Health workers are incredible
#14 - and a way to plan
Hi there.
I’ve been listening to a lot more Christmas songs this week and hope you’ve also been getting excited about Christmas and the holidays. School-wise, life’s been relaxed as we’ve been doing lots of Christmassy things. We had our school concerts, which had to go virtual. You can read my report and watch them here (it’s a pretty good read :)…) So, all in all, it’s been a very comforting week.
Also had a lot of fun writing 42 Christmas cards on Thursday. The jokes I made were legendary. Here’s one:
Why doesn’t Santa use a plane to deliver his presents?
Because he can’t pay for the excess baggage!
The highlight of the week would definitely have to be playing in our school concerts.
I do want to offer an apology for not providing something of use last week. That’s been the aim since I started this newsletter 3 months ago and I felt that last week’s issue wasn’t the most valuable.
For this week, I can’t decide between 2 things so I’ll jot some stuff down about both.
To make sure I don’t have COVID over Christmas, which was more likely because of the rise in cases, I’ve had to be extra careful at school, trying my hardest to empty my sanitiser, arming myself with having multiple masks at my disposal and removing any social contact where possible. Hence, I had to wear a mask for the full day on Thursday, and only removed it at break and lunch when I had to eat.
Towards the latter parts of the day, I started to feel what the doctor would call ‘discomfort’ around the ears, which was most likely from the elastic bands holding the mask in place being around my ears all day.
As I was on the way home, I thought to myself, “If I’m finding this so tough, imagine the plight of doctors, nurses, paramedics, carers and all other social care workers who have to wear these day in day out, often even less breathable masks, topped up with an apron, gloves and a visor?”
My dad, a consultant paediatric cardiologist (the English translation is ‘child heart doctor’), has always reiterated that I don’t know exactly how difficult and respected a doctor’s job is. Well, dad, I can confirm that I had a glimpse of the struggles you face.
On that note, as a responsible citizen, may I just please urge everyone to stay safe and “do your bit” this holidays? I know we’ve all had a tough year (I’ll try to do a bit more reflecting next time). I know you’ll all be desperate to spend quality time with your family and friends. But, Omicron doesn’t know Christmas. We need to continue to wear masks, use hand sanitisers, keep our distance. So be mindful when you’re socialising and think whether it is absolutely necessary.
We’ve all been in this for way too long and I know everyone is getting to their melting point and breaking points, full of weariness and frustration. But we’ve got to keep going.
Because of my inner compulsion to provide something remotely practical, I wanted to suggest what you could do if you ever feel you are being overwhelmed by something. Say it’s a party you need to organise, you need to get ready for a holiday or even revise for a set of exams.
It felt as though I’d have a million things to do in the last couple of days. So what I did when I got home on Friday was…make a list on my to-do list app called “Adi’s jobs in next 48 hours” and I listed anything and everything I could possibly think of, from writing this newsletter to practising the sax and changing the bedsheets. It means that I can visually see all the many to-dos floating in my head.
This process is even better on paper. Brain dump everything that you need to do and then you can begin to try to organise and prioritise.
Book of the week 📖
I haven’t read at all this week. Taking Fermat’s Last Theorem with me (I know, you’re allowed a dubious look of ‘Why is he taking a maths book on holiday!?’
Podcast of the week🎙️
Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4: Dead Ringers - Christmas Specials
A real ice-breaker as I was packing my stuff. Please do listen. WARNING: jokes are very British in nature.
Article of the week📰
Rose Ayling-Ellis: Strictly star inspires sign language lessons surge
And she’s just won the dance competition! An inspiration.
Quote of the week💬
“The beautiful thing about learning is that nobody can take it away from you.” - BB King
Have a lovely Christmas, whether you’re tucking into a full-blown Christmas dinner with 5 courses, or just eating a modest mince pie.
Adi