WHERE TO FROM HERE ? " T'is a terrible place you're startin' from. "

What now? Where do we go from here? The odd condition of anxiety, which has been universal throughout this pandemic, will have to be addressed. To a large extent, the anxiety is entirely the result of economics. The numbers of people who do not have a continuous flow of financial security has grown considerably. For those who have managed to retain employment and work from home, there is the worry that their employment will be terminated, as employers find they are able to function with smaller number of employees. Indeed, employers are anxious that their enterprise continues to be viable, and that their companies can sustain a level of income in order to maintain the level of its workforce. The various levels of economic security have never been as volatile as they are at present. On top of that, there is the question of how to deal with the additional time in isolation, cut off from the usual forms of activity by stay at home restrictions and enforced separations.

 

When there were no restrictions, the possibilities were endless, and there was less concern knowing that you could choose to do just about anything one wanted to do. Opportunity was seemingly endless – go out to the theatre, cinema, restaurant, pub, museum, a walk, a run, the gym, sit in the sun, gardening, reading a book, paper or magazine, adult education, dance class, evening class, open university, football match, swimming, watch tele etc. On the whole, faced with apparently endless possibilities, there was less anxiety. Now that the field of activities has been drastically reduced, we are in much more of a quandary. There is only so much television one can watch, only so much time to spend on the net, only so many walks, so much exercise, so many books, or eating too much. The fact is, that when one takes freedom of movement out of the equation, decision making is actually more difficult. The choices are just as wide, but become more specific and hence more anxiety making. For instance, if the decision is to read a book, what book? What reading do I really want to do? What walk? There are so many ways I can walk in a circle, and that becomes repetitious.  What program or video? Do I want funny, serious. drama, romance? What am I in the mood for? Most singular activity can become repetitious and boredom can set in more easily. But, why am I bored?

The varieties of mental activity are just as plentiful, but the freedom of movement has been curtailed. That, coupled with possible economic fragility, produces a rather unhealthy state of mind and being. Avoiding the real possibility of succumbing to the virus is just the additional weight on top.

 

Freedom of movement then, in my view, is the raison d'être. Without it, the quality of life is clearly diminished.  It is reduced to a greater or lesser degree, depending on how much movement the individual is used to.  I have to confess, that as a couch potato, my current life may not appear to be diminished to any great degree; however, the ability to travel abroad, to get behind the wheel and drive on the continent, to wander through Pas de Calais, Picardie, Normandie, la Loire, Poitou-Charente, Aquitaine, Limousin, Auvergne, Bourgogne, Champagne-Ardenne, Ile de France and back through Picardie and Calais, is a joy one has sorely missed. There will be a small prize (perhaps a bottle of Champagne) for anyone who can name the stops I would most likely make during the course of that journey. Herewith is basic map. You only have to fill in the details.