Express & Star comment: An entire year of lockdowns
A year ago, in the blink of an eye, the world as we know it closed down.
We all went home and were told to stay there.
In the months that followed shops, pubs and restaurants closed, some never to reopen.
Jobs went in their thousands and our children's education stalled.
We clapped for carers, as hospital staff worked long hours in cramped Covid wards, dealing with death on a scale not seen in this country since the Second World War.
Across our region thousands of people volunteered to help the fight, delivering food parcels and other support to those who needed it most.
Sporting events were cancelled, aeroplanes were grounded and people of all religions were denied the ability to worship together.
The world went online, as the phrase 'Zoom meeting' became part of our vocabulary.
Tragically, many of us lost loved ones well before their time. In the hospitals and care homes of the region, thousands of people have died.
This awful disease has left an indelible mark on every aspect of our society, some elements of which will never be the same again.
In today's Star we reflect on the impact that Covid has had on people across the region.
We speak to people who have lost those closest to them, such as the family of Areema Nasreen, who was one of the first British NHS workers to die in the pandemic, aged just 36.
While we have all lost so much over the past 12 months, the fact that we finally appear to be heading out of the pandemic suggests better times ahead.
The vaccine roll out continues at a pace, despite the EU's spiteful and bitter efforts to derail it.
The roadmap out of lockdown – for the time being at least – appears to be on course, giving hope that by summer most of our personal freedoms will have been restored.
But we are not there yet by any means, as the tragic death from Covid of Sandwell councillor Sandra Hevican shows.
For the sake of our communities, we must continue to abide by the rules until it is safe for us to change our behaviour.
All of those we have lost, will never be forgotten.
As we look to move forward, it is crucially important that we reflect on this dreadful period and learn the lessons that enable us to not repeat the mistakes of the past.
Make no mistake, the challenges that lie ahead are in some ways as daunting as the problems faced in the past year.
The economic crisis is likely to lead to a jobs crisis, with young people – many of whom have missed months of education – disproportionately affected.
Crime rates, which went down for some categories of crime during the past year, have already started to rise once again.
Many of our high streets, which were on life support before the pandemic hit, are now past the point of desperation.
The long term impact of a year of isolation on the region's mental health is yet to be laid bare.
The truth is that all of the issues that were there before the start of the pandemic have now become more acute.
To get through the next 12 months, we will need a togetherness and a fighting spirit the likes of which has not been seen for generations.
