Last weekend we had the privilege and joy of seeing each one of our sons and their families (okay, two were via video calls but we still saw them). We enjoyed family meals, seeing The Most Charming Grandson splash in puddles and get carried around by older cousins and experiment with dairy-free ice cream.
We gathered memories and leftovers and, thanks to Son#3 and DIL#3 ended up with more carrots than a two-person household can reasonably be expected to eat (thanks to their trip to the "Carrot Capital").
Life was normal and we expected it to stay that way.
When I received the news on Tuesday evening that New Zealand was once again to go into Level 4 Lockdown (our highest and strictest level), I thought it was a joke.
It wasn't.
We had talked prior to this about what we would do if we ever had another lockdown - what we had learnt from the previous lockdown and what we would do differently.
This time I went into work and collected what I would need to work from home. I still left things at work that could have been useful. Perhaps I'll make a list if we ever have another lockdown so that I'm not trying to think on the spot.
This time we had to organise care for DH's mother which was complicated by the fact that she is currently on medication that is not part of her regular medication and which has to be administered by a family member.
This time my freezer wasn't packed full nor was my pantry (although I did have an almost new 5kg bag of wholemeal flour which, apparently, is now no longer on supermarket shelves) but I didn't have time or inclination (given the amount of traffic out and about) to go shopping.
This time I have wool and sewing supplies and DH has some of the things that he requires in order to finish off our renovations.
This time it was easier to get our heads around what was happening even if I did hurt for several of our sons who had made wonderful plans for this upcoming weekend which are most likely going to have to be cancelled.
This time I spent the first day of Lockdown on the couch barely able to move.
Almost three weeks ago, DH had the first dose of the COVID vaccination. DH complained of a sore arm for a few days which should have warned me as he rarely complains of pain. I expected a sore arm and maybe a headache.
That's what I had on Day One. But twenty-four hours after receiving the vaccination, I began to experience joint and muscle pain. By the time forty-eight hours rolled around I could barely walk and could not bend over at all.
Thankfully my hands and arms weren't affected and I could still knit. So that's what I did.
I know there are several schools of thoughts around the vaccination. I read and prayed and talked to those much smarter than I, and in the end I made the decision to have the vaccination. I did not go into this blindly or without concerns (my mother had a potentially life-threatening reaction after her first dose so I'm not ignorant of possible consequences). Not everyone will agree with my decision or the reason for it and that's okay.
I'm not planning to argue my side. I am aware that some people are confused or have serious reservations, and that others have strong convictions one way or the other. I'm probably one of the confused with reservations. I did not accept the current official advice without doing some of my own research and thinking.
I realise there is a pandemic of fear as well as of the virus: fear of the virus, fear of the vaccine, even fear of government/s and other agencies. I'm concerned that we have become so convinced that we are right that we fail to be compassionate towards those that have differing opinions. Sadly, I've seen this even amongst Christians and it bothers me. Greatly.
In this pandemic where it can be hard to sift out the truth from the untruths, information from misinformation, we need to love each other and respect the decisions we each make, even when disagreeing with those decisions or choices. I'm not sure that there is any collective "right" answer (again, you are free to disagree) but we can all find ways to love each other and to love our neighbour.
(By the way, now at seventy-two hours post-vaccination, the reaction to the vaccination has pretty much settled down. Rest, paracetamol, and time was all that was required.)
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