By Thruxton reporter Richard Smart
One of the positive aspects of the COVID 19 crisis for the village of Thruxton has been seeing how amazingly well the children have coped. They have remained upbeat, well mannered and shown off what a talented group they are.
Richard spoke with Darcie Eaton aged 9 about how she had found the last few months. Darcie said “Lockdown was ok as I liked the fact that, I could do a bit of schoolwork and then go outside and play.
“I also didn’t have to wake up at a certain time for school and could spend time cooking and playing with Mummy and my dog Otto. I did miss having my friends over to play though”
Darcie understands a lot about the pandemic and said, “I was very surprised when Donald Trump told people they should inject themselves with disinfectant. That sounded like something a three-year-old would say. Even I know that that would be very dangerous!!”
Now back at school Darcie is enjoying seeing her friends again but things are of course different. “The way that we do stuff like our tables are different than how they would have been – they are in lines now rather than facing each other. We also have plastic strips up so we can keep the doors open but not get too cold.
“But the windows are also always open now, so I do get cold all the time anyway! We aren’t allowed to interact with other classes anymore and we are not allowed to play on the playground all together like we used to. But we are all getting used to it and hopefully one day we can get back to normal”
Darcie wrote the following wonderful poem about lockdown:
Lovely long walks
Orange colours up high
Cockerels squawk louder than ever
Kites flying in the wind
Dogs ears flapping ridiculously
O ’pleasant lilies shimmering in the sun
Wandering through the forest listening to the sounds
Noise is beautiful from the right person
Another Thruxton youngster 15-year-old Maisey Rowles is hoping to go on a trip to Borneo next July but has the challenge of raising £4500!
Maisey however is a determined and resourceful young girl who started her fundraising last year by shaving her hair off and even through lockdown has managed to do some online fundraising.
This week Maisey hosted an e-quiz and online raffle for the villagers which was great fun. She raised £40 from the quiz and a whopping £210 from the raffle which is great news. A further £100 was raised in the raffle to help fund activities for the village children in the coming months.
Richard Smart concluded, “The kids in this village are amazing in the way they have embraced the COVID challenge. Adults could learn a thing or two from them! The village will continue to support and encourage the youngsters as we do for all members of our wonderful community”.
Read more from Richard and the village of Thruxton in the next issue of the Love Andover Observer – available for free from Thursday 8th October.
