Today marks the 75th anniversary of Victory in Europe. On May 8th 1945 the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill declared peace in Europe. It was the beginning of the end of WWII. The end of six years of fighting, of rationing, of bombings, of refugee movements, of unimaginable suffering by ordinary people across the world.

Today, I am writing this post from my home. A home that my family and I have been locked-down in for over six weeks. It has amazed me at how well we have gotten on. How few arguments there have been. We have rediscovered the joy of spending time together. We have had more home-cooked meals. My eldest daughter has been decorating and learning lots of new crafts. She is even styling her hair in a 1940s ‘ fashion.

At the beginning of 2020, I thought we would spend the year reimagining ‘The Roaring Twenties’. Lots of swinging parties and flapper dresses and instead we are learning to embrace the more simple things in life: Family, home and being grateful.

We clap for the NHS every Thursday night. We offer support to friends, family and colleagues that we can no longer hug. We yearn to see each other again.

After only six short weeks, rather than six long years, we are identifying with the words of Vera Lynn’s iconic wartime song with a resonance that few would have predicted only a few months ago.

“We’ll meet again, don’t know where. Don’t know when. But I know we’ll meet again some sunny day.”

Our hashtags say it all. These are the things we believe are important. These are the things we value:

#Stay safe. #Be kind. #Saves Life #VE75 #Save the NHS

When this current situation is all over, let us remember what we cared about most.

In the meantime, I don’t know about you, but I am looking forward to staying in, eating with my family and afterwards, snuggling down with a delightful book.