I started writing a regular diary on here at the start of the pandemic in 2020. At the time they were called The Coronavirus Diaries and I wanted to record our life during an unprecedented time. Now the pandemic is slowing down (we hope), I find there are still things I want to talk about regularly that are going on in our life and the world. So in March 2022, I rebranded this Laura’s Diaries, this is about my family life, my views about what is going on in the world and the political landscape.
As I have said above in my introductory blurb, I have decided to switch up my diary posts from being all about the pandemic, to a broader diary about life and all that is going on in the world at the moment. Particularly with all that is going on in Ukraine at the moment, I find writing cathartic and I feel the need to put pen to paper, or finger to keyboard in this case.
The Pandemic
For such a long time the world has been focused and submerged in the covid-19 pandemic. It has impacted our everyday lives for the past two years, it’s hard for my children, I think, to remember what it was like before and this is the only world Bo (3.5 years) has ever really known. Last week, all restrictions for covid were lifted as well as the need to legally isolate if you test positive. Although I believe it to be a political move with Boris trying to save his job after partygate than following the science. Most places and schools are still requesting people to isolate anyway and I am continuing to wear a face mask in busy places.
In my last update, my husband and I went on to catch covid, I then went on to get tonsillitis afterwards and then Logan who had covid in December 2020, caught it a second time. We’re all on the mend now thankfully. But it took on and off 3 weeks really for my husband and I to get over it.
I’m still struggling with a herniated back, I’m not sure if I have mentioned it in these diaries before, I keep meaning to do a separate post on it. I’m currrently awaiting nerve root injections. The pain is very debilitating and it pretty much taking over my life at the moment. I won’t dwell on it here, but it’s been really hard. Covid also caused a really big pain flare up that made things even worse for a few days too.
Ukraine
The big news that is on my mind at the moment is the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I didn’t pay a lot of attention to in the news at first when it was being talked about. But last week the tone of things changed, the intensity picked up and I decided to do some research in order to understand what what happening.
Then as covid restrictions ended on the 24th February, Russian invaded Ukraine. Even after educating myself on what was going on, I naively didn’t think that they would do it. But I do know the consequences are going to be far reaching. The scenes from Ukraine are awful, devastating. The actions of Russia seem so incomprehensible, the actions of a mad man. For the first couple of days I found it hard to not keeping checking and reading the news. I know there are awful wars going on currently around the world, but being so close to home, in Europe brought it home more.
I feel like right now the world is on a precipice. We don’t know what Putin is going to say or do next, but we do know he has a nuclear arsenal and he’s not afraid to use it. I even had a chat with a friend about a ‘go bag’ – what we would pack and where we would go if there was an attack near London as we only live on the outskirts. I don’t think he’ll do it, at least I hope not. But at the same time at the moment I can’t see how this will send. Politicians seem to be dancing on a tightrope of giving Russia sanctions, but also being careful not to tip things over and bring about the real risk of another world war.
I fear for the world I have brought my children into. I do not want them to live through war and terror, all brought about by the action of a greedy middle aged man. They have just survived a pandemic and let’s face it, I don’t believe that’s truly over either, but the past two years have taken a huge chunk out of their childhood. Now is the time for family and connections and living.
Please let there be peace.