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Two Weeks in Quarantine: Day Ten

Sunday 6th December. Day ten of our quarantine. Second Sunday in Advent.

It struck me today that this would be a good day to ponder what it is I long for. And not just the end of our quarantine, a good walk, home-cooked meals and the chance to see Lois’ family. Nor even just the liberties of being at large in a Covid-free country, no longer constrained by the social distancing, limited activities of a UK lockdown and tiered restrictions.

Advent is a time of waiting and longing. It remembers the longing – 2,000 years ago – of a captive nation waiting for a Messiah to deliver them; and the ongoing longing ever since of countless Christians, waiting for the fulfilment of that vision that was birthed so many centuries ago. Perhaps, too, it gives voice to the longings of all peoples everywhere, for a better world, and the longings of the earth itself to be set free…

So what is it I long for?

It wasn’t difficult to express what I long for an end to:

  • For an end to the greed and exploitation that causes such inequities both between and within countries;
  • For an end to the violence and abuse that robs children of their childhoods, that tears families and communities apart;
  • For an end to the prejudice and hatred that leads to the death of an innocent black man under the knee of a police officer, or the murder of innocent worshippers in a Christchurch mosque;
  • For an end to the senseless destruction of our planet…

I could go on.

The problem with that is that, if I really stop to think about it, I may not be a terrorist, a millionaire, an abuser, or a corrupt politician, but the same attitudes underlying all of these global issues are there lurking inside me. I, too, enjoy the luxuries of a privileged lifestyle which is only sustainable because of the exploitation of the poor and the planet; I, too, have ingrained attitudes of superiority and mistrust of strangers; I, too, like to have things my way and tend to assert my will over that of others.

So, if I really long for an end to those systemic problems, perhaps it has to start with me.

When I put the question to Lois over our morning coffee, she turned it round and thought about what we long for in a positive sense. What attitudes and behaviours do we really long for, that might bring about the change we want to see in this world?

So here are our suggestions:

  • For a slower pace of life, all of us taking time to pause, to be present, to pay attention
  • For a greater connection with nature, each of us taking opportunities to connect with the creation of which we are a part
  • For hospitality and welcome – that goes beyond mere tolerance and respect, to truly welcome the wonderful mystery that is someone else
  • For gratitude, appreciating the goodness, truth and beauty that surrounds us.
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Two Weeks in Quarantine: Day Nine

In its news bulletin this morning, Radio New Zealand reported on a WHO spokesperson commending New Zealand’s response to the pandemic as ‘an example of a country that has worked well with a community to effectively communicate what is being done.’

“In New Zealand there was a lot of clarity about what was expected and why things were going to be done and that’s extremely important, that people understand what’s going to happen and why it’s going to happen.”

Now, New Zealand is unique: relatively isolated from the rest of the world and with a small population, it hasn’t had nearly the same challenges as the USA, the UK and other countries in Europe.

Nevertheless, I have been totally impressed with the way the country has managed its response to the pandemic: a huge contrast to the shambles of our own government’s response.

True to her leadership style, Jacinda Ardern responded promptly and decisively to the pandemic, with both empathy and humility. She appeared to listen to both the scientists and ordinary people and the approach they took clearly prioritised the life and well-being of New Zealand’s citizens above the economy or any political considerations.

Right from the start, New Zealand introduced a system of four alert levels – each with clear criteria for the underlying risk assessments and the management strategies to be implemented at each level. The messaging was clear, consistent and unambiguous, and didn’t keep changing as the pandemic unfolded. As a result, people knew where they stood, what was expected of them and why, and they responded accordingly.

Since arriving in New Zealand and experiencing first hand their approach to managed isolation/quarantine, we have been even more aware of how effective and efficient the measures are. As new arrivals we have been treated with respect and kept informed. The messages we have received about social distancing and protective measures have been clear and simple; their test and trace system has worked effectively, with clear communications once it was discovered that someone on our flight had tested positive; the armed forces, drafted in to supervise and manage the isolation facilities have done their job well and with grace.

