The weather was perfect this weekend: sunny and 18°C (64°F). I returned to the wooded area near my apartment … it was packed! After two months of house arrest, the whole of Paris, it seemed, had headed to green spaces with their friends, family, dogs, etc. It was nice to see. Here in Europe, we’re slowly moving back to normality. However, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe has told us that we cannot travel outside of France this summer.

So I had to cancel my trip to Portugal early-June and lost money, not much. I was hoping to go to London in August, but now I cannot. At least, as from July, I can go up to Lille, see the kids and spend time at my friend’s small house in the countryside surrounded by fields. I’m craving nature. It’s been a rough two months FOR US ALL, rougher and devastating for those who lost loved ones because of the virus, and for that I am sorry.

Poor kids. I feel sorry for young people today. WE never went through anything like this (Coronavirus.) I believe I have baby boomer guilt. When I think back to my teen years and how insouciant I was, we all were. When I was the age of these kids above, I was riding horses, driving a car, riding my bike, hangin’ out with my gal pals (and boys), going to high school, weekend parties and listening to Elton John and Supertramp. Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram didn’t exist, and I believe we were better off for it. What’s weird about social media is that it isn’t social.

But this – sitting in the long grass in groups on a beautiful pre-summer Sunday evening – this is social. A craving to talk, face-to-face, to assemble and gather; it was palpable.