Childhood

Is it just me, or does this whole period feel like a trip back to the seventies?

I am constantly being reminded of my childhood. The roads are quiet, you can hear birdsong, kids are bouncing balls against the side of their houses and middle aged men are washing their cars on a Sunday morning.

I know we are constantly being told that our mental health is going to suffer from this but I expect that for some people, like me, it will be healing. Modern life is very stressful. We are under so much pressure to do so much; to be busy all the time. There is just so much information for our brains to file that they can easily get overloaded and go a bit holey.

Right now, there is only one thing to think about. Okay, I get that it’s one big scary thing and that most people never give death a moment’s consideration but it is only one thing.

The way we are eating reminds me of my childhood too. Because we are not ‘popping’ to the shops or getting a takeaway our meals are properly planned and follow a routine. Monday: cold meat and salad and Panorama. Friday: Fish and Gardener’s World. Sunday: Roast dinner and a pudding. It helps us with a routine, so that we know what day of the week it is. My daughter had mentioned that everyone seemed to be having old school puddings in lockdown.

I love an old fashioned pudding. You can’t beat a crumble, jam roly-poly, bread and butter pud, a spotted dick or a proper apple pie. However, she really wanted what everyone seems to be making: a cheap sponge with icing and sprinkles plus custard, so that’s what we had.

“Mmm. It’s just like being a child again.”
“I loved school dinners.”
“This is so good.”
“I’ve never really understood before, when people rave about food they ate as a child. I must be getting old.”

In our house, we are all getting old and there is an appeal of a food memory taking us back to the carefree days of our childhood, before we tried to squeeze too much in our brain or thought that we could die.

Living with a strop-monster

Any parent will tell you that balancing your child's moods with your own can be extremely stressful at times.  You can guarantee your toddler will throw himself on the floor of the supermarket and kick and scream on the day when you have been up all night or your cat has just died.  The day when you are feeling on top of the world, dressed beautifully, with hair done and make up on is the day your toddler also behaves beautifully.  And that just isn't fair.  You could cope with anything on that day.


I'm sad to say, though, that it just doesn't get any better.  You always hope they will grow out of the 'phase' they are in and they do.  Unfortunately, it's just as you've worked out how to deal with that 'phase' and they move into something new, that you have absolutely no idea about.

Teenagers can be particularly tricky.  They start to have their own opinions and voice them.  If you argue with them they are always right (even when they're not) and even worse sometimes they are right and you end up looking stupid.  They have more stress in their lives (living out their teachers stressful targets) than anyone should have to cope with and they have hormones doing really weird things to their bodies.

A colleague told me today that her daughter once said to her, "I DO have hormones, you know!", to which my colleague snapped, "So do I!"  And although, it is possible to be sympathetic about a teenage girls hormones it can be quite difficult when you are rapidly approaching 50 and your hormones seem to be having a private party of their own.

This week I have 2 teenagers in the school play, one who is doing A levels and dealing with University offers or rejections.  That might be quite stressful but it's Christmas and I am a music teacher with no voice and a very sore throat.

With both children out my long suffering husband wondered what we might do with our evening.  It's quite sad but we settled on cleaning out a cupboard and tidying the bookshelf.  We know how to live!