Due to an unusual set of circumstances, our daughter and her two children, ages 3 and almost 5, are staying with us. They have been living overseas, came to stay with us for a while and now find themselves caught up in the coronavirus precautions and in lockdown with us. We have gone from only seeing our grandchildren twice a year to having them in the same house 24/7. We often said we wished we could see more of them but didn’t quite have this in mind!
However, we are thoroughly enjoying the time together and they certainly keep us occupied. When it comes to self-isolation we feel grateful that we live in a quiet area, close to the countryside, have an enclosed secure garden and on our daily walk we see like-minded people, keen to observe the 2 metre rule and exchange pleasantries in a good humoured fashion we Brits are so good at.
It has become a nostalgic time for us, especially doing things with our grandchildren that we did with Rachel, and our son Adrian, almost 40 years ago. We have played in the garden, provided a sandpit and rediscovered footpaths close to home that we haven’t been on for quite a while. On one such walk, Rachel asked if I could photograph the children from behind, just like ‘Walking with a friend’.
Mum had shown me the verse, probably found in ‘The Friendship Book’ or something similar 30 something years ago. It’s a bit twee, but at the time I was learning calligraphy, so I wrote it out and mounted alongside it a photograph of Rachel and her friend Claire. It was displayed on mum’s living room wall from that time onwards. Rachel could even remember the verse and I had no hesitation in taking the requested photograph. Who knows, it may be around 30 plus years from now!
John's Postcards 
You have no idea how much this has cheered us up, Thank you. D&A.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks D&A. When time allows I will edit, print and frame it just like the original.
LikeLike
This post is so beautiful, I loved it, keep safe 👍🏻
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Elaine. Take care at this unusual time.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Will do 🙂
LikeLike
What a fantastic memory to last a lifetime and beyond.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, John – what an absolutely beautiful post! Thank you.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Sue, Happy Easter!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Happy Easter to the five of you too, hope the Easter Bunny calls!
LikeLiked by 1 person
How lovely this is! Happy Easter and keep well and safe!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Clare, you too.
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂
LikeLike
Your post encompasses the bright side of this strange, current situation, a silver lining. Inspiring and positive. Thanks.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I woke up thinking of this poem, memorised from childhood. A search for its author (Helen Steiner Rice b.1900) lead me to this blog.
The framed, ornately decorated poem sat on my mother’s dressing table for as long as I can remember; a gift from a friend she shared happy Derbyshire walks with in her youth. It’s therefore much older than you might have thought. (I’m 59 this year).
I noticed the original post was made during the pandemic; interestingly, Helen SR ‘s father died in the influenza pandemic of 1918. A tenuous link perhaps, but there you go.
I remember the poem, the dressing table & my lovely mum vividly.
Thanks for the memories shared.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for your comments. Aren’t happy memories wonderful things? Just one more tenuous link – a few yards to the right of the path is a stream which forms the county boundary between Derbyshire and Staffordshire.
LikeLike