The one thing I think/hope COVID taught us (or reminded us) is that if you feel unwell… stay home.
Or at least be mindful of staying away from other people.
For many years I had students arriving to class coughing and spluttering with the latest bug.
For many years I would catch said bug, pass it on to my husband and then the two of us would play ‘bug ping-pong’ for a while.
So imagine my joy when on day three of our recent holiday I came down with a bad cold.
We had a meeting that day, and I just knew I couldn’t attend in person.
So Michael went in and I was able to join online.
At this time I was still hoping it was just an allergy flare-up.
But a raging sore throat was telling me otherwise.
I was mindful that we were intending to eat out that night, but knew they did take out, so that was all good.
The next day I stayed in the apartment, focused on rest and keeping warm.
We ate out that night but were seated outside, under a heater, and felt confident we were far enough away from others for everyone to be safe.
By midweek I felt so much better.
Then… Michael came down with it.
But we were moving on to our next location, so kept to ourselves.
In fact, it was just by chance the holiday worked well for us.
We hadn’t planned or locked in anything.
The idea was to have a break.
We were able to explore our various locations without much contact with others.
Anything we did do was outside, and the sun was shining, so all felt good.
For our final three nights we were glamping, and both nervous about the cold nights.
We had packed plenty of warm clothes, a small heater, hot water bottle and extra blankets.
But when we got there we found hot water bottles and several extra blankets were supplied anyway.
We were surrounded by beautiful nature – including birds and kangaroos – right next to the tent.
We went on a Serenity Cruise across Lake Cootharaba and into the Everglades.
It was so calming and serene… tranquilly floating across stunning reflections on the water.
Just being emersed in so much nature, had a wonderfully healing impact on us.
Even waking up to find it was just 14C in the tent one morning was okay.
As soon as the sun was up, the tent warmed quickly.
The last night of the holiday I think was the best night’s sleep I had…
In a glamping tent, with a cold mist coming in off the lake!
Who knew?
Despite not feeling 100%, the two of us are grateful that we were able to continue our holiday.
We were able to do exactly what we had hoped to do.
We really enjoyed the break and made lots of lovely memories.
Now we just have to avoid that game of bug ping-pong!
Wish us luck… and stay warm and well yourself.
Ann 🙏