It’s Easter Sunday so the normal introduction to this week’s Reflections would be “Happy Easter”.

 

But these are unusual times and for far too many people there can be no happiness. We’ve thought for far too long that we were secure in our mastery of the world; but we’ve suddenly been made aware of the fact that nature remains well and truly beyond our control.

 

Last Sunday brought us the most perfect spring day – we all revelled in the warmth of the sunshine and the beauty of our surrounding countryside. But it also strengthened the worldwide presence of Covid-19 and took away from us one of the best-known and best-loved members of our community. Mary Caroe, pictured below, died peacefully at Mount Alvernia Hospital in the early hours of 5 April.

 

 

Neither Vann nor the village will be same without her. In sending our deepest sympathies to her family, all of us in Hambledon will be mourning an amazing lady.

 

We’re now three weeks into lockdown. To quote from the Hambledon Village Shop up-date posted on 9 April, it’s amazing how quickly the unusual can become the norm. The hustle and bustle and chatter and noise of erstwhile daily life has now morphed into quietness – more or less pleasurable depending on whether we are listening to birdsong, uninterrupted by droning aeroplanes and hooting cars, or whether we are having to embark on yet another day’s homeworking.

 

Just about everything is now being done virtually, including the running of the Grand National (and no, Post Office Alan didn’t succeed in backing the winner – but his son did).

 

However, some things can still be done for real, such as cooking. An amazing selection of Bron’s recipes were posted on the website on 7 April to get us started and all the ingredients that we’ll need are, of course, available from the Village Shop.

 

The Shop delivery service is now operating regularly on five days a week and must surely be set for an entry in the next Guinness Book of Records (which does still exist – courtesy of Amazon). This week’s orders totalled 259 – with 60 being delivered, all within Hambledon, on one day. That is 30 per cent more than the number delivered on the same day, throughout Godalming and beyond, by one of our local supermarkets.

 

A further service is also in the pipeline. Witley and Milford Surgery is hoping to arrange for prescriptions to be delivered to their over-65 patients who would normally have to pick these up from the Wheeler Lane surgery.

 

The two Hambledon fund-raising initiatives that were announced last week have both got off to flying starts. The Merry Harriers Fund has already contributed £800 to help villagers who, through no fault of their own, have suffered financial hardship on account of the economic slow-down. In addition, Peter de Savary,  the pub’s owner, decided that more needed to be done so he sent manager Jake Andreou shopping for Easter eggs. The photo shows 200 of these being delivered by Jake to The Royal Surrey County Hospital.

 

 

The pub has has also donated Easter eggs to the volunteers who are running the Village Shop and delivering the orders. As Martin Thompson commented as he and others worked hard at the shop this week, a wonderful gesture.

 

The second fund, the Village Spirit Collective on-line raffle that was launched to benefit the Community Fund for Surrey’s Coronarvus Response Fund, has raised £400 to date – and there’s still another week in which to purchase tickets. Between us all, can we bring the total up to £1,000? If so, perhaps another entry in the Guinness Book of Records?