A Journal of the Plague Year

Sunday 19 April 2020, 6pm Strange times. I've just heard myself say: "That's good" over the latest news that 596 people died of coronavirus today.

Sunday 19 April 2020, 3pm I've been holding off on this for a little. It was too upsetting when the news came through that Antie Kath had died of Covid-19 after a decline in a care home where she had been resident for a while. Auntie Kath was my wife's aunt, but herself and her husband Uncle John were the backbone of the Leicester-based family as long as I've known them. I joined the family about 30 years ago and both John and Kath were so welcoming. I felt immediately safe with them when we visited and felt also as if I'd known them for years. The generosity and hospitality were amazing. Auntie Kath kept on slipping chocolate bars into my pockets as if I was ten years old. And I noticed that I always got an extra big lunch or dinner. One look at me and she could tell that I would need a big bowl. She wasn't wrong. And in the morning, it was just assumed (correctly) that I would eat a couple of bacon rolls at least. On one of the earliest occasions (before our dau...