listeners so programmes compete to
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When your child leaves home

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You knew it was coming. Months of planning went into it. Choosing, visiting, waiting, packing, registering. Leaving.  Leaving. Years really.  You dig deep to find the best you you can - not too clingy, not too distant. Appropriately helpful without being controlling. Cheery, hopeful, upbeat. All goes well right until the end when you hug your goodbye and it all suddenly gets real.  How is this happening? When did he get so tall? So grown up? You feel suddenly small. There’s a warning tug in your gut and your mask crumples. Tears sting at your eyes. You hug a little tighter, just for a moment, just in case… And then he’s gone, a little uncertainly, towards the Welcome Zone. A last look, just to be sure, then you walk back to the car, step in and it’s over. The door closes and it’s suddenly quiet.  The journey home is a hazy memory. Amazing what you can do on auto pilot. You get home and have a conversation that goes something like this:  “How did it go?” “Fine. Well
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“My mind is too full to be mindful!”

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Do you struggle to manage your busy life? Do you feel you have to account for your time to your employer, your wife/husband, even your friends? Is it not enough to be good enough: you have to be a passionate, driven worker, going the extra mile, exceeding expectations; or a super-parent providing structured activities for your children, a sparkling home and food that will nourish and delight the family? With friends you may airbrush the reality of your life to present your best self: groomed, bright eyed, happy, successful. It’s exhausting. Social media reassures you that everyone feels the same, but they seem to manage better than you. The current self-help trend  encourages us to practice ‘mindfulness’. Mindfulness. Sounds great, doesn’t it? Relaxing, calming, de-stressing. Mindfulness might be just the thing. Most of the people I see experience some degree of anxiety that disrupts their daily lives. They crave a calm mind and whilst mindfulness appears to offer just tha
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The trouble with holidays..

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The Oxford dictionary defines a holiday as "an extended period of leisure and recreation".  For some holidays really are a time to relax and re-charge the batteries, spend time with friends and family. Plans start weeks maybe months ahead - who will be there? What shall we do? What shall we eat?! The anticipation is half the enjoyment. For others, holidays are a real trial, something to get through without too much damage.  Family gatherings can be fraught with expectation, haunted by memories of an unhappy upbringing. Party talk reminds us of how lonely or lost we feel while everyone around us seems so happy. Suddenly our lives seem dull, work unrewarding, the future uncertain.  Feelings we can find a place for while we have the distraction of work, school or day to day living threaten to break through messily when free time looms. Relationships come under strain as we struggle to contain our mixed up feelings.  Some of us plan to be busy and active to mak
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