I don’t need to resort to tropes to tell anyone how hard the last year has been. Since COVID-19 hit the UK like a train (no political discussion please) we’ve been in lockdown longer than I can ever remember. This has been hard on us all, but one for the weird consequences of this has been my contact with other people. I’ve only been able to see the outside world through Social Media — and that sucks!

I’ve spoken before about missing just being around others, and the lack of physical contact that I think humanity needs to survive. I have been talking, interacting and looking at everyone though the smokey lens of the online world for so long I forgot how great people actually are.

It’s easy to get disillusioned about the way of the world. More so when your bombarded with the worst that it has to offer, what feels like a constant stream of bad news and outrage with some random conspiracies thrown in for good measure. It’s only when getting back to some semblance of normal that it all starts to make sense. As the country opens back up again, I can now start to talk to people in person. Laugh and joke almost like old times that you begin to realise that the world is a much more positive pace when you remove all the digitals in between.

There is nothing like real people, in a real situation that brightens things up. Makes humanity seem great again and improve the despair felt when staying at home. I’ve got through the latest lockdowns with a few scrapes and metal bruises but being able to get out and about again is brilliant. These Smokey lens I have looking at the world through have been lifted, and I am forever grateful.