Curran Christmas Missive 2020
2020 was, to say the least, unexpected. Very little of what we had planned came to pass, and yet looking back it has been a full year for us.
Cath started the year working an array of public and private hospital slates at a handful of local hospitals. The onset of COVID meant that hospitals have cut back drastically on elective surgery and the alcohol ban left trauma units subdued. Indeed, its judged that South Africa’s alcohol ban (now lifted) saved more lives while in effect than the virus took during the same period, landing the country in a net positive position at first.
The public hospitals in Cape Town, where Cath rotates weekly, have done a tremendous job of training their staff and adjusting protocols to deal with the influx of patients. It was a blessing to have department heads prioritising the health of their teams in the midst of considerable uncertainty during the first wave. They have now done hundreds of operations on positive patients and while an inevitable number of staff have contracted the ‘rona their teams have by and large managed to hold their sails in the wind.
Cath in fact tested positive for COVID in July, casually rolling over in bed one Monday morning after reading the test results on her phone to tell me that she was positive. We isolated again for 10 days and gratefully the rest of us remained symptom free. She had a few rough days but pulled through quickly. While we remain cautious, I have enjoyed living ‘on the other side’ somewhat buoyed by what we assume was an asymptomatic experience for the rest of us.
I continue to hold two positions, one at our church and the other working for the network of churches that we belong to. As church calendars world wide stalled in the wake of social distancing, the year has been quiet for my work with Advance and rather busy at our local church as we pivoted to an online format. Accordingly I have learnt a hella lot about cameras, live streaming and Google docs’ at times contrived document sharing settings.
Looking back through my 2020 photo-reel, my primary tool for remembering things to include in this letter, it’s hard not to notice just how much time our boys have been able to spend together. Schools shut for about 6 months leaving us with a child care challenge but the boys with an amazing opportunity to bond. And they did. Thick as thieves sunrise to sunset these days. We have seen the short age gap pay off with interest after an initial 18 months of trying moments for mom and dad.
Looking back I am grateful for the swathes of unexpected family time we have had this year. From our afternoon workouts on the lawn, slow starts in bed with the kids and generous evenings on the couch after dark. We have had a lot of time and not a lot to fill it with. In this context Cath and I have had time to think through some big questions about the future and our family. Accordingly, I am happy to announce that we are expecting a third kid in June next year! As my good friend Roland puts it, we are moving from man-on-man to ‘zonal defence’ as parents, but we are excited to meet the new arrival (we’ll wait and see who it is exactly).
We have done our best to keep active this year, whether home bound or free to roam the streets. Cath joined a friendly trail running group, and enjoyed a few months of activity before taking a nasty fall one Saturday morning. Incidentally she fell pregnant shortly thereafter and still managed a smile when I noted that she had thus been ‘knocked down and knocked up’. The combination effectively putting a pause on her mountain excursions.
I have decided that I actually value the peace and quiet my solo runs afford me, but did join up with good friend Matt for an epic 21k virtual race (oh so 2020) starting in the city bowl before heading up and over the mountain into Constantia.
One major pain point for our extended Jackson family was the abandonment of our reunion plans, scheduled for June in Crete. It is always great to gather from all corners and this would have been a particularly special opportunity to celebrate Graham and Marilyn’s 70th birthdays. As such the year was not without its low points, but we look forward to meeting up as soon as it’s possible.
We did have a lovely week meeting our newest nephew however, visiting Jules and Clive in Port Elizabeth to meet their new son, Tim. The boys not so interested in tiny-Tim but stoked to have a whole week of play with cousin Megan who is now 5.
Other trips included weekends in Fishoek, beautiful Hermanus and a recent weekend camping outside Robertson— all probably on par with the most scenic global destinations we might have visited had 2020 played out differently.
Jack, now 4, finished a disjointed year at Cath’s old play school, and continues to entertain with his technical mind. He regularly stops us to explain how he imagines plumbing and appliances function. He also spends hours talking to our smart speaker, now able to request a number of his favourite songs by title and musician name. (e.g. Google, play Do You Like Spaghetti Yoghurt by Super Simple Songs)
Will, now 2, continues to charm everyone he meets. He has gamely started a couple of days a week at a local play group, and at times is mistaken for his brother’s twin so much has he grown. Last week there was an eruption of stereo-howling from the boys room. On investigation I found that Will had been pushed and in response klapped his brother with a train bridge. We’re not sure if this growing confidence will level the playing field between them or ramp up the anarchy.
Our family has been spared serious tragedy in a year when many have not been so fortunate, so I am wary of trying to put too positive a spin on the year. That said, despite our initial 2020 plans falling by the wayside its been a year with a number of special moments as we have been forced to dial it back a few notches and make the most of unprecedented circumstances (that one was for you Cath).
Much love,
Rog, Cath, Jack & Will.
