I thought it would be a good idea for the August edition to ask a very different question: "What have you enjoyed about Lockdown."
I'm very aware that it hasn't all been doom and gloom during the past three months. We have had more time for hobbies and the gardens of Hethersett have never looked better, but many have struggled.
I've already had numerous replies - people have even enjoyed being able to spend more time with their spouses! I think above all time has been a major factor. For many it has hung heavy and brought added pressure, but for others not having to watch the clock has proved enjoyable.
I have worn a watch a lot less during Lockdown. Losing track of time is an art form and why would you need to know the time on a walk if you have nothing else to do? As a result I'm sure we saw more places and walked much further and got much fitter than we would have done if we were constrained by time.
I remember many many years ago having an entire weekend of turning every clock to the wall, turning off the television and radio and not wearing a watch. I ate when I was hungry, went to bed when I was tired and got up when I was wide awake. I had a vague idea of the time from when it got dark/light etc. I found the whole thing quite therapeutic. Of course at the end of the weekend I had to return to work and clocks and watches and timetables!
I was very interested in comments made by Hethersett's Rector Rev Derek McClean in the latest edition of the village Good News magazine.
Over the years, Good News has been an invaluable history of the village and, thankfully, the village archive has most back editions which have proved a rich source for some of my writing and I am sure will do so in the future.
Derek was talking about suffering burn out and sheer exhaustion during lockdown. At first I found that a little confusing. How can you suffer burn out through having less to do? I think I have suffered burn out twice in my life and both times were when I was trying to juggle work, family and voluntary work. But that was from having too much to do and not from having not enough.
But when I thought about what Derek had to say it began to make sense. Because into the "more time available" mix came dealing with change.
"A huge pressured change was brought on us all. We all had to learn to do things differently. And change like that can cross from healthy change to unhealthy change, subtly, but rapidly," Derek writes.
Add into this mix the pressures of working from home, worrying about income and job security and not being able to see family and friends and it can very much lead to a feeling of burnout.
I have always believed that if you are feeling depressed, sitting around doing very little or nothing only exacerbates that feeling. The mood can be helped by meeting with friends, but that is something under lockdown we haven't been able to do.
So yes during lockdown it is possible to suffer burnout and, of course, the problem is that as we return to some kind of normality we all have to learn things over again and build up to have the life we previously enjoyed or experienced. That in itself will take time, particularly as lockdown will be released in small steps. It's like we are toddlers who are learning to walk.
Some will view the challenges ahead of us with enthusiasm, but others will struggle and need continued support.