Writing this column a few days before starting some leave puts me in a similar position to everyone who has been looking forward to getting away or simply having some time to do something different.  Even with the extension of the last elements the restrictions we have been under for the last 17 months we still all have something to look forward to. There is a sense of expectation that many things have been “on hold” and a longing for a greater sense of normality.  It has certainly been a difficult year for us all and the effect it has had on us, and especially our mental and emotional well-being will only really be seen in the future, because those things will not go away with the lifting of restrictions.  

My Leave will have ended by the time you read these words, but as you do I hope you might join me in reflecting for a while on the wider picture of what this pandemic has shown.  While we are looking forward to being able to do the things we used to, I hope we can also spare a thought for the countless millions across our world that have also been affected by the pandemic who have been hit by it far harder than we have.  I hope we have been very much aware of the situations facing those in places like India where the healthcare system there is under immense pressure and where the number of people vaccinated is tiny in percentage terms.  The same is true across many parts of Africa where the number of people being vaccinated is still very low.  We are lucky to have a government that has put a huge focus on public health and people’s well-being – something that people in other parts of the world can only dream of.  Compare that to the previous leadership in the United States or Brazil where Covid was dismissed and very little action taken, resulting in hundreds of thousands of deaths.   

My point in saying this is not to make people feel bad about having a holiday or about being vaccinated – far from it!  But what I am saying is that we live in a very privileged part of the world where we have a much better standard of living than most and recognise that reality so that we can respond in two ways.  The first, to give thanks to God for all the benefits that we enjoy and the second, to be challenged by that fact to show some generosity both in our commitment to praying for those less fortunate than we are and perhaps by making some personal commitment and sacrifice to support them to.

With every blessing

Tim