Covid-19 positives: Out of bad can come good

There is absolutely no doubt that the Covid-19 pandemic has been a catastrophe of massive proportions. People have lost lives (4.2 million worldwide), livelihoods, relatives, friends. It has been a complete disaster. Nevertheless out of bad can come good. Paul Whitelock feels very strongly about this.

The Covid-19 virus has hit us very badly at a personal level. My wife, Rita, nearly died of it in January, although she is now recovering well after a horrendous four months suffering at the hands of “el bicho”, as the Spanish call this bug.

As for me, I have developed long-Covid, which has left my lungs in a very poor state, leaving me breathless after the most minor exertion, eg walking 50 metres. My balance has been affected also and I have constant pins and needles in the fingers and toes of my left side. But, hey, I’m alive!

My pneumologist is doing his best, for which I am extremely grateful.

Pluses

However, as the title of this article implies, there are pluses to Covid-19 for some people, not just manufacturers of face masks and disinfectant gels and online retailers like Amazon.

The main plus for us is that we have lurched out of a period of torpor, during which we were doing very little.

Apart from getting back to writing, gardening and DIY, my main loves, I have done a number of things for the first time in my life since the pandemic began in March 2020.

I have built an Arab-style brick column, which my albañil (bricklayer) assumed I got some other professional in to do!

I did an interview in Spanish for local TV and I’ve just had my first ever article in Spanish published in the print media.

I swam in the Mediterranean Sea in December!

I built a carport with friends Kevin and Michael in summer 2020, after lockdown ended.

A few weeks ago I built a child’s swing with José Antonio and Stewart, for my grandchildren to play on when they manage to get over from the UK.

I got my first-ever dog, Berti, in 2020, but he was sadly killed by a hit-and-run driver a few weeks ago.

I successfully grew some “exotic” vegetables for the first time this year, including aubergines, leeks and squashes.

I got a new “job”, at age 71, as an affiliate of estate agency Andalucía Country Houses, which has just opened a new branch in Montejaque.

I bottled olives from my own tree for the first time – about 10 kilos. They taste lovely.