It was a night after Christmas
And all through the house
Not a creature was stirring,
Not even a mouse
And all outside the leaves had gone to bed
And a boy inside wished he was dead.
“This is the worst winter ever,
My pet and best friend died
I’m fed up of this bitter weather,
I’m frozen,” the poor boy cried.
The boy then turned to his mother
“It’s the balance of nature,” she said
The circle of life altogether
Spring is life, and winter is death.”
The sun wakes the trees and flowers
And springtime blossoms with mirth
And winter’s ivory towers
Melt away back into the earth.
By Logan and Kirt Rainford
Written in the first dark days of home education, I learnt so much about anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, panic attacks, school phobia – learning at home solved a lot of these problems but it took a while before things became more ‘normal’. But we got through it – and we all understand what all these things feel like – and how difficult they are to come to terms with. We are all happy to help others to get through it too.
For Mother’s Day my son bought me a heart with this on it – it’s now displayed in the kitchen and every morning it makes me smile – and reminds me to count my blessings. Eric Idle always makes me laugh.
Always look on the bright side of life If life seems jolly rotten, There’s something you’ve forgotten! And that’s to laugh and smile and dance and sing, When you’re feeling in the dumps, Don’t be silly chumps, Just purse your lips and whistle — that’s the thing! And always look on the bright side of life
As I write, all hotels, cafes, restaurants have been closed, all events cancelled, and a lot of people are in isolation – but at least it’s finally stopped raining and the sun is shining – winter is over and summer is just around the corner.
People have discovered that they really do not need to travel so much – it’s possible to work from home – and it’s relatively easy to hold a board meeting online.
Families are discovering each other – and finding things to do together. Books, jigsaws and family games have come out of hibernation and everyone is learning about home education. We home-educated two of our children (under very different circumstances!) and there’s a book telling our story on https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=barbara+rainford&ref=nb_sb_noss
As our family watched Boris Johnson last night, it reminded me of my mother telling me about the war – and how everyone used to huddle around the radio to listen to Churchill – and how he inspired everyone with his speeches: “We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.” My son remarked: “At least we are fighting a virus now, not other people.” And it’s only toilet rolls that are rationed!
So here’s some happy pictures to cheer everyone up.
We can still dance and sing, enjoy music and films, sit in the sunshine and watch the butterflies. The flowers are still growing, the birds are still singing, the fruit trees are in bud, the bees are busy and the buttercups will soon be out again.
There’s such a variety of spring plants – celandines, primroses, daffodils, hyacinths – and crocuses. I planted these bulbs about 9 years ago and the flowers have grown bigger every year. During the first year of home education, one of our days out was to Bridgemere Garden Centre and Kirt helped to choose a selection of bulbs for the garden – so every year, when these crocuses appear, they remind me of that day and happy memories of sharing life home educating.
