Image: HEAVY DUTY.  Labels Series. 2010. Mixed Media Collage on Card. 

HEAVY DUTY.

How many of you have amassed a huge pile of rubbish, destined for the local recycling centre during this lockdown? I expect more than a few. Over the weekend I visited my local centre three times, I was turned away twice due to the queue being full, before I could get a load of wood finally disposed of. I must admit the arrangements there were well thought out and social distancing was insisted upon and well observed, but the queues of cars were long and the wait times even longer. It only goes to show that the essential services we rely upon are all interlinked and equally necessary for our general health and well being. So too are the people who provide these important services. Our health is not only dependant on brave medical professionals and care workers, but the many unsung heroes who keep the environmental necessities ticking over; so often existing on minimum pay and poor working conditions. If one positive has come out of  this pandemic it is the nations realisation of  the role essential workers play in all our lives. We can only hope that this gives rise to a redistribution of wealth in their favour.