I have been literally living with Covid. She is at a safe distance at the other end of the house. We are living separate lives within these four walls. She is confined to the house, whereas I, at least, am allowed out for good behaviour. Paradoxically, my wife has tested positive and has no symptoms.…
Breaking into Bulgaria
—– 1 —– We sat there, not daring to speak. The big man in uniform gave nothing away in his expression or demeanour. He carefully sifted through the documents and papers. Our hearts were racing, but time seemed to stand still. My wife in the back seat was strangely silent. All I could hear was…
Shifting Our Ever Givens
The Suez has finally been unblocked. We all saw the gigantic Ever Given wedged across the canal, stopping 369 other boats from getting through. The impact was enormous – $50bn of goods delayed getting to customers. The alternative route around Africa takes 2 more weeks. We have blockages of our own. Some small, some huge.…
Crashing through walls . . . and connecting
My experience in cardiac ward 28 described how I found brief but very meaningful connection with my fellow inmates. An eye-opening experience, which left me with some questions. What conditions encouraged this? What did I have to do to make it happen? And how can I learn from this experience about connecting in the world of…
Cardiac Ward 28 – Camaraderie and 3am Lunacy
Sometimes we are thrust together with people through no choice of our own, or of theirs. Maybe in a queue, a lift, a waiting room, at a concert or on a plane. Those were the days. Our English default is to remain quiet and to keep our distance – physically and emotionally. To be private,…
Pipe Cleaning My Heart
When I was a boy, my grandad smoked a pipe. To clean it he used a pipe cleaner; around six inches of flexible wire encased in fluffy cotton. My sister and I would make intricate models out of them. Similar, larger pipe cleaners are used to clean sinks and drains. Whatever the size, pipe cleaners…
A concern of the heart
The last time I was in hospital I was 10 having four teeth removed. All I can remember is lying face down on the bed and the nurse saying “is it a little boy or a little girl”. Yes I was small, prepubescent with long curly hair so maybe it was a fair question. But…
Christmas Day in the C.D.U.
We all knew that this Christmas would be different. I just didn’t expect it to be quite THIS different. It’s Christmas Day and rather surprisingly, I find myself enjoying the hospitality of the Clinical Decisions Unit of the acclaimed Leicester heart hospital. To their credit, the NHS served up a decent turkey dinner. I particularly…
A Mind of Our Own – Personal Reflections on Mental Health
I wake up. I am in a bed in a small room in the aptly named Black Forest. There is no light. I cannot see my own hand in front of my face. I have no idea of the time and I dare not look at the clock. I don’t want to know how many…
You are NOT REDUNDANT
With the devastating impact of Coronavirus on the economy, an unprecedented number of people are facing “redundancy”. This article comes in 5 chapters, the first three of which are to help people deal with the anger, hurt, loss and self-doubt which so many people feel. The last two chapters talk about moving forwards, and re-planning…
Unwrapping The World 