Don Conroy: a tiny glimmer of wholesome hope during these uncertain times

March has ended, finally.

The month that felt approximately eight years long came to an eventual and deeply dissatisfying end yesterday. And as we all prepared to take our tentative steps into April, one man took it upon himself to make the passing of Covid-19 time that little bit less daunting. It was Irish artist and all round hero Don Conroy, who shared the first of his new YouTube tutorials, Draw With Don.  The tutorial, in case you happen to be one of the 10,000 people who have yet to tune in, can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CRFX5zUdbk It features Don explaining in great detail, but with seemingly minimal effort, how one would go about drawing a clown during these trying times. As is expected, he starts with the head - a rough circle with a cross in the middle of it for context. Then, eight minutes pass and sudden you've got yourself a clown. You're content, you're happy. You've achieved something in the last 10 minutes of your day that otherwise would have been filled with scrolling mindlessly through Twitter or being sad. Well done. What could easily - for those among us who do not posses any artistic ability whatsoever - become a nightmare undertaking suddenly becomes a simple, calming, and totally enjoyable task. One that is not tainted by ever increasing active Covid-19 cases or a severe lack of talent. You only need paper and a pencil, after all. We can only presume that Don chose to draw a clown over his iconic and expected barn owl due to their inherently humorous and calming nature (unless you're afraid of clowns and in that case, you're screwed). The first addition to his new (and vastly overdue) YouTube channel, the clown represents humour. He represents joy. He represents a time where we could go outside, have a nice meal, and hug friends. He represents normality and what we once knew of it. Or maybe he's just a clown, I don't know. Distraction has been king for many since the coronavirus outbreak truly took hold of Ireland. For the past couple of weeks, most of us have been spending our time exclusively meandering between the shops and the park. Others might not have left the house at all, worried that they'll pass on the virus to a loved one who might be immunocompromised or elderly. And so to curb the boredom, we've gotten creative. Turning to cook-alongs, home concerts, crocheting, and of course, drawing - anything to keep us distracted in our homes while the world falls to pieces outside. Couple that with the intense nostalgia that comes with someone like Don Conroy stepping in and providing us with a solid 10 minutes of soothing artistic content, and suddenly, things don't seem all that hopeless. "We might as well celebrate the people who bring us joy and laughter in this world," he says at the end of the video. "Why not start with the clowns?"