Things could be so much worse...

So many of our family and friends have had an isolated or isolating Christmas this year and that is very sad and many feel completely terrified by "The Virus" and the thought of catching it.  It makes me realise that for some, they may never achieve their normal again.  

My daily blog serves as a record of these uncertain times although to be fair we are much less affected by the situation we find ourselves in than many others and for that I/we are extremely grateful.

In the 1660's Samuel Pepys kept a diary - the blog of his time - apparently he wrote about the things he did and the people he saw and the diary told us about ordinary things like a trip to the coffee house and what he ate for dinner and the people he met and how he felt about them. He also wrote about the Great Plague of London and on April 30th noted the following...

..."Great fear of the sickness is here in the City, it is said that two or three houses are already shut up.  God preserve us all."  

By the end of the Plague 68,569 deaths had been recorded in the city but the true number was probably over 100,000 and many of these deaths were through Pneumonic plague which attacked the lungs and spread to other people through coughing and sneezing (rather than Bubonic or Septicaemic plague).  This figure was around a third of the population of London!

If there is any comfort to be drawn from this information it is that there have been viruses before and society does recover - there were no vaccines then and no Nightingale hospitals to help the masses but they did recover. 

We have received gifts, been warm, well fed and watered throughout our festive break.  We have been allowed out and could visit and be visited (providing we complied with the numbers and the curfew).  We have kept in touch with loved ones through video calls, texts and messages.  Whatever 2021 might bring I resolve to approach it was positivity - We are blessed and we should not forget that.