Global Village - Storytelling Brings us Together

Edited BY G P Kennedy   W 37 - Ellie – Milan, Italy   It's hard to believe that this long, slow year is coming to an end. But somehow I don't regard the logic of events as following a human-established timeline, so the end of the year does not feel like the conclusion of a cycle. I've always felt that Christmastime is a beginning, not an ending. This year, it feels like an uncharted itinerary of surprises and discoveries. And they came to me by way of unexpected sources.   The year started off with a newfound passion for succulents. And despite the fact that many of those who came to my hands, did, they taught me a lesson that I tried to apply to other facts of life. The more one takes pride in the ability to cultivate and grow them. the worse they feel. I learned that I had to let them exist without the benefit of feeling any ownership of them. Without the power to change the course of their lives, except to destroy them. To give them space. To just accept any good ...

 Edited BY G P Kennedy Tassy – Karachi, Pakistan 2020 has been a trying year, to say the least. So, as I reflect on the year gone by, this week I choose to focus not on the negativity of all the missed opportunities, the disruption to routine, the absence of normality, the mental anguish, lack of social interaction, and gloom, but on the uplifting emotion of “gratitude.”   I want to celebrate the smallest changes I made in my attitude and behavior, so as I contemplate on this year, I’m able to find joy and meaning in what typically and outwardly may not have been the easiest of years.  On the work front, I managed to jump on the bandwagon of offering virtual yoga classes. I consider myself to be technologically-challenged and am very much a peoples person reveling in the physical company of others. I am grateful that I was able to bring about a shift in my thinking and offer customized yoga classes to my existing students by familiarizing myself with Zoom.  ...

Edited BY G P Kennedy Ian & Minako – Tokyo, Japan Changing lifestyle and importance of community 2020 has been a year of adapting to changing circumstances due to the coronavirus pandemic.  Normally we like change but we prefer it to be for positive reasons.   We've both moved around a lot over the years never feeling that any place is our “forever home” but this 4 th year here in a Tokyo suburb maybe we've felt more settled than ever. It's a place that we still feel safe and comfortable in. This is despite the natural disasters that could occur in Japan like earthquakes and tsunamis. A year of living simply Our lives are not especially complicated but this year has been quieter than usual. There have naturally been fewer cultural events happening but still enough for us to wish we could get out and see more. We've got used to shrugging our shoulders and accepting that we just have to miss out for now, as if we are sheltering from the storm.   We would ...

 Edited BY G P Kennedy Gul – Aegean Coast, Turkey THE PLUM BRANCH  Do you like to celebrate Christmas or New Year with family or a crowd.? While we were living in the UK, we missed having fun with the family. That’s why our first Christmas and New Year’s Eve in Istanbul was full of people after all years. So many people came in and went on between those days, we could not see who had enough food or drink.   Last year, we decided to hang around with just the family. We spent both Christmas & New Year with my sister and her family, two very quiet nights but were lovely. I decorated the dining table as much as I did in the UK, and I made different themed decorations on Christmas and New Year’s Eve. NYE is also my sister’s birthday so we celebrated with a delicious cake too. However, we also like having fun with the crowd.  PANDEMIC WISH LIST  The other day, we were talking to Mike about what we would like to do after this entire horrible pandemic was ove...

 Edited BY G P Kennedy Sally – London, UK  In January 2020 I was ready to hit the new year running.  I’d had my daughter the year before and had just started to feel settled.  I had a feeling that things would pick up work-wise for me, I would get booked on bigger shows and have more jobs in London instead of traveling up North as much.  James also felt more positive about his work.  This was going to be our year!  How wrong we were.  We all know what happened to this year, I’ve written about it every week and said how it has affected my life and those around me.  It scares me to look back but this was a year like no other and no one saw it coming.  We started off the year with an 8 months old baby and have ended it with a 20-month-old toddler.  That is the one positive that I am taking from 2020.  We got to spend nearly a whole year watching Iris grow.  Not feeling guilty missing important milestones whilst we were at ...

 Edited BY G P Kennedy Gul – Aegean Coast, Turkey NEW RESTRICTIONS  The government has imposed curfews between 9 pm and 5 am on weekdays and full lockdown on weekends. Sectors such as production, supply, logistics, health, and, agriculture are exempted from the measures.   Groceries, butchers, and supermarkets offer order services during the curfews while cafes and restaurants continue only takeaway services. Stupidly, shopping malls stay open during weekdays but only people with codes are allowed.   People younger than 20 and older than 65 are banned from using public transportation and they can be out only for 3 hours during weekdays. But still a normal crowd out and about. People are walking without distancing. I knew Turkish people don’t like distance! VACCINE CONFUSION  The Turkish Health Minister has announced to plan to start using an experimental Chinese COVID vaccine later this month. Apparently, there is an agreement with China’s Sinovac for ...

 Edited BY G P Kennedy Ian & Minako – Tokyo  Hello again from Tokyo, winter has arrived all of a sudden, we're getting used to it now. Proper Tokyo winter, cold but sunny, which is good for our daily walking exercise. The masks keep our faces warm and give us moisture in this very dry air, which is a bonus!  This week the daily average for Tokyo is 452 so is still increasing gradually, a record 584 new cases on Saturday and the total is 43,377 and 511 deaths up 23 on last week.  Nationally the total cases are now 160,870 in total including 2684 last Saturday. There have been 2229 deaths overall (196 in the past week) the 45 deaths on Friday is a record number and the daily average new cases increased to 2230. Osaka is now on red alert as hospital bed occupancy approaches 70%.  Despite the increasing spread of the virus the government has decided to extend rather than cease the Go To Travel campaign to next June. But there are restrictions for some areas and...