Covid: This could be my 97-year-old mother's last Christmas but I won't be there to give her a cuddle – Steve Cardownie

Christmas and Hogmany will obviously not be the same this year.

Relaxing the Covid restrictions to allow Christmas gatherings is plain daft, says Steve Cardownie (Picture: Peter Berry)

Although I think that the easing of some restrictions over Christmas is just plain daft, I am well aware that many will take the opportunity to visit friends and relatives over the festive season.

The consequences of doing so, however, might mean that there will be fewer to visit next Christmas but hopefully that will be borne in mind and “get-togethers” will be kept to a minimum.

My own mother resides in a care home up in the Highlands where she relocated from Edinburgh many years ago and, at the ripe old age of 97, this Christmas may well be her last and as much as it pains me that I will not be able to give her a cuddle and a wee peck on the cheek, I realise that if I did so it may well prove fatal, not only for her, but for other residents too.

If this new strain of the virus takes hold and quickly spreads (and so far there is nothing to suggest that it won’t), the number of cases may well increase until the vaccination rollout begins to bear fruit and Covid-19 is in retreat.

I totally understand that people’s circumstances are quite different and that a family visit may outweigh other considerations but although the restrictions may be temporarily eased, it is still not advised to make such visits if they can be avoided.

The light at the end of the tunnel is widening. It would be a shame if it was to narrow again after Christmas!

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