Sight for Sore Eyes

My eyes were quite sore actually on this trot up Latrigg. I hadn’t thought I’d need my sunglasses & realised halfway up that they were absolutely necessary. I ended up squinting my whole way around my run & my eyes were bloodshot & itchy for the rest of the day (note to runner self: ALWAYS be well-equipped).

Anyway, I digress...

I took a few minutes at the top of the fell to have a good look over town. Despite my occasional escape fantasies of greener grass, I’m not sure there’s anywhere in the world that I’d rather live. I feel very lucky to call this home & it hit me, just how much I’ve been able to appreciate all of this during lockdown.

I read a news article the other day outlining that this pandemic has left many poorer areas of this country disproportionately affected in comparison to others & it unsettles me.

In this country, we have people living in cramped hostels & inner city high rise flats which are not fit for purpose & I don’t suppose they’ve been able to enjoy anything like the fruitful & soul-enriching experiences that I’ve been lucky enough to participate in.

I’ve “stuck in” throughout my life; I’ve been tested & challenged at times & despite having not a great deal to call my own, I’m secure & reasonably comfortable & yes, this has been achieved through hard work & opportunity. I have been afforded opportunities & I’ve had the encouragement & motivation to embrace them.

So is that it? Is that okay as a justification for me to keep revelling in the beauty of where I’m lucky enough to live?...

Who knows what the answers are to these questions?... I don’t know...

What I do know though, is that a fairer society does not exist when one of the first relaxations of lockdown restrictions is that we are now able to let our cleaners & nannies back into our homes.

Just saying.