Positive – Outcome, Sitting Pretty & Mum’s the World

Taken from Lynne’s weekly column ‘Green Scene’ for the Western Mail
13^th March 2021

Positive – Outcome

I am a COVID-19 survivor. Words I didn’t expect to ever be writing. And to be honest, mainly because I had some weirdly misplaced notion that I would be exempt from a virus that prefers crowds and being indoors.

I was renowned for my socially distancing abilities long before the pandemic; I am always outdoors – ‘feral’ as some of my favourite people say. And yet, despite avoiding people and places, carrying hand sanitiser on a karabiner on my belt and washing my vitamins down with kale smoothies daily, corona virus managed to trip me up and lay me out.

I have never felt so ill. Completely wiped out for 10 days, I don’t even recall half of them. My father died at the achingly young age of 54 – the same age that I will be next week. Rather morbidly, at one stage I wondered if I was actually going to beat his rather unenviable early departure.

The excruciating joint pain, utter exhaustion, relentless fever and shivers are just some of the recognised symptoms I can vouch for. There are others, and they are just weird. Nightmares that you wouldn’t wish on an enemy, a sharp pain just below the ears, agonising pain at the site of old injuries and I cried more in two days than I have in the last two decades.

I still have no taste or smell, I still ache and I am still frustratingly tired. But above all I am grateful. Grateful to be here, grateful for the tear-inducing kindness of people and grateful to be able to reiterate the message, ‘Please, please be careful’.

At a time where restrictions are about to be relaxed, please don’t relax any responsibility for yourself and your loved ones. I’ve lost count of the amount of people who have said, ‘If you can get it, anyone can,’ and which ‘completely underlines how indiscriminate it is’ (said someone more eloquent than me). Please stay safe. Please follow the guidelines and please don’t think you are invincible against this ongoing invisible, insidious threat.

Sitting Pretty

Despite another stormy few days, spring is definitely on its way. The days are drawing out, the birds are singing louder, lambs are in the fields, spring bulbs are adding much needed colour and I am being asked for garden design advice and ways of improving people’s gardens.

Obviously different people want different things from their outdoor space, whether it’s to grow their own veg, introduce a wildlife pond, or develop wildflower areas – all popular requests, especially during lockdown.

Whether I am asked or not, I always suggest three things to include when landscaping: incorporate lighting, put in an outside tap and you can never have too much seating. And I don’t mean lots of outdoor furniture but ‘clever’ places to sit.

A recent survey indicating that most people are so sedentary that (weirdly) sitting is regarded as the new smoking, apparently being responsible for nearly as many deaths. Hard to imagine for the active amongst us, (although I may be doing a bit more of it myself over the next few weeks), but not so hard to believe when you read the statistics for hours spent in front of a screen.

I have always encouraged people to have somewhere to sit in their garden, and insisted it should be more imaginative than a smart furniture set on a conventional patio or deck.

Inevitably, as I suggest to a client the perfect spot for a bench, swing or even a big rock as a rustic seat, I always hear, “But I don’t sit here …” Of course you don’t, because there’s nothing here to sit on, that’s my point. If you do have somewhere to sit, you are far more likely to make the effort to go outside for your morning coffee or evening glass of wine. Informal seating can also be incorporated into the garden by utilising raised beds or low retaining walls. I think the trick is to think like a kid; as kids we always used to find the most innovative seats or ‘perches’ in the most interesting or secluded parts of the garden. Chairs were boring. Chairs are still boring. Unless you jazz them up, of course. For one client, we had two old armchairs re-covered in a waterproof fabric and nestled them into a secluded bit of shrubbery. You could just use ordinary garden chairs – it’s the positioning of them that’s important. Although I must admit, the armchairs are ridiculously comfy and a great talking point.

When chatting about this in work, one of the boys quipped, “My favourite type of exercise these days is a good brisk sit down.” On site there is always an unspoken challenge to secure the best place to sit for your break or lunch, be it on a garage floor, in a potting shed or just out in the open air. I have to be honest, if there is a wheelbarrow around, they know that it always has my name on it. It is the most unlikely but comfy places to sit and one of those essential gardening tips that Dad taught me. Why not use a few old wheelbarrows as chairs around the garden?

And they’re portable. As the photo shows, I had just finished cleaning up a long drive and the wheelbarrow simply transformed into a great place for a whiff. And of course, dogs always know that a lap is the best place to sit!

Mum’s the World

And finally, happy Mother’s Day (and every day) to all the marvellous mothers out there. Thankfully Mum and I have been able to talk through the window during large parts of the pandemic, and all the staff and carers at Oakland’s Residential Home have been fabulous, with some of the nurses letting me ‘WhatsApp’ photos to them to show Mum – whose phone is even older than mine!