Fiona Hollow

Newness of life proclaimed by Paul shall be celebrated by all of us at this time and all times. 22/8/22

Over the past two weeks, our news has been filled with realities of war in Ukraine, the actions in Russia, and their impact they've had on Ukrainian civilians. Over a million people have fled, and those remained have witnessed terror and trauma.

We’re now 3 weeks in January, I don’t know about you but I often find it being a month of stretches on, feeling extra long after festivities of December. Time, particularly this time of the year can seems stand still, we forget what’s being and sometimes can lose sight of what’s to come.

For the past week I’ve been isolating, having being tested positive for Covid-19, life being punctuated by illness, sleep, jigsaws, more sleep, hot drinks, and trying to decide what to watch on Netflix, an infamously indecisive, it’s all left me feeling not very festive if I’m honest.

I don’t know how you’ve been find news in the media for the last week, but when scrolling in mind, listening to the radio, and watching TV, I’ve been strike by the strength and breadth on contents on serious and important issue such as COP26. If entirely honest, I found overwhelming and anxiety do sink, so much so, that I had to disengage from social media quite lot news media outlets.

If you're the many people who're experiencing further ease of restrictions today, I wonder how you feeling, perhaps it means return of some of the things we once take for granted, a meal out, a cinema trip. Or for someone it's finally be able to give someone we love a long awaited hug. So many of us are feel excited and cheerful at the prospect of these changes. I've noticed I've experience a complex mix of emotions, while I'm looking forward to spend time with loved ones in person, I felt sense of trepidation, at the thought of having to readjust. Every time a new change kicks in, I find myself worrying about the social expectations. Many of my friends dive straight in to go to pubs, or meeting up in groups, whereas I need a bit more time to get use the stretching boundaries or what's allowed.

Over the weekend, the clock went forward, moving into British Summer time, announcing longer daylight hours, and also the Palm Sunday, marking the start of holy week, whereby Christians were called and commemorate the events leading up to Jesus's death and resurrection. With the changing of clocks, I was reminded I did a T4D in October, just as the clock went back. It was the time when the world seems holding its breath as it steps into the winter month, not knowing what's ahead. I remember a distinctive sense of hopelessness. In a strange way, my words have acted as bookends to this winter. And yet, in this moment, I am strike by a deep sense of hope. There's signs of new life, flowers, birds, plants. The evening is growing lighter, vaccine to be rolled out to millions of people across the country, and some of these restrictions will be soon lifting. Perhaps, Hope has been slumber through the winter month, and now is waking up in time for Easter.

Valentine's day. I don't know how you mark it or whether you choose it at all. Perhaps, you grab any excuse to show your affection to your loved one, or would you rather let it pass by. This year it feels particularly challenging, the usual way to show affection might not be possible, your loved one might live far away, or perhaps we experience loss, making a holiday we don't want to pay attention to.

Over the coming days and weeks we are going to see a wider roll out of Covid vaccines. The thousands of people across Scotland receiving their first vaccination, many are speaking about the light at end of a tunnel, in many ways this feels momentum and significant.