It is unbelievable to think we have been in lockdown now for a whole year. I keep a five year diary and when I looked back on my entry from a year ago I was staggered to see what I had written: ‘This coronavirus sounds terrible. The schools are having to close for a week, maybe two. Everyone is worried. I hope it passes soon.’ Little did I realise at the time what lay ahead…

We began lockdown with a sense of shock, of unreality: this was the unknown, the untrodden route, the uncertain path. We were fearful of a precarious future. Gradually this gave way to a sense of acceptance as we became accustomed to the new normal: social distancing, self isolation, mask wearing, home schooling, home working, front line working, continual sanitising, sanitising, sanitising.

None of us could possibly have envisioned how our lives would be for the next year, but here we are, wearied yes, but hopefully stronger, wiser and more resilient as we have encountered and survived many new and difficult challenges. The resilience of the human spirit is staggering and awesome.

For those who have lost loved ones during lockdown, whether as a result of Covid or other factors, the grief must have been overwhelming. They have had to say goodbye to a loved one sometimes without being near them, without the comfort of a proper funeral, without the sustaining arms of family and friends to enfold them. I cannot even begin to imagine the pain they must have experienced.

Although at times lockdown has been incredibly challenging, it has taught me that life can be lived and enjoyed with less: less people, less things, less outings, less holidays, less money, less hurry. Instead it has given me so much more: more time, more quiet, more peace, more appreciation, more gratitude, more prayer. I hope I can take the lessons I have learned through lockdown with me into the future, as it is only too easy to forget.

I love the appearance of the spring flowers. When the snowdrops and crocuses appear, I am always reminded that there is life after winter: there is hope; there is joy; there is light; there is sunshine. Life goes on, and life will go on after lockdown. This too shall pass, and we will emerge hopefully wiser and kinder, with the ability to appreciate the simple things in life and most of all, the people we love.