Worlds collide

It’s 8 weeks today since life changed and it’s our last week staying at home together. Catherine’s year goes back to school next week and Nicholas’ year goes back the following week. ANU is also partially opening from the 2nd of June. We have received mixed messages about returning to work, but the consensus is that we will be supported if we choose to continue to work from home.

8 weeks ago, it would’ve been hard to believe that we’d be where we are today. At the time it seemed like there was no end in sight. There are currently no active cases in Canberra, and it’s been this way for the past 15 days. Restrictions have eased slowly. Up to 10 people can gather outdoors with social distancing. Some restaurants and cafes have started opening and it looks like up to 20 people will be allowed to gather by next weekend.

As with many others, our family has had to adjust to learning, working and playing all from home. Our different worlds collided. There were no visible lines as to where school, work and home life took place. Everything happened at home which made some days very challenging. I think it was harder for the kids to mentally separate duties. There was no leaving the house to go to a different location where learning happens. Home is where they could usually relax and not do so much schoolwork. For us parents, the struggle was in looking after the kids, dog and house while getting our work done. Unfortunately, it often meant that we worked longer hours. Every day was different, and some days were better than others.

We were all experiencing something new together. I think we learnt a lot about each other and ourselves during this time. We knew that the children were imaginative, but it was lovely to be reminded and see in person their thinking and creative process in action. During the school holidays we had a daily family activity during the week which we each took turns organising. Activities ranged from scavenger hunts to drawing to obstacle courses.

Not only did we learn more about the children, the children also learned more about their parents. They (and I) learned that Phil attends so many meetings with so many different people in different time zones. They learned how we deal with stress. Phil commented a few times on my anger with work. I then realised that this was the first time I had all my worries (family, work and chores) in one place and it was no wonder that I was angry all the time. So we’ve learnt how we all deal with our mental health and some days were a struggle. Funnily enough, I think Comet’s mental health has improved since we’ve all been home.

Catherine says she’s already missing us and she hasn’t started school yet. In some ways, I will miss this too. I’m thankful for this pause and I think we needed it. This has brought us even closer. I love and appreciate them infinitely more since our worlds collided.

Click here for more photos