Love in A Time of Corona

A single white puffy cloud served only to emphasise the utter blueness of the Patara sky. A blueness defying comparison. The line of surf frothed white singing sibilant as it hissed in. The sand felt warm beneath his feet. Joy. Morgan saw his own deep joy reflected back from the eyes of his wife and lover, the beautiful Lisa.

The taste of freedom. Of normality even; a normality returning after months of confinement. Confinement that had helped them escape the deadly Corona virus.

“Let’s swim” said Lisa.

“What now? No costumes?”

“Yes now! To hell with it Morgan. There’s nobody here.”

She peeled off her clothes running naked into the surf. Morgan followed discarding his teeshirt and shorts as he ran.

They played and laughed like children, running back to dry themselves with their shirts in the early morning sun. Lisa dropped on to the sand.

“Make love to me Morg. I want you now.”

Morgan, incredulous, dropped on the sand beside her. Lisa’s face glowed. Her lips, slightly parted, beckoned inviting. As Morgan leaned in playfully to touch tongues the sound of the surf swelled and the heavenly music of piano and pan pipes fluted in harmony

“Kill it for Christ’s sake Morgan. The Alarm! Morgan! Kill it please. I’m tired”

Morgan, came to slowly, groped for his alarm and swiped Heavenly Piano dead on the phone. The taste of disappointment was bitter as reality surged in.

A dream. A bloody dream. A cruel bloody dream. Another day in lockdown, the 42nd consecutive, yawned drerarily monotonous ahead of him..

Had you there eh? Come on. You were thinking “Is this the right blog?” Well, you are in the right blog. This An Englishman Abroad but I am writing a book you see. Boomer! The Tangled Tale of Morgan Clutch.

And what better time to write than in this Time of Corona? Why is that, you ask?

Because Corona is a novel virus.

Boom! Boom! LoL and all that. Oh come on, I bet you wish you had thought of that one.

Seriously though I am 65,000 words in to my first and definitely my only novel. I never dreamed it would be so hard (Ooh Matron!). Anyway as Magnus Magnusson used to say “I’ve started so I’ll finish”.

The story of the life of Morgan Clutch Boomer Baby has to have a few moment érotiques, so I thought I would try a bit of my hot prose out on you because I do not want to end up as a contender for the Bad Sex Awards, joining the likes of Douglas Hurd and Edwina Currie.

Peu probable though as I would need to get some readers for that to happen. So far only my builder friend Baz has promised to do that. “As long as I do not die first” he likes to quip. Bless.

I should say that Boomer is a work of fiction, broadly speaking, in case any of you are seeing The Special K and me in that opening scene. Although I have observed that this period of internment has had a positive effect on many relationships that scene would be pimping it a bit. Actually several people really have told me that the hugely increased emphasis on spending time together at home has been positive for their relationship.

In personal terms, I do believe that seven weeks (and counting) in co-isolation has brought my own Darling Girl to a greater understanding of just how lucky she is too. Long may it last.

Funnily enough, last Sunday Louise Doughty (bestselling author apparently) penned an article for the Sunday Times entitled How to Write a Novel in Lockdown. It contained 10 tips such as Number One Stay off the booze.

So I am done before I start then. My writing, I find, improves enormously after a glass or two. The secret is NOT to read it afterwards. Remember that and you will find that alcohol is a great friend.

There were various other tips for wannabes like me in the article. My personal favourite, however, was coined over a hundred years ago by Mary Heaton Vorse ‘The art of writing is the art of applying the seat of the pants to the seat of the chair.’

Procrastination is the real enemy. In all endeavours. Momentum is the thing. Ready, Fire, Aim! as Tom Peters, the 1990s Management Guru, put it.

So what will be your Lockdown Fruit?

Good luck with it whatever it is and if you are thinking of writing that novel my advice would be….er…DONT!!

Şerefe