In my blog yesterday I asked if we’d reached the lowest point in our coronavirus journey.
Today the answer is a resounding ‘no’. The news that Boris Johnson had been moved to intensive care following a deterioration in his condition came like a hammer blow to me last night.
It’s so sad to see this positive, ebullient, larger than life character who has been such a big part of British life for two decades laid low by this ghastly virus.
It’s horrible to think of him, along with thousands of others, suffering in a hospital ICU having no direct contact with his pregnant fiancé Carrie and other family members.
What must he be thinking, supposedly the most powerful man in the country, now totally dependent on the NHS doctors, nurses in London’s St. Thomas’ Hospital.
There could not be a more poignant reminder of the vulnerabilities of each and every one of us. It also makes me reflect on the sacrifices made by our political leaders and to wonder whether Boris made himself worse by not feeling able to rest when the virus first took hold.
For me personally the news contributed to what felt like another sleepless night and, for reasons unexplained, ratcheted up my anxiety levels. I can feel it now, an unmistakable tightness in my stomach. Apart from perhaps 9/11 I don’t recall any world event making me feel like that.
I saw Boris in the flesh three times last year – at a Brexit event organised by the Daily Telegraph, the Conservative Party leadership hustings in London and then the annual party conference in Manchester.
On each occasion there was a real buzz, a very special atmosphere in the audience when he appeared. There was a warmth, a readiness to laugh, an expectation that something unpredictable might happen, almost a love for the man.
Admittedly these audiences largely comprised of his fans but it’s undoubtedly a feeling many in the country share. Underlining his popularity and gainst the odds he won the London mayoral elections twice and led the successful Brexit referendum campaign.
On Friday, December 13th – I’m not superstitious but it makes you wonder – he won a thumping majority and all was set fare to get Brexit done and start transforming the country.
I so really hope and pray Boris, this much loved figure – the only politician referred to by his first name – makes a speedy recovery, has the chance to rest and before long is leading a buoyant country in a post-coronavirus era.
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