Covid-19 – Ebb Then Flood

‘Same As It Ever Was’

There are those lines in the refrain of the song “Once In A Lifetime” where Talking Heads’ David Byrne repeatedly utters “same as it ever was”.

It sounds like the needle got stuck in a groove and was my looping musical earworm today for whatever reason.

It certainly feels like “same, same” as Auckland returns to another Covid-19 lockdown.The rhythms of restriction return as if they had never left.

If lockdown is overly familiar, and not necessarily in a good way, I do get out for walks down by the local creek to clear my head.

It too is so familiar (but comforting too); hardly changing except for the level of tides that feed it from the sea or when heavy rain falls.

“Same as it ever was, same as it ever was…”

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‘Spanish Dream’

A flashback to my time in Barcelona late last year (loved the sheer style of this old building!), on account of hearing on the news of lockdown restrictions lifting in Spain.

The country has suffered more than most with Covid-19, but it brought some joy to see footage of children who had been prevented from going outside for weeks, finally playing in the spring sunshine.

When I was there, there was an entire week of Catalan protests, culminating in marches involving over 500,000 persons. I had never seen so many people in one place in my life, let alone such purposeful and agitated crowds!

Contrast that with the deserted Spanish cities under lockdown currently.The television shots of the main centres have been emphatically eerie and quiet.

But the laughter of children running around in parks is a small sign that maybe are heading in the direction of our dreams, rather than being haunted by with a nightmare.

There are no people in my picture, but I hope that those cooped up inside the fantastical building right now, and all around Spain, and elsewhere , get some sense of normality and freedom soon.

Stay safe until then!