Lockdown Diary: Practice what you preach
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THERE is a saying 'Practice what you preach'.
Sometimes it is easier said than done to adhere to that principle.
But when there is a global pandemic which is killing tens of thousands of people, it should be easy enough to do just that.
I was astonished when the headlines emerged that Scotland's chief medical officer Dr Catherine Calderwood, who has carried herself with great professionalism throughout this growing crisis at the shoulder of the First Minister, should drop a clanger in the most spectacular of fashion.
Few of us are lucky enough to own a second home or holiday retreat, but Dr Calderwood made the crass decision for two consecutive weekends to travel from her home in Edinburgh to her family's holiday home in Fife.
At a time when she is telling people to Stay at Home, Protect the NHS and Save Lives, what on earth possessed her to make a clearly non-essential journey?
Dr Calderwood will be under immense pressure and strain at this time, and goodness only knows she needs to have family time and unwind more than anyone, but do that close to home and follow your own sound advice.
I agree with the decision by the First Minister to continue to lean heavily on Dr Calderwood for advice; we all make mistakes, people are only human, but people will be right to feel angry and it will take a big effort to restore a lot of public faith in the chief medical officer.
The second weekend of lockdown has been pretty much like every other day in lockdown. Each day merges into the next at the moment.
I live in Lossiemouth and the community council here is taking a pivotal role in co-ordinating support for the more vulnerable people in the community. The whole town has been leafletted with essential advice and contact numbers, and an appeal to identify people in need of extra support at this worrying time.
I decided to volunteer to distribute these leaflets in my own neighbourhood so I combined my daily exercise with punting out about 140 leaflets. Retained firefighters in Lossiemouth and other volunteers stepped up to the plate.
WhatsApp is a intrinsic part of my life; it was before Coronavirus and even more so now. It is a super way to keep in touch with family and friends, wherever they are in the world.
One of the big talking points the last couple of days is Premier League footballers and should they give up a chunk of their vast salaries to help out. Some clubs have placed their non-playing staff into the UK Government furlough scheme whereby 80% of their wages will be paid by the Government for 3 months, while their top stars continue to get paid.
While I agree that the top stars, who earn millions of pounds a year, should do their bit, I believe this was very much on the agenda with the players themselves already in the process of talking about how they can help charities and the NHS. So i felt it was unfair of health secretary Matt Hancock to come out in public and criticise the players. I didn't see him criticising multi-millionare MPs or businessmen and women who have done nothing to help.
What the current crisis has put in the spotlight is that the distribution of wealth in the UK and across the world is out of kilter, and while you will always have people who naturally make more than others, it shouldn't really be the case that some people can be one pay cheque away from a foodbank or state benefits, when others are sitting with millions and billions in their bank accounts.
I am not sure how you go about redistributing wealth in a fairer way and that is probably an argument for another time, but with so many people facing an uncertain economic and financial future as a result of this flipping virus, it is heartbreaking.
Of course, the biggest tragedy is the lives that continue to be lost, and your heart must go out to each and every family across the world which is suffering right now, and have not been able to say a proper goodbye to their loved one.
The stories of human tragedy which are starting to unfold are so sad and we should never become blasé about the daily death tolls on the news, online and in the newspapers. Each one is a life and a family devastated.
On a lighter note, many people are finding inventive ways to keep themselves and others amused at this time, and you could spend 24/7 trawling through social media for a source of entertainment.
One of them close to home is Lockdown Live Aberdeenshire, set up by Veronica Largue. It is a platform for budding musicians and singers to keep the community entertained. Look it up on Facebook, it is well worth a watch.
Less worthy of watching was my efforts at frying pan sock tennis, as suggested by a Wimbledon-mad workmate upset at the cancellation of the championships.
My exercise walk today took me round Lossiemouth and one moment summed up best what we should all be aiming for at this time.
I was passing a house in a street near my home when an older lady was looking out her front window. I would say she was in her 70s, possibly in her 80s. She waved and I waved back. She smiled and a big smile went across my face. We take human contact for granted at times in our busy lives and that is something that may well come out of this situation; a simple gesture of a wave or a hello could be all that is needed to keep someone's spirits up.
So when you are out getting your daily exercise, remember to connect with people; it is so easy to do even when social distancing.
Until the next time....
