Throughout this pandemic, we've been bombarded with bad news. So many "grim milestones" have been pointed out - the number of infections, the global death toll - it's easy to forget the good news.

It mightn't sound as "sexy" - as newshounds like to put it - but it's there all the same.

Let's start with a good milestone, which NSW passed on Tuesday. Thirty straight days without community transmission. And another, on Monday: the arrival of the first batch of vaccines.

On the NSW South Coast they passed a milestone which barely rated a mention. It's been a year since the Currowan fire was extinguished. Just a year ago the talk was about the scorching drought and the parched landscape - then it was engulfed by flames. Now, it's emerald green.

Spare a thought for those still locked down elsewhere - the UK for instance where authorities have fudged and fumbled their way through the COVID crisis. Imagine being trapped in a stuffy London flat with no light, no air, no view, no space.

In comparison, we are doing pretty well here. Even the snap lockdowns, as disruptive as they've been, have kept COVID largely at bay. Victoria will officially lift the majority of restrictions imposed five days ago tonight.

Our hospitals are still functioning well, our ICUs are not overloaded as they are in so many other countries around the world.

Yes, there are improvements we could make to the hotel quarantine system and, yes, mistakes have been made. But the sheer numbers tell us that despite the missteps, we're doing very well.

So the message is: never lose sight of the positive stuff. in my part of the world, it's there in abundance. To see it, we just need to lift our gaze and look around. The bush is bouncing back. The dams are healthy. The waterfalls are working. By and large, the economy is holding up.

Sure, our travel options are still restricted but there is plenty to amaze us right here in our backyard.

It might be the unexpected sight of a wombat out for an early morning stroll, a brilliant red fungi sprouting out of the forest floor, an eagle soaring above its realm or a seascape full of stormy drama. It's all there for us to enjoy.

All we have to do is go look for it. So go for a drive, a walk, a bicycle ride and lap it up.

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