More people are seeking mental health support than ever before.
The situation is causing a huge amount of distress in the community, as well as confusion and frustration. There is tension in the air. People are angry. It seems we’re heading for disaster.
Things may seem out of our control, but that’s not true. We control our actions and how we behave towards others. We have the power to show people respect, or contempt. We have the ability to make others feel good, or worthless.
And it doesn’t take much. Something as simple as a smile can make someone’s day. Small acts of kindness and compassion might not seem like much, but amid the chaos and confusion of a pandemic, they are everything.
I think it’s time we started celebrating the little things.
One of the best ways of doing this is to watch and listen to children.
For example, last week I went on my usual evening walk (summer is coming and it’s been a while since I’ve put on a pair of bathers).
I was walking back to my house when I was greeted by a chalk message at the start of the long driveway in our court. It read ‘Beep if you feel happy’.
Up a bit further were three more, which read `Always be kind’, ‘Smile every day’ and ‘We love all you people on this street’ surrounded by rainbows and hearts.
It had been a tough day, and seeing this gave me a little buzz.
``What a lovely thing to do,” I thought to myself.
I noticed the entire driveway had been decorated with pictures and compliments and wondered which kids on the street had been so creative.
Until I noticed another message: ‘Your amazing.’ And another: ‘Your a bloody legend’.
I cringed at the grave and familiar grammatical error.
I knew exactly who did this. My one and only first-born. Who, after countless years of nagging and correcting, still does not understand ‘your’ is the second person possessive adjective, used to describe something as belonging to you, while ‘you’re’ is the contraction of ‘you are'.
Or, even more likely, understands completely and does it anyway, just to annoy me.
Sadly, she is not the only one, with half of my Facebook friends (who are at least double her age) making the same maddening mistake.
My exasperation faded though when I reached the final message, in front of our house: ‘We love you Mum. Love Ayla and Maya’.
That was enough for me to forgive my daughter’s syntax slip-ups. Well, for that day, anyway.
We are living in an age where we are being overwhelmed by big problems.
Coronavirus is affecting every part of our lives.
People are dying, we’re being separated from our loved ones, people with medical exemptions are being abused for not wearing masks, businesses are suffering and we can’t do the activities we once enjoyed.
The simple, beautiful things we once took for granted, like giving a friend a hug or spontaneously going out for dinner, are something we just dream about.
The impact of this deadly virus on our daily lives has been so far-reaching, things will never be the same.
So now is the time to savour the small wins and embrace the ordinary.
When your child hugs you, don’t break away until they do. When going for a walk, wave to your neighbours. When you arrive at work, say good morning to your colleagues. When taking your kids to the playground, play with them. If you manage to get a dinner booking, get off your smartphone.
And, from the mouths of my children, fill the world with kindness. Give someone a compliment, pay for someone’s coffee, write a letter to the lonely, donate to the less fortunate, be patient with others and don’t be so quick to judge.
Everyone is going through something right now.
No-one is immune to the effects of this pandemic. We are all collateral damage.
But we still have the power to control how we behave and respond to one of the worst plagues our world has ever seen — and how we will be remembered in the history books.
MORE MAMA MAYHEM
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Who runs my world? Girls
The perks to mask wearing
