Wednesday 3 June 2020

Silence

For only the second or third time in 10 weeks we've got rain bouncing off the patio. It's a strange sound. And talking of sound it is now 12 months since they began demolishing the nursing home next door and building apartments. Twelve months of banging, crashing, machinery, shouting - all of which can be clearly heard inside our house.  Beginning before 8 a.m.. Some times the bangs are loud enough for our foundations to shake.  They have rarely worked on Sunday and they had four weeks off at the beginning of lockdown.  But I am desperate for them to finish. 

The garden rubbish bin hasn't been emptied for months (though I must point out the binmen - sorry refuse collection operatives - have done a brilliant job in keeping our other bins emptied). 

Lockdown has meant I haven't been able to go to Isabelles, my favourite café, for coffee. 

Nor has bus travel into the countryside been possible. 

I have yet to meet my latest grandchild who was born in January. And my planned trip to stay with my brother in the Hebrides for a few weeks hás, of course, gone for a burton.  I haven't been able to have coffee or lunch with any of my friends. And I could not attend my cousin's funeral. 

In all it's not been a good year. 

But at least I'm not a black American with a murderer pressing on my throat while police officers stand around and watch. 

Black lives matter.  Silence is racism.  We need to all speak out. 

4 comments:

  1. Very, very true, John.

    Construction noise is my nightmare when it is up close and I can not get away from it. I very well remember the summer of 2008, when just behind my work place, a road bridge was being renovated and the road had a new surface. It was noisy and dusty all day long, impossible to keep the windows open when at the same time we were on the phone all day and supposed to concentrate on our work.

    Lockdown in your country was much stricter than over here. We have always been able to use public transport, and it was allowed to visit with immediate family, as long as everyone was careful in keeping their distance. I have been seeing my parents at least once a week every week, but have not hugged and kissed them since mid-March.

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  2. So sorry you haven't been able to meet your new grandchild! A trip to the Hebrides sounds awesome, maybe you'll be able to go soon.

    I agree, it's not been a good year, and it seems it's getting worse :(

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  3. Sorry to hear about your rubbish bin issues... we had some similar issues due to staffing shortages and holidays coinciding with rubbish pick-up days. I suppose I feel the pinch more than most, since we have three households using the same rubbish bin (ours and our two tenants' families) so it's more of a dire necessity that our stuff get picked up when it's supposed to be. After a polite call to the village, it was sorted.

    As for your call to speak out, I agree with you (and all sane people) on the absolutely horrible situation that happened.

    I am still trying to work out, though, how some people think that committing more crimes - looting, destroying businesses of completely innocent people in other cities and towns across our nation and the world is going to "help" or to "change things".

    I stand categorically FOR the punishment of the people that actually committed the crime, and/or stood around filming it instead of calling for help.

    I stand categorically AGAINST violence against the innocent, stealing, property damage, and all the other additional crimes being committed in the name of "protest".

    "From 1976 to 2005, 94 percent of black victims were killed by other African Americans." (Quote from National Review)

    "From 1980 through 2008, 93 percent of black victims were killed by blacks." (Quote from Politifact)

    Question for thought: Why is the "Black Lives Matter" banner only raised when the perpetrator is white?


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  4. Yes, we do, loud and clear. Racism is intolerable.

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