Appreciate What you Have

Like most people I spend a lot of time running around.  This has probably been compounded recently with the Jury Service and the fact my other half has been away.  Rushing in the morning so I am not late, rushing in the evening to get back, make supper and do a few basic chores, and then trying to fit in whatever needs to be done at the weekend before collapsing into bed every night exhausted.

This is nothing unusual as parents who juggle children and work, mothers who have to do a school run and nursery run with no time in between, and those looking after their families all do the same.  What is sad though is that in the midst of all of this there is no appreciation of what we have.

This week out of the blue somebody I know passed away.  A similar age to me he had not been ill and it was completely unexpected.  He had a loving marriage and children and there has been deep shock at what has happened.  Friends and people I have spoken to have all been upset at the news.  This is not meant to happen to a person of this age.  His children are too young to be without their father and his wife too young to be a widow.  Unlike watching terrible things on the news where there is always a distance between what I am seeing and my life,  this week is far closer to home and it is scary.

It feels so wrong but the sadness this week has made me look at my life.  How often do any of us take a step back and actually do this?  We are so busy stressing, running, worrying and doing that we never appreciate what we have.  I know I am blessed to have my boys and a good marriage.  My other half is working and I have a great family and some amazing friends.  I am fortunate to have my life and it should be appreciated.  None of us know what is round the corner and it may be corny to say it but the present is a gift for now and we should all grab it with both hands.

Jury Service

I have spent a lot of this last week sitting in a very large room with about 50 strangers and waiting.  Sometimes my name is called and other days I just sit as though I am (in the play) 'Waiting for Godot'.  I am allowed to leave the room for an hour at lunch time and at the end of the day but otherwise I stay put, reading, texting friends or talking to the person sitting next to me.

This may seem relaxing to many of you running around but actually it is tedious and more tiring than being busy.  I am, as you may have gathered from the title, currently on Jury Service, and at this precise moment have been sitting here for two hours hoping that my name may be called for the next trial.

The envelope arrived requesting my attendance back in January.  When I saw the official brown envelope my first reaction was “What have I done?” Fortunately I had not been speeding but my reaction was similar to getting a fine!  Six weeks later I have many friends to thank for sorting out my youngest after school every day and I am trying to be more organised than is natural for me, but I am making it to court every day on time and still managing to do a few of my chores at home.

Having spent my first day doing nothing except read a book I can admit to be more than a little unimpressed.  The food in the canteen makes school dinners look Michelin starred, and the day really dragged.  However on my second day I was called to trial.

It was only when I walked into the courtroom that I really felt that what I was doing was important.  There is a true sense of responsibility in being a juror which I had only vaguely thought about before that moment.  The court is very imposing and as you are sworn in there is also a sense of history in the way our judicial system is run.

After hearing the evidence there is deliberation to agree on a verdict.  It is a weird feeling to be in a room with eleven other people who may be strangers but with whom you feel an affinity.  Everyone is in the same position and everyone wants to make sure the verdict they agree on is the correct one for their case.

As I approach the end of my first week I recognise a few faces and even know some names.  People are talking more openly about themselves or their lives outside, and there is a feeling that you genuinely know the people.  However at the end of next week when I finish I will leave for the last time and probably never seen any of them again.  We will all return to our normal lives with the freedom to go in and out whenever we want, but knowing we have done our civic duty and possibly having enjoyed it more than we thought.