And, most of all, we know that we can look forward, in just a few days’ time, to living a life unconstrained by the threat of second waves, repeated lockdowns, or muddled and contradictory advice.

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Two Weeks in Quarantine Day Eight

They have started taking down the scaffolding and netting on the building outside. Watching how the building is progressing is one of the many exciting entertainments we are treated to in our quarantine room, though a noisy one with hammering, drilling, banging and so on from six in the morning till late in the afternoon.

Like Coventry, the Auckland skyline seems to be dominated by cranes (it intrigues me how they manage to construct these enormous cranes and keep them stable, and it must be a lonely existence for the crane operator, stuck up there all day, having climbed up 18 or so ladders to get to the top). Whether they are for student accommodation, office blocks, or hotels, I don’t know. And I wonder what impact the pandemic will have on all these new builds? Certainly, tourism will be impacted, with much lower numbers for some time to come; perhaps overseas students too. But has New Zealand experienced the same exodus of office workers in the shift to home working that has dominated the UK?

The removal of the netting and protective plastic sheeting covering the building is starting to reveal more of the underlying structure. And that is both aesthetically pleasing and adding to the interest of the site.

And it makes me wonder what else might be uncovered by spending two weeks in quarantine?

  • How unfit I am, as evidenced by my body’s groans as I engaged in half an hour of Pilates, or tried out the first level of the 5BX fitness programme (thanks Charlie!)
  • How much I like routine and structure in my life (at what point does that become rigidity and obsession?)
  • How much I like to have things my own way

Lois and I had a disagreement this morning.

We were the first onto the exercise deck and, while I went for the usual (and, to my mind, more comfortable) anticlockwise turning to the right, Lois chose to break with convention and start a (to her mind more individual and inspiring) clockwise circuit to the left.

We both stubbornly stuck to our individual circuits, while our fellow-quarantiners were left wondering which way to go.

Our human natures are strange. How is it that we can both feel that we are constantly giving way to the other, and making allowances for their preferences? Sadly, I have to acknowledge that in this Lois is probably right – that it is usually my preference that wins, much as I might think otherwise!

Perhaps a bit more of the scaffolding and netting needs to be removed.

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Two Weeks in Quarantine: Day Seven

Today has been a day of good news.

First, as we listened to the five pm BBC news as we sipped our cups of tea, we heard the news that the MHRA have approved the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine. The cautious doctor in me just hopes that the foreshortening of the normal long timescales for safety trials won’t have resulted in any potentially serious side effects being missed; but overall, this is great news.

Second, our swabs from the additional testing came back clear, so we are allowed out of our room again. We celebrated with an early evening walk around the exercise yard.

Third, Lois and I successfully completed our level one food safety e-learning course. So we now know how to clean surfaces and store food safely at Breathing Space.

And finally, we have reached day seven – half-way through our quarantine. We are still enjoying each other’s company, not getting bored, working our way through our respective lists of things we wanted to do, appreciating some nice Marlborough valley wines (even if the wine list is limited to just one Pinot Noir, a Pinot Gris, a Chardonnay, and a Sauvignon Blanc), and feeling grateful to be alive, healthy and (relatively) free.

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Two Weeks in Quarantine: Day Six

Someone on our flight has tested positive.

So now we are confined to our room until another swab has shown us to be negative (our own day three swabs came back clear; they re-swabbed us this morning following the positive test on our co-traveller).

No more exercise down on the pool deck, nor even at the entrance lobby area. No more barista coffees (fortunately though Lois’ granddaughter Abi had delivered a cafetiere and some ground coffee so we can still have our mid-morning cup of coffee).

This morning, deprived of my four thousand nine hundred and twenty (or so) paces round the deck, I was obliged to join Lois in her Pilates.

