A friend of mine rang me the other day. She came straight to the point. “I’m concerned about you. You seem down…” I paused before admitting that I was feeling a bit low and stressed. She pushed me to tell her why my mood was down. I listed some of the reasons why I was feeling low and tried to justify why I felt the way I did. It made me think harder about it all.

The new normal seems unfair. Yet, many people in rural Ireland live this way in isolation and social distanced from others every day

It forced me to name it, to own my mood. Immediately I felt better and set about changing my outlook.

Dealing with COVID-19 is not nice. The new normal seems unfair. Yet, many people in rural Ireland live this way in isolation and social distanced from others every day. Their outings to the mart, mass or co-op, or to visit a neighbour are their lifelines to community and interaction with others.

A negative mood can grow on you

That sparse human contact is gone. Holidays constituted the Ploughing Championships, the local town show, a race meeting or a GAA match. It is all gone.

How could I justify feeling sorry for myself? Sometimes, that doesn’t matter. A negative mood can grow on you. A comment from a friend can work wonders. So I’ve gathered myself and renewed my determination to emerge from lockdown in a positive frame of mind.

When ‘hello’ startles

It is time to take the situation on the chin. COVID-19 will affect our world for the foreseeable future. Overall, we have coped very well. We can praise ourselves for a job well done. We have stopped a lot of people dying. Most of us have succeeded in keeping our loved ones safe. I think the one thing that threatens to pull me down is the uncertainty. I will never enjoy grocery shopping again.

Don’t be afraid to talk to people. Say hello. Greet people

I said this aloud and my husband Tim answered quickly: “But sure you’ve always hated grocery shopping.” It is true. I have always hated it but I dislike it even more now.

At the beginning of this confinement just before the schools closed, I had to go to the bank. I’d been listening to Ryan Tubridy on the radio. He said: “Don’t be afraid to talk to people. Say hello. Greet people.” I went off with this in my head. It was the start of all this social distancing. I did my business very quickly in the bank by machine and came out.

Although she was about three metres away, she jumped as if I’d sprayed virus all over her

There was a lady coming towards me in the car park. She was about my own age so I thought she would be the ideal person to try my greeting on. I plastered on a big smile and raising my voice said: “Hello, good morning!”

Although she was about three metres away, she jumped as if I’d sprayed virus all over her.

To be honest, I had a good laugh at her when I got into the car. We must laugh and enjoy the absurdity of some of the things we have to do to keep safe.

New ways of working

We had a socially distanced conversation around the kitchen table this morning. We exchanged views on what we expected to happen over the next few weeks and months. Tim thinks everyone will return to normal and life will be the same as before COVID-19. My son Colm is of the view that habits have been broken and a lot of positive change will come as a result of it all.

This new way might suit a lot of families and provide a less-demanding environment for family life

The truth is that none of us really know because politics will get in the way. I believe that society will emerge utterly changed. Some companies are finding that people are just as productive from home and are less stressed. This new way might suit a lot of families and provide a less-demanding environment for family life.

So life will change and we will adapt

One piece of advice I wish to give to young people building houses or anybody doing alterations is to be sure to put a sound-proofed room in the plans for meetings with one white wall. It is impossible to find a guaranteed quiet corner in many houses, including mine. So life will change and we will adapt.

Whatever my mood was over those down days, it’s over. I don’t want to look back on lockdown to find that I’ve wasted the time or emerged a less -positive person. Thanks to my friend for a gentle kick in the behind.