Hi folks, from London UK

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

Hi folks, from London UK,

I hope most of you are managing to rise above the stresses of everyday life, made worse, of course by having o deal with the pandemic. Although, thankfully, the beginning of the end is starting to show in terms of hospital admissions, we may well have to learn to live with the effects of one variant or another for some time yet.

Here in England, life is starting to resume a sense of normality, although we are advised to continue wearing a face mask in shops, on public transport and in crowded places; most people are following the advice, while other who are not exempt for medical reasons, continue to take the view that if they don't want to wear one for any other reason, the decision rests with them, no one else.  Regular readers will know how I feel about that; 'selfish' doesn't begin to describe these people when the scientific evidence  - not to mention hospital admissions and deaths - speak for themselves.

So far, so good here. It is stressful enough having to deal with effects of my prostate cancer without taking on any more. Even so, the stress we have all been under over the past couple of years should not be underestimated, not least on our mental well-being. There is no shame whatever in seeing a doctor because we are having difficulty coping where, before the pandemic, we coped much better. We need to keep and eye on family and friends, too; the effects of stress are not always self-evident and many people are living on a short fuse that won't take much to ignite.

Now, a reader asks, "In what part of London do you live. Are you and Sir Keir Starmer, leader of the Labour party, neighbours? Well, London is a big city, with a population of about 9 million. It so happens , though, that I do live in the same London borough as Sir Keir, although we are definitely not neighbours; he lives in one of the more upmarket areas of the borough, while I live in one that mostly comprises social housing. I include myself in the latter, as an unsuccessful novelist and self-published poet. I have no complaints, though. I will be 77 years old later this year and consider myself to have had a good run, although I suspect many may well disagree who are inclined to take fame and /or fortune as a measure of success or failure. 😉

As a child, I once confided my dream of becoming a successful write to my mother. She told me to be prepared to be disappointed, but  "Disappointment is par for the course as we journey through life. Don't take it too seriously. Better to be disappointed in what we do than never to have made the journey and enjoyed it." On he whole, I have enjoyed the journey despite its many ups and downs and losing my way from time to time. 😉 

As regular readers will know, my worst experience is probably a nervous breakdown in my early 30's, but - with a lot of help and support - I came back from it and continued the journey with a whole new sense of direction that may not have come close to fulfilling any childhood dreams, but put a new spring in my step anyway. 😉 

Along this new phase of my journey, I met two of my closest friends among others, gave a poetry reading on the 4th plinth in Trafalgar Square, (narrowly) managed to avoid revisiting The Abyss as health issues became part of an everyday agenda...etc. etc. To paraphrase my dear mother again, rising above the various hits life's sling and arrows will invariably score may be nothing to write home about, but we should give ourselves a pat on the back, anyway, just for rediscovering the wherewithal to carry on.

As I have said many times before on the blog, never underestimate the power of mind-body-spirit. 😉

That's all for now, folks.  Here's wishing you good times ahead, and if any of you are struggling to rise above... whatever... take heart, press on, and try to keep focusing on the bright(er) side of life. A poet in London, UK is rooting for you. 😉

Many thanks for dropping by, back again soon (hopefully, with a poem) and remember to keep nurturing a positive-thinking mindset... if only because the alternative is unthinkable.😉

Love 'n' Hugs,

Roger