We’ve lived in this strange ‘safety bubble’ for so long that going back to normal is both exciting and a little scary.

Jersey is a little ahead of the UK, as even though we’re part of the British Isles, we have our own Government and set of rules. From 26 June we moved to 1m distancing with our borders opening in early July.

As we come out of lockdown, I’ve been reflecting upon the past three months. What has it taught me and how, if at all, has it changed me?

1. Family and friends are invaluable

When it comes to family, fate dealt me a great hand. They are loving, funny, talented and supportive. We’re very close and always doing something together which lockdown put an abrupt stop to! As Mum and Dad are considered vulnerable it was important for them to stay home as much as possible, so when visiting them I stood outside and we talked through an open window. Definitely not the same as sitting on the sofa with a hot cup of tea, but better than nothing.

Mum had a big birthday in May, so we organised a huge Zoom quiz night for her, with around 50 friends and family joining from Jersey, England and Canada. It was great fun, noisy and unruly at times, but a truly memorable evening, because it was so different.

It’s rare that a couple of weeks go by without someone hosting a family meal, be it a classic Sunday roast or BBQ. The level of cooking depends on whose hosting. Let’s just say I thoroughly enjoy being invited to my brother and sister-in-law’s, but understand why they might be ‘busy’ when I invite them! I tend to make comfort food like curry or lasagne, whereas they set the table beautifully and serve stunning dishes.

A get together in mid-February. It’s always a curry night when my friend, Kevin, visits from Canada. — A get together in mid-February. It’s always a curry night when my friend, Kevin, visits from Canada.

I realise that before lockdown, I took for granted going for a coffee or walk with my friends. It was so easy to call and organise something for the next day or weekend and suddenly that was taken away. A phone call, Facetime or Zoom chat are good alternatives, but it’s just not the same as being in the same room.
Thankfully, at the start of May we were able to go out for up to 4 hours with 2 other people outside of our household. I wasted no time meeting up for a socially distanced walk with my best mate, Amanda. Although we couldn’t hug each other, just being able to walk and talk for a couple of hours around St Ouen’s Bay, was such great therapy and made me appreciate this wonderful lady more than ever before. It’s amazing how much crap we can talk and laugh about!

Me and my crazy bestie. We’ve been friends for almost 30 years.

2: Hugs are huge

How can something so simple be so important? I’m a ‘huggy’ person and never realised how much I actually needed this small amount of physical contact until I wasn’t allowed to do it. It’s hard to get my head around the fact that it was literally illegal to hug my family. I’m so thankful, Kelly has been with me for the past few months - even though I’m used to living on my own, lockdown would have been so much harder without her.
2m social distancing from strangers in shops was odd enough, but being forced to stand or sit 6 feet away from the people you love the most in the world was so hard and unnatural. It was wonderful when I was finally allowed to hug Mum and Dad on Father’s day. I cherished the moment.

Screen shot from videos of our first hug in 3 months

3: Our Island community is amazing

It goes without saying that I’m truly grateful to all those who literally risked their lives to keep Islanders safe and healthy, the shop shelves filled and key-workers’ children in school.
The amount of kindness and generosity shared has been heart-warming. From coloured rainbows in windows and random acts of kindness, like gifts being left on hospital workers’ cars, Islanders have shown what it is to be part of a small community. A couple of days before lockdown, Kelly, wrote a load of uplifting post-it notes and stuck them along the waterfront, for no other reason than to make people smile. It was lovely reading all the comments on social meda as people found them.

4: Working from home is great, I think

There are definite advantages: no commute; comfy leggings and top (unless on a Zoom call); sitting under a sun parasol in the garden, and great for when deliveries arrive.
The disadvantages being: the close proximity of the fridge; the ease of baking scones; the mess on my dining room table (my home office), and not clocking off at ‘going home time’.
I settled into a routine much quicker than I thought I would, and have been just as productive here than in the office.
I had planned to do home workouts before logging on but have only managed it about 10 times. Yet, somehow I seem to have found both the time and inclination to bake banana bread and scones!
My boss is amazing and has agreed that going forward I can introduce flexible working, so some days working from the office and others from home - the best of both worlds. I certainly don’t think we’ll be the only ones reconsidering how we work in the future.

5: I miss London and gigs

Jersey is a beautiful place to live, but it’s small and being half Londoner, I have really missed popping over to my favourite city. No matter how many times I visit, there’s always something new to experience or see.
I’m a huge concert-goer and had tickets to three concerts during lockdown: Sam Fender (Alexandra Palace), Queen (Manchester Arena) and Green Day (London Stadium). Then there was Glastonbury 50! I desperately tried to get tickets when they went on sale last year, and although dismayed I wasn’t successful, I’m now quite relieved. I feel for all the people that did have tickets - they must be devastated, but hopefully, will be able to go in 2021 instead. So like everyone else, I’ve been watching highlights from the last 49 festivals from the comfort of my sofa and with the use of my own toilet (there’s got be some benefits)!

As I type, the icon that is Mr David Bowie has just come on. My musical hero who I got to see in concert - twice.

6. Radio is a saviour

The radio is usually on in my house from the minute I wake up to around dinner time when the TV takes over. Whilst I’m a supporter of our local commercial radio station, Channel 103, my preferred breakfast time station is Radio 1.
My family think I’m infatuated with Greg James, and I suppose they’re not far wrong - I even did a Zoom quiz with him supporting the CoppaFeel charity a few weeks ago. He may be 20 years younger than me, and yes he’s cute to look at, but it’s his humour, honesty and humility that I love the most. His passion for his job and affection for his listeners bursts out of the radio each morning. It’s like getting a great big virtual hug and I literally laugh out loud at some of the things he says and his show sets me up for the day.
I appreciate most types of music genres and especially enjoy hearing the music of new artists, which Radio 1 are brilliant at showcasing. It’s exciting to discover an artist in the early part of their career, who later become a household name e.g. Khalid and Sam Fender - hoping to add Sarah Close to that list soon too.

7. Creativity boomed

Be it through necessity, boredom or not being able to work, the situation forced us to think and do things differently, with some amazing results. One of the best being the BBC sports commentator Andrew Cotter narrating the antics of his dogs Olive and Mabel - the Zoom meeting with them is hilarious!
Radio 1’s Live Lounge got a load of artists together to record the Foo Fighter’s anthem, Times Like These, which was perfect for what we’ve all been experiencing and Ben Howell sampled Dua Lipa’s Hallucinate with the BBC news theme. Epic!
And then there’s a whole different level. A cat called Smudge aka Meownuel Neuer went viral when YouTuber Chris Dixon (ChrisMD) filmed him saving unbelievable goals. It was all part of an important message to youngsters not to believe everything they see on the internet. Talking of YouTube, my youngest daughter, Shannon, started her own channel which has kept me amused too. I’ve even appeared in one of them which was great fun.

8. Love thy hairdresser

I never realised this until I wasn’t able to see her!
My hair is pretty unruly at the best of times, but it was hairendous (pun intended) after not seeing her for 18 weeks. She works wonders with my crazy curls and I felt like an A-Lister when I sauntered out of her salon last week, with my sleek golden locks blowing in the breeze.

The Biggest Lesson: It’s the little things in life that matter

I don’t think lockdown has changed me but it has reminded me of what’s important in life:
- Family and friends
- Love, laughter and kindness
- Freedom (even if it's short-lived - Leicester‘s going back into lockdown today)

Keep staying safe