This article was written for Annabel & Grace, which is now part of Rest Less.
Now here is a woman who has a wonderful story to tell. Her name is Hazell Jacobs, she is 87 and, as she has discovered during lockdown “Life certainly does not stop when you are over 50, 60, 70 or 80. Don’t know about 90 yet, but ever hopeful.”
Hello. I am Hazell. I am 87, live on my own and am limited in internet skills. On 2 March 2020 I had a little stroke, a TIA. Words were jumbled for a short time. I couldn’t get out “fromage frais, Evening Standard, Marks and Spencer.” Little did I think that would be such a positive turning point in my life. The idea just came to me in the middle of the night… I would write a blog.
Not that I was very sure what that meant. I am a collector of ducks, snuff bottles, earrings, and vintage scarves gathered over decades travelling around the world. Nothing of great value but maybe I could write my life history in a haphazard way through memories triggered by something I had collected and, at the same time, document my feelings in an extraordinary year of Covid 19.
Scarves it was then. Along with statins, blood pressure pills, blood thinners… a new way of life. I call my blog Scarf Aid. Little did I think I would still be writing it after a year and having so much fun.
My 21 year old grand-daughter Ella set up my webpage and I launched it on 26 March. For one hundred days, I wrote about a different scarf and the memories I associated with it. When it looked as if the pandemic was in retreat, I dropped to one post every Sunday.
An American journalist found my blog and asked if she could write about me. In October a big article appeared in the New York Times under the title In Her Words. I see that Meghan Markle would also write later in the same column of that paper about suffering a miscarriage. My humble site was bombarded with over four thousand hits that day and I wondered if I was dreaming.
The Sunday Telegraph then sent a reporter and a photographer, all masked up, to interview me in my garden. Another half page colour spread appeared at the beginning of October.
I did podcasts for America and made new friends all over the world. Maybe I cheered a few people along the way, as did Captain Tom… young and old.
It’s exactly one year on and I am still happily writing about my memorable journeys sparked by a load of old scarves. Why not join me? Read my latest post entitled Off With The Beano featuring my Liz Claiborne scarf.
Sometimes in life it does us the world of good to just stop for a moment, settle down with a nice cup of tea or coffee and take some time out to be inspired, entertained or educated. Which is why we have lots more quick but enjoyable reads here