The new Covid strain 'Omicron' was discovered on November 24th, 2021, and is said to be 10 times more dangerous than the coronavirus.

I was at a nearby park when I encountered Vanessa, an 83-year-old woman who was out on a morning walk with her dog Ernie. Vanessa and I were having a quick talk about how Covid-19 had influenced her life and the challenges she encountered. She explained that her spouse died two months before the coronavirus, leaving her alone and isolated.

Vanessa's daughters were primarily handling her essential shopping for her, and her grandchildren were not coming to see their grandmother because they were at school and there was a potential, they could pass it on to her. Vanessa also revealed that she has type 1 diabetes, putting her at a higher risk of contracting the virus, which is why she had no visitors for a year.

Vanessa had also indicated that not having someone in her home made her feel more alienated and depressed, and she characterised the feeling as being "locked in a prison with no locks."

Vanessa also expressed her concern about how this new variant will affect her and whether there will be a new lockdown or whether she will be alone again this Christmas. Vanessa used to keep herself occupied by knitting scarves for her grandchildren and watching TV, but now there wasn't much to do for the rest of the day, so she cooked and did yoga to pass the time.

 

This year has been particularly difficult for people especially the elderly, who have been socially separated from relatives and activities they enjoy, such as travel and meeting up with others.

There must be a lot of other older people in a similar situation like Vanessa, where there isn't much for them to do or go places. It is more than likely that they are also worried that they will have to spend another Christmas alone, or even have the thought that they will be around this Christmas. So, for this Christmas let us be kind to the elderly folk around, and bring a smile to their face.