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I’m f@cking fuming!
One of my best friends, Malc, died of cancer the week before lockdown. Because I had briefly interacted with a workmate who had tested positive for COVID-19, I didn’t visit him in the week before he died. I didn’t get to say goodbye to him. [1/13]
One of my best friends, Malc, died of cancer the week before lockdown. Because I had briefly interacted with a workmate who had tested positive for COVID-19, I didn’t visit him in the week before he died. I didn’t get to say goodbye to him. [1/13]
Due to the lockdown, the crematorium requested that only his close family attended his funeral. Malc’s brother lived 130 miles away. He took the difficult decision that he and Malc’s nephews shouldn’t risk travelling that distance for the funeral and they stayed home. [2/13]
Malc’s auntie lived even closer, only 60 miles away. She made the same decision and stayed home. Malc’s friend all respected the crematorium’s request and we stayed home. Malc’s parents attended his funeral alone. [3/13]
My wife’s aunt also sadly passed away during the lockdown. She was in a care home and none of her family could visit her. We all knew the risks of exposing the care home to COVID-19. My wife said goodbye to her aunt over the phone. [4/13]
The care home staff were wonderful and were with her at the end. No-one could attend her funeral. My wife was sheltering and all of her aunt’s local family were in the over-70 at risk group. [5/13]
The funeral directors were amazing, recording the funeral service so that her brother & sisters, nephews & nieces could watch it at home. Because we all stayed home. [6/13]
And now we find out that we were all selfish and unloving. That if we’d had any compassion as friends and as family, we should have followed our instincts. We should have visited the care home. We should have attended these funerals. [7/13]
We should have done these things because, despite the very clear message put out by our government at the time, well-being of family and our own mental health should have been more important than preventing the spread of COVID-19. [8/13]
Because protecting the NHS and saving lives should have been lower priority than making sure our family got what they wanted. Because we were not clever enough or caring enough to correctly interpret the government’s lockdown rules to suit our own desires. [9/13]
And the tame, obedient Tory MPs are being rolled out like Napoleonic footsoldiers, cannon fodder in the firing line of the press and public. “Acceptable explanation”. “What every father would have done”. “Time to move on”. [10/13]
How f@cking dare you! How dare you tell us we got it wrong. How dare you tell us we weren’t compassionate enough. That we were not caring parents and friends. That we should just move on because you want the story to disappear. [11/13]
