The third day of the new year. Time to review the past three hundred and sixty six days, reflecting, reminiscing and relaxing after two weeks of restricted festivities. This time last year I went to the cinema with my son and daughter-in-la to watch “Little Women” – my first official outing since my hip replacement. No chance of a cinema visit this year, not until the Tier 4 pandemic restrictions are lifted. Yes, we can till watch movies at home on streaming services such as Netflix, but it just isn’t the same. Ever since the first “lockdown” as imposed back in March last year social life has been seriously curtailed. No doubt in 20 or 30 years from now historians will be mulling over the facts and figures and positing theories about “what happened” and/or “what were the effects on the population” and – inevitably “what they should have done . . .” The last one is easy. Everyone grows very wise with hindsight and they have been able to pick over evidence not available at the time. What is clear to me, right now, in the middle of an infection surge, is that people STILL do not comprehend that there is a virus out there and it is transmitted in the droplets infected persons breathe out. Worse still, some people who test positive actually show no symptoms. Yet groups of people still cluster together without any apparent regard for “social distancing”. Whatever possessed the huddle of 300 or so people gathered at the beach last week to watch the cold water swimmers? What desperate need drives people to cluster in queues outside the takeaway food shops in the High Street? And why do people feel the need to keep walking closer to you when holding a brief conversation? It is not just a local problem – both my brother and sister in California commented on people moving closer.
What will the historians of the future make of the decisions made today? as I perceive it, government decisions are made on a political as opposed to a practical basis. The Powers-That-Be are constantly checking their decisions to ensure that they will be voted in at the next election. As the pandemic continues scientists are learning more information on how to fight it. However, their findings are not popular so those in charge hesitate – after all, forcing a “lockdown” has extremely serious financial consequences BUT the consequences of rampaging infection are WORSE. We lurched from lockdown to lockdown last year. This year we have the two vaccines. It will take time to inoculate all those willing but by next year, in 2022, the pandemic will be under control. Meanwhile the mantra is “space – hands – face” i.e. keep 2 metres apart – wash your hands – and wear a face mask. Better still, the hardest thing to do: avoid people!

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