God's peace

I have survived lockdown quite well but it is beginning to get to me.  After my self-isolation, I thought this would be easy-peasy.  Not that I am getting depressed - it's just that getting out of the flat becomes something I really look forward to.  I am trying to avoid going out for the most part - partly because there isn't much reason to go into office, unless I absolutely need to.  But after a while, it gets to me, especially when I have also been laid low by injury.   In lieu of running and cycling outdoors, shopping for food has been the highlight of my week.

It's not as if I can't meet people but they might not be that keen to meet up either.  I did have a meeting this week though, and it was strange because there was nowhere we could sit down even for coffee.  So we ended up buying coffee from Pret a Manger and walking to a nearby park to stand and chat.  We could have sat down but this is London and most of the time, places are damp or wet.

Still, that was for work. a colleague at the mission told me that some parents tried to set up play-dates which is just... words fail me.  And he said the most bizarre thing was that he felt that he was somehow the outsider, and had to make an excuse to get out of it rather than to tell the other parents that they should not be doing this.  There's another observation by someone that people also think that they've done their bit during the first lockdown and somehow don't feel they need to isolate themselves.  Plus there's a lot of distrust of government and I think that's the key.  Lots of criticisms of government that they are using scare tactics (over-projecting the number of infections) to justify the need for another lockdown. challenging the views of experts etc.  As long as this attitude prevails, they will just muddle along and lurch from crisis to crisis.

But I digress...

It was depressing enough that the weather this weekend was going to be miserable - but the thought of having to stay in throughout was unbearable.  And so it was that I found myself waking up around 6 am - because I was hungry! I had had an early dinner last night.  I decided that I would make the most of the window of good weather (up to 8 am) and see if I could catch sunrise.  Word of advice - if the weather forecast is bad, there's not much of a sunrise to be caught.

So I drove out while it was still dark (after having a banana and coffee), and headed to Hampstead Heath.  The first time I was there was in 94 with Mummy.  The second time was last year when I cycled there on the Brompton.  In the rain naturally.  I needed to get outdoors, to get close to nature again, to the beauty and peace of God's creation.

I was the first one in the carpark!  Wasn't sure if I was going to hike or run but I felt good and in the end, I decided on a gentle jog as this would be my first run after my injury - and also because I decided to explore the park a bit, and wasn't sure how far or long I would be going so a conservative pace was needed.  

On the same bridge almost a year later

The view of the bridge from below

Kenwood House - I'll wait for the warehouse sale or Black Friday

Parliament Hill viewpoint

I posted the pictures on social media and someone said it was good for the soul and I think that describes it perfectly.  God gives us what we need to find peace. The beauty of His creation is all around us wherever we may be.  I used to have a routine on my daily drive to work where I would look up at the sky, the clouds, the sunshine, and just give thanks for another day.

Shalom.