We lost Mum to cancer in March, just as Covid was kicking off. The funeral was too small and too brief. Afterwards there wasn’t time to grieve. With Dad on his own now, knowing what we should do about Christmas Day has been *really* hard. #Covid19 #NHS
1/n

Dad’s officially in our bubble & over the summer we saw him a lot. But more recently - with Covid surging - we’ve been much more careful. No more visits to our house. When he needs help I go to him, alone, wear a mask and keep my distance. 2/n

At work we spend our days looking across regions for spare ITU beds, then moving critically ill patients from hospital to hospital & stretching staff to level the load. This is real. This is tough. Don’t ever let anyone tell you that it’s not. #NHS #Covid19 3/n

So I’ll drive to Dad’s house, say Merry Christmas from the end of the driveway & tell him what he knows already: that I love him, that I wish for all the world I could be with him but that this is just a day, and better days lie in wait, just around the corner. #Covid19 #NHS 4/4