Life on The Spaceship

Just over a week ago it became clear that in order to stay as healthy as possible during the current COVID-19 pandemic, I needed to self-isolate. I always need close physical support from others to complete many essential daily tasks like washing or moving in and out of my chair, but this close contact increases the risk of me catching the virus or me passing it to others, so I also decided to limit the number of different people providing my support.

We were due to be touring Not I at the moment so our production manager Erik, is over from Spain. Because of the pandemic he hasn’t been able to get home, so for the meantime he’s staying at the castle and splitting my support with Claire and Leftwing Idiot.

The four of us are in lockdown together and are operating as a unit. I usually refer to my home as the castle because it’s in an old pub of that name. But for the last week we’ve been calling it the spaceship instead.

Somehow thinking of my home as a spaceship and us as the crew is helping us all get through this strange and challenging time. Here’s a drawings of our spaceship.

A hand drawn, digital image of Touretteshero's home usually known as the Castle as a Spaceship. The image is landscape and the top third is outside in outer space with a dark blue sky and yellow stars. There is a Touretteshero vehicle parked up on the far left hand corner and the lamppost wearing a space helmet is peaking out the sun roof. The vehicle is laden with food to take to others. Inside the spaceship are three main rooms the living area and galley on the left. The support workers room with Monkey the space cat sitting on the bed and Touretteshero is asleep in her bunk on the far left. There is a control desk with Erik at the helm and Leftwing Idiot and Claire are also relaxing in the living area.

I’m used to seeing lots of different people and think of Biscuit Land as a place full of my friends and family. It’s only been a week and it already feels hard not seeing them.

This is a drawing of lots of the people who normally inhabit Biscuit Land in their separate spaceship bubbles. The Touretteshero spaceship crew are at the bottom and includes Erik, the lamp-post, Touretteshero, the geranium. Monkey Cat, Leftwing Idiot, Claire and the Touretteshero van. Other people include Fat Sister, King Russell and Bean, Laura and her family, Ruth and her nieces and nephews, Joyce sleeping on a chair and Chopin and her lamp.

What does your spaceship look like? Who are you traveling with? Do you have an unruly geranium and a wonky lamp-post as part of your crew? I’d love to know more about the spaceships that are getting other people through the long journey of this pandemic, so please share your ideas in the comments below or get in touch with your drawings or images.

Our shared mission has to be to get as many people as possible through this pandemic safely. To achieve this, staying at home is essential, but that doesn’t have to mean that your home stays as it is. For me, my imagination is offering a playful way of re-framing what’s happening.

I’ve to go now because I can hear Erik calling from the galley that dinner’s ready.

Goodnight out there – wherever you are.

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