The Coronavirus lockdown is not ideal - for any normal person. Its lonely, boring, fattening, and financially ruinous, but let's face it, staying home is not the end of the world. It's not like going off to fight in a war. The only battle I'm fighting is with my waistline and its a bloodbath. Unless of course, you have young children. In which case, as far as I can tell, a good trench war, complete with its high body count, shell-shock and field surgery might be preferable.
COVID-19 Stone
I, like most, have felt lethargic over recent weeks. It's definitely not a symptom of COVID-19, but more an indication that non-stop cheese, gaming and Christmas levels of boozing are taking their toll. My friends with small kids on the other hand are genuinely exhausted. From 7am to 7pm it's a 13 hour melee of constant attention, fights, snacks and wiping away tears, but then I turn off the PS4, relax and have a drink. For my friends with young kids though, there is no plan, no rest, no escape, the enemy can and will appear at any time day or night.
Working from home
For most, including parents, working from home used to be a mini-retreat, sending emails in your pyjamas, casually napping in front of Bargain Hunt, but now as the kids are with you - in your office, what was once was a pleasure, has turned into a nightmare. A blitzkrieg of asking for channels to be changed, a story to be read or for bread to be buttered lurks behind every moment of calm. Corona anxiety makes working from home difficult enough, but children make it almost impossible. Work used to be a way out of spending time with your kids and for those working on the front lines - luckily, it still is.
An end to the conflict
My choice to avoid growing my own offspring for now, in the short term is paying dividends. But for my friends with children I believe there'll be a benefit - which in the fog of war could go unnoticed. At present the days may seem long but the years will be short and when the armistice comes the schools will be opened, life will awaken and they'll look back fondly at the time they spent together without the distraction of things that don't matter.