I’m not sure why so many people put themselves through that so regularly. It is certainly neither relaxing nor fun.

Since we will be in the same position tomorrow, I will subject myself to such penance as the only way of getting a daily dose of exercise.

But I will look forward to being able to walk gently round and round the pool deck again.

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Two Weeks in Quarantine: Day Five

Today we walked clockwise round the exercise yard.

The brave soul who was first out through the door broke with convention and turned left rather than right. Eighty-two paces; sixty circuits. But now with a completely new outlook on life.

We saw a new side of Auckland – parts of the city we hadn’t previously been aware of. New buildings; three more cranes; the University of Otago (what are they doing in Auckland anyway?).

It was strange, but even after four days it felt strange, unnatural to be going this way round the circuit.

Perhaps we all need something like this to shake us up a bit, to break us out of our ruts, to help us see the world differently.

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Two Weeks in Quarantine: Day Four

A complete circuit is 82 paces (87 for Lois). Each circuit takes about 40 seconds. Sixty circuits in each 40-minute exercise session. Four thousand, nine hundred and twenty paces. Anti-clockwise.

The outside decking area beside the pool and gym (both of which are out-of-bounds) has been made available for the inmates to exercise on (‘Walking Only, No Vigorous Exercise’) supervised by a member of the New Zealand armed forces – presumably making sure we don’t escape or break any of the social-distancing rules.

We are allowed to book into one 40-minute exercise slot per day and have to get in early to book for the next day as they quickly fill up.

There is another, smaller exercise yard in what was the main entrance to the hotel. You don’t need to pre-book that one, just turn up and take your chances. But given that it is only about 20 paces around, with no plants or view of the sky, it is less popular anyway.

We have got into a pattern of a 40-minute slot on the pool deck each morning before breakfast. Round and round. Anti-clockwise. Eighty-two paces. Sixty circuits. And then a short spell in the entrance lobby after supper.

Apart from that we are confined to our room.

I am developing a greater empathy for prisoners.

And for caged animals.

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Two Weeks in Quarantine: Day Three

Today, being Advent Sunday, Lois and I decided to break our not-so-long-established routine and mark it by joining a virtual day retreat from Los Olivos in Spain.

The day itself was grey and wet (at least until mid-afternoon) and being trapped in our quarantine room there was little to distract us from our quiet contemplation.

At least that was the case up until about 11am when the peace was broken by Santa Claus floating down the Mayoral Drive right outside our hotel, to the sound of brass band playing Jingle Bells (slightly incongruous in the warm summer rain) and followed by a giant inflatable Peppa Pig, Thomas the Tank Engine, dancers, elves, bag-pipes and the entire ensemble of the Auckland Christmas parade.

Still, apart from that interruption (and another to go down and have our day 3 Covid swabs), the day was peaceful and inspiring. Daniel Muñoz, the retreat guide, led us through reflections on images of Christ (Imago Christi) as portrayed in historical and contemporary art.

I reflected on how so many of the historical images of Jesus portray him as a handsome, fair-haired westerner, and have created an image which I now find unhelpful and misleading. On the one hand portraying a non-threatening, impotent focus of adoration; separate, somewhat ethereal, content to receive our worship without changing anything. And on the other hand, a figure head for white supremacy – the God in human form – white, male, self-assured.

What a far cry from the Jesus I see portrayed in the gospels.

So here, drawing on more contemporary portrayals of Jesus, are some of the images I reflected on today and which have made me stop and think about who Jesus really is:

A multi-cultural Jesus – meeting people where they are, as they are. Ordinary, human, earthy.

Jesus the pain-bearer – getting alongside those who are suffering; suffering with them. And somehow, through that, transforming our pain.

Jesus Christ the subversive revolutionary – challenging the powers and structures of our world; confronting injustice, oppression, violence and greed.

Jesus the liberator, the life-giver – loving life; laughing, loving, living; setting people free; leading us on to God’s new creation.