Yesterday was a tough day. It was the 23rd day since I started working from home and I should have been running a training session on Tiree. Working with people is what I do.
A 'normal' week for me involves working with lots of different groups, and usually quite a bit of travelling too. Both things I love.
Yesterday I realised I wasn't sure of the date, and I hadn't even opened my diary since I sat down at my laptop at the start of my working week on Monday. Fortunately I'm a pretty disciplined person, with that built in Scottish guilt that prevents me sitting in my pyjamas all day. I'm still ready to start work at 9.00am every day, and I can treat myself to a second cup of tea when I would normally be outside waiting for the bus to Oban, so it's not all bad. I tried not to think about that Calmac breakfast I was missing, and being blasted by the Tiree breeze as I walked up the pier to the car park to meet my island colleague. Something to look forward to when things get back to normal.
As we continue to support carers while working from home we're hearing more and more heart breaking stories every day - it's part of the job we do. I'm so proud of the team of girls I work with, and knowing that we're all there for each other makes such a difference.
This quote I found this morning seemed appropriate - 'Humans are highly social animals - sharing pain and sorrow is important for us to be able to bear them'. So true.
North Argyll Carers Centre offers a counselling service for carers. If you feel you need to talk please call Judith on 01631 564422.
I liked this article about an astronaut who's launched a training kit for coping with self isolation: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/apr/05/ex-astronaut-launches-training-kit-for-coping-with-self-isolation
And here's another appropriate quote for the day - Pete Davis, an oceanographer at the British Antarctic Survey, said the uncertain length of missions to the south pole, due to weather considerations, was challenging. The “worst thing to do”, he said, was to focus on when isolation would end. “The best thing to avoid is what’s going to happen in three months time when you’ve only just started,” he said. “All you can control is what’s going to happen today or tomorrow.” (And sometimes we can't even control that just now)
And while we can't get out and travel to those places we long to be here's a lovely wee video from Visit Scotland -
Enjoy. See you all tomorrow. Mairi