Lockdown life offers unexpected gifts we shouldn't waste

You know that the world is spinning slightly off its normal axis when frogs start hopping out of the toilet.
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But that’s exactly what has been happening in Chesterfield in the last few days, where a number of residents have reported amphibian invaders in their loos.

Admittedly, as dystopian disaster movies go, it isn’t the most terrifying of plot ideas.

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If this really is nature’s revenge for mankind’s industrial mistreatment of the environment in destroying habitats and polluting the planet – it seems a token gesture at best.

Frogs have been appearing in the most unlikely places...Frogs have been appearing in the most unlikely places...
Frogs have been appearing in the most unlikely places...

To be fair, there are biblical precedents for plagues of frogs as part of a wider campaign of displeasure, so maybe this is just a taste of things to come – though as the first-born son of the family, I really hope not.

Then nature surprised me again yesterday, when a heron landed very unexpectedly on our garage roof.

The majestic creature was clearly surveying the buffet menu, with one eye on any tasty treats potentially swimming in next door’s garden pond.

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Perhaps it’s because of the lack of rain recently which has impacted on water levels in local lakes and rivers, but it’s the first time we’ve ever had a heron in the garden (at least that I know of).

Elsewhere, I’ve seen reports of deer venturing into city centres, no longer kept scared away by the volume of traffic and people.

Lockdown life is an anxious time for a lot of people, who are rightly concerned about the health and financial security of their loved ones.

But there are definitely upsides to the current situation – the chance to re-eluate what we have and to appreciate things around us, including the natural world, being one one of them.

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I miss friends and family; the chance to catch up over a pint at the bar, but I certainly don’t miss dragging myself to the car very morning for the daily commute to the office – which, as the frogs will tell you, is neither good for the environment or my stress levels.

And, though it has tested everyone’s patience occasionally, it’s also been lovely having the kids around a lot more.

This extra time with the people you’re closest t o, as unexpec ted as herons in the garden or frogs in the loo, is a gift we should all make the most of.

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