Glitter Dragons and Ice-Cream Cake: Experience of a Victorian Mum During Lockdown 2020

Glitter Dragons and Ice-Cream Cake: Experience of a Victorian Mum During Lockdown 2020

I write from Melbourne, a weary city in our third week of second lockdown in 2020. You can see those tired concerned eyes, peeping above the face masks we are all wearing. My husband (a teacher) and I have two children, 5 and 8. We’re all missing work, school and daycare, but mostly, our friends. Like most people, we have bunkered down, with short, mask-covered breaks to get some air and exercise with the pooch – who is the only one loving this year!

I began our second lockdown with some enthusiasm. I figured we’d done lockdown before, and this time I could do it better. But within a week, our indoor games were wearing thin, and we were already missing playdates and adventures beyond our neighbourhood, into our beloved, colourful city. If anything, this time is harder. Reality has set in. The novelty of Zoom calls has worn out, The daily briefings on COVID numbers hasn’t been hopeful and there is more anxiety in the air.

However, my kids have astounded me – they seem to cope with it all a lot better than I do. We’ve been glittering dragons for the window (the Little Bookroom is running a #spreadmagicnotgerms campaign), discovered a hidden swing in our local bush reserve, and even birthdays planned with big Pokemon parties have been happily replaced with a Coles ice cream cake and Bluey fest. Although they ask regularly “when is the virus going to go” they say they really love being at home with us more, and I’m going to hope that our time together is their strongest memory of this strange year in years to come.

The coping mechanisms I finally worked out during the first lockdown have kicked in already. Less wine, more jogs – loosening up about homeschool (encouraging our kid to apply her English classes to a presentation about our beloved new pet chickens), and not fitting in all my illustration work after the kids crash. My Melbourne friends are all going through different stages of the “corona coaster” but we are also checking in on each other more, knowing how hard some of the days last time were, and how lonely it can be. We are trying to support our local shops and restaurants for gifts and tasty doorstop delivered dinners when we need a cooking break. The cafes still remain open for necessary coffee stops on those masked walks, and every day we check those COVID rates – and we keep our fingers crossed the numbers will drop.

Dr Veela Janakiramanan wrote on Twitter, “Notable that after about twenty seconds of whinging, Melbournians have emerged in public today sporting their boutique, fair trade or homemade vintage single origin perfectly colour coordinated and stylish face masks as if we have always worn them”. This perfectly sums up our wonderful, sometimes ridiculous city – those eyes may be tired, but those masks are bright – and we are giving a muffled “good morning” as we walk past each other, underneath them.

– Jess Racklyeft is an author and illustrator based in Melbourne. Her next book, Welcome Baby to this World is filled with love, hope and possibility and is out with Affirm Press in September.

 

Related Articles

Teacher's Notes: The Forgotten Song: Saving the Regent Honeyeater by Coral Vass, Illustrated by Jess Racklyeft

News | Book Life

17 April 2023

Teacher's Notes: The Forgotten Song: Saving the Regent Honeyeater by Coral Vass, Illustrated by Jess Racklyeft

Keep on dreaming: Author and illustrator Jess Racklyeft on indulging your dreams during lockdown

News | Author Related

27 August 2020

Keep on dreaming: Author and illustrator Jess Racklyeft on indulging your dreams during lockdown

Enjoy the crazy ride: Notes from a world made smaller, by author and illustrator Jess Racklyeft

News | Author Related

12 August 2020

Enjoy the crazy ride: Notes from a world made smaller, by author and illustrator Jess Racklyeft

Gorgeous Mother's Day Picture Book: Take a look inside There's Only One Mum Like You by Jess Racklyeft

Kids & Ya

5 April 2019

Gorgeous Mother's Day Picture Book: Take a look inside There's Only One Mum Like You by Jess Racklyeft

Dreamy Picture Books: Author-illustrator Jess Racklyeft reveals her all-time favourite picture books

Kids & Ya

29 March 2019

Dreamy Picture Books: Author-illustrator Jess Racklyeft reveals her all-time favourite picture books

All Mums Are Different: The Inspiration Behind There's Only One Mum Like You by Jess Racklyeft

Kids & Ya

28 March 2019

All Mums Are Different: The Inspiration Behind There's Only One Mum Like You by Jess Racklyeft

Beautiful Tribute to Mums of All Kinds: Review of There's Only One Mum Like You by Jess Racklyeft

Kids & Ya

26 March 2019

Beautiful Tribute to Mums of All Kinds: Review of There's Only One Mum Like You by Jess Racklyeft

Artists Support Kids

Kids & Ya

15 March 2019

Artists Support Kids

Jess Racklyeft
About the author

Jess Racklyeft

Jess Racklyeft is a children's book lover, draw-er and reader based in Melbourne, who also creates work for card companies, picture books, original paintings, prints and all types of different client projects. Jess loves watercolours, but is getting more and more into combining digital work and tinker with oils, pencils and other bits and bobs she can get her mitts on. Two of the books Jess has illustrated, Merry Everything and Smile Cry, have gone on to become CBCA notables.

Books by Jess Racklyeft

COMMENTS

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *