Weeknotes: The wind of change blowing in Eastern Europe is hard to silence.

1. Europe: the good and the bad.

Although we knew we had it coming, Poland and Hungary’s rejection of the new “rule of law” mechanism put in place for handing out the EU recovery package is so frustrating to say the least. Europe must not fold, there is far too much at stake and chances are, Poland and Hungary will eventually give in. They just need that money too desperately. And they’re not alone in needing it. A young independent hairdresser from Belgium took her life last week in the face of the current financial hardship she has been facing. It’s time for that recovery package to be approved.

The good news? I wouldn’t call it good news, but a shout out to Belarussians is called for as last week marked 100 days since protesters took to the streets to denounce the re-election of Lukashenko after blatantly fraudulent elections. Why does the world go into a virtual freeze during the US elections but when it happens right here in our own European backyard, we let leaders get away with rigged elections for decades on end? But a wind of change is blowing and the protesters’ resilience in the face of police violence and incarcerations doesn’t seem to be dwindling. It is time the EU takes note of what is happening at the heart of “Europe’s last dictatorship” before it’s too late to still call it that and more countries follow the dark road into authoritarianism.

2. What did I do last week?

Last week I heard about an online workshop on the power of podcasting “workshop 101: how to make your own podcast”. I signed up for it and followed it over the weekend. As I saw myself sitting there among all these 20 and early 30somethings I felt strangely pleased with myself. There is something quite exhilarating about following your instinct and acting on the spot. No, in pre-covid times and especially in the pre-parenting era, a workshop surely would not have made it onto my list of thrills. Just comes to show that life is what you make of it and that the pleasures in life really do lie in the very small things 😊

3. What insights did I gain?

I’m pleased that I’m starting to better understand when it’s time to ring the alarm bell. My burn-out earlier this year has made me aware of when my body is sending me the stop signals. They’re ringing all around now and I have decided to take a small break from it all and spend Thursday and Friday this week hitting the trails on my mountain bike instead of digging myself deeper into the ground.