Two years on from Covid 19

 Two years on from Covid 19

It is now two years ago since the deadliest virus of our times succeeded in shutting down the entire globe. Here we are at the latter end of March 2022 and it's hard to believe what appeared to be just an innocent and temporary illness on a cruise vessel could be so destructive and fatal to so many millions. But we all saw it unravel in the most horrific, harrowing, heart-breaking fashion. It has been the most traumatic two years that most of us can ever recall and for some families, it was irrevocably life changing. 

Two years almost to the day, a medical condition known as Covid 19 swept throughout the world like some hellish hurricane that never looked like relenting until now. Now the chances are that some of you still believe that the virus is still with us. There is a huge, cross section of the global population- including Britain- who are adamant that a mask is still compulsory and should be worn at all times. The assurances have been given but they still tell us that you should avoid all crowded areas since the risk of infection is still as great as ever. 

On the London Tube train system, a vast majority of people have now permanently discarded their mask in the hope that the consensus of opinion is that the virus can no longer be as aggressive or painful as it once was. So this is where we stand. The restrictions have been lifted, North London is currently bathed in glorious spring sunshine and all is well. Manor House, it has to be said, has never looked fitter, healthier and happier. The traffic is flowing quite effortlessly although there is an element of confusion in the early morning rush hour. Every so often, things seemed to come to a grinding standstill and that has to be infuriating for the daily commuter who just wants to get to wherever they want to go. 

Here in deepest North London, there is now a wonderful sense of new beginnings, an architectural renaissance that suggests modernity, positive thinking, a sense of powerful change and progression. Most of the new luxurious apartments, flats and ziggurats are reaching into a cobalt, cloudless blue sky. A new road has been opened up to us next door and a brand new generation of families are making their presence felt. 

Across the road the Travelodge Hotel seems to be doing a roaring business although it's hard to tell. You find yourself wondering why they had to build such an enormous hotel in the middle of a North London suburb that doesn't really lend itself to any kind of tourism. But then you realise that the new arrivals here in Manor House will undoubtedly use the hotel as a place to rest their heads overnight before embarking on another business transaction. The people who book bed and breakfast at the Travelodge hotel are probably the kind of people who will get out their laptop, a bundle of papers and documents as well as all the paraphernalia that clinches deals, finishes off major projects or simply keeps them busy.

So late at night your eyes wander across to the kaleidoscope of colours that light up the hotel. Gleaming purple light bulbs are a nightly illumination and if you're an architect, you may be feeling pretty pleased with yourself. This is not Las Vegas or Piccadilly Circus in the middle of London's thriving West End but it is a wondrous sight and quite the most magnificent building. It's an edifice that takes your breath away although there is a part of you that remains convinced that it still looks out of place. 

Anyway since the beginning of spring your mind and body begin to adjust themselves to brighter horizons, something to energise and stimulate you, revitalise and boost you. The cherry blossom on the trees look as spectacular as ever but some of the branches are still missing their comforting foliage. This is not to suggest that they're in desperate need of green because Mother Nature will take care of that. There is an air of gradual recovery in the suburbs accurately reflecting events around the country. 

Later on this year Her Majesty the Queen will be celebrating her Platinum Jubilee with street parties and general jollity across Britain. For the Royal Family, sadly, this has been a difficult and challenging time. Last year Her Majesty lost her husband Prince Philip and it was a death rightly marked with due solemnity and dignity. But for Her Majesty this will be one of the most rewarding years of her life. The Queen of course has seen it all and has served her country with unstinting loyalty and that devotion of duty that continues to leave us all gasping with admiration.

Come June though and we'll all be kicking our legs up into the air, putting out the party bunting and draping Union Jacks from every street and road lamp-post as if it were 1977 and then 2012 again. Springtime though has now revitalised all of us. After an invigorating walk in the park with some good friends you took your lunch, drank tea and sighed gratefully for the gift of life. Sometimes you have to pinch yourself at the magnificence of it all, the early suggestions of tulips and daffodils. But hold on we can see them now and there's no need to wait patiently because they're here now. 

And then in the morning you watch the flocks of geese and most of the bird population doing the samba across the skies, swooping, swaying, diving, flapping frantically in the most orderly of formations. It could be mistaken for a human ballet presentation but then you begin to think that your imagination is running away with you. Spring is wearing its most elegant set of clothes, dressed immaculately as always and ready to give us the Boat Race, the Grand National and those springtime festivals of Pesach and Easter.

So as you sort through your papers or swot intensely for school exams it would be wise to remember that two years ago we were in an altogether different place. It was a deeply distressing period of our lives since none of us knew what was happening to us. Humans are naturally sociable and love to be amongst family and friends. Now we may have taken all of these factors for granted, just part of the daily landscape of our lives. Then the world shut down and we were only allowed to walk in the park and even that came with several caveats. 

Still it's nice to know that we can at least escape this soul destroying confinement and not worry where our next piece of furniture may be coming from. Some of us were briefly concerned about a mass closure of all supermarkets and that would be the end of civilisation as we knew it. But the boxes of eggs and toilet rolls were replenished and we were all told to remain calm. And yet all human contact and communication had to be stopped until further notice. By your own admission that was pretty scary and frightening rather like some emotional journey into the unknown. 

The fact is we're all still here with each other and that's all that mattered. My wife and yours truly are now fairly frequent visitors to the cinema and theatre and it all feels as Covid 19 was some tragic historical aberration in some far off continent. They say a week is a long time in politics but two years of death, suffering and losses as a result of a worldwide virus can also leave you numb, shocked and dumbfounded. Still, April is almost upon us and hopefully the showers from that famous song will simply wash away memories of what used to be and never come back again. Happy Springtime everybody.