It’s crazy now to imagine that just a few weeks ago, everyone was going about their days normally. There were no lockdowns or quarantines in effect and there was no virus that we knew of. Now that we’ve lived with this scary reality for a few weeks, it’s hard to think of how we weren’t already worrying about it. Alas, here we are.
Most of the world is locked away trying to protect themselves and others from the harsh reality that is COVID-19 (also known as Coronavirus; CoV or CV-19). All over the world, governments are taking action to protect their people. Here in the UK, we can finally say the same. The country is basically in lockdown.
Because of my mum’s health problems, we began self-isolationg for at least a week before the lockdown was announced. We’ve been very careful and have been isolating at home for almost four weeks now. We are constantly making sure our hands are clean (using both soap and sanitiser) and everything that enters the house gets disinfected immediately.
Mum being vulnerable also means that it’s harder to make sure we have food in to keep us going. It’s hit us hard and has become one of the main things we worry about nowadays. Thankfully, so many kind people have helped us already. From continuous help and support from family friends, to amazingly kind people in the community reaching out to us to make sure we have everything we need. It’s been really heart-warming and is making me realise how great humanity can be.
While so many people are staying safe by staying at home however, there are people who are still not listening to the guidelines given. We live in a very rural small town area, which is usually a tourist spot because of how many beaches are nearby. Some people have been taking advantage of the quarantine to come over here and have small holidays. Quite a few people were caught, with a recent story of a family who came all the way from Manchester just to spend a day at the beach. I’m not lying when I say that it’s scary.
We’ve found that a few people are acting irrationally out of that fear.
Through all of this fear and through all of this loss, it’s easy to be fearful of what kind of future we’re walking into. In times like these, it’s becoming harder for people to stay positive. Days feel like they’re all merged into one and the lockdown doesn’t seem to be easing anytime soon. However hard this may become though, we must stay strong. We must isolate for the safety of ourselves and everyone around us. It’s important that we all stick together. Not literally, of course.
We are determined to stay positive, and most importantly; at home.
Cerys