Lockdown has been all about can'ts and don'ts

Hopefully after what seems like 12 months of "you can't do this and you can't do that" we are about to enter a new period, albeit cautiously, in which our life balance will change and we can begin to enjoy "you can do this and you can do that." Throughout the pandemic it has been all about government micromanaging our lives: standing at least two metres from anyone not in your household bubble, not going for a walk with friends, just one other person, not sitting down on a bench and eating a sandwich, not drinking coffee while walking, not driving more than six miles from your home, not flying anywhere, not eating out, not going to the library or concerts or theatre or cinema, not hugging anyone outside that wretched bubble etc. There was a brief relaxation in the summer when that crazy eat-out-and-help-out project was launched to encourage people to go back to restaurants and eat substantial meals and then when we all flocked to our favourite eateries it was all closed down again. How much Covid spreading happened during that brief flurry of madness? Now, with the vaccination programme going great guns - people in their 50s are being called up for the jab - and a dramatic drop in the number of hospital Covid cases, we're going to be allowed to step out into the sunshine with a little more sense of normality. But still the government will be micromanaging us. So while there will be more "you can do this" there will still be plenty of "but you can't do that". That's in the UK. There will be similar relaxations in the US but Dr Anthony Fauci, the ultra-cautious expert on viruses, is talking abou the need for masks in public until NEXT YEAR. With all these restrictions on our liberty for so long, I wonder if we have all now become hermit-like and timid and worried and cautious and undaring? In other words, will we ever really go back to pre-pandemic normal or will we hide behind our front doors, scared to go wild and enjoy life to the full? I hope not but even after we have all been double-dose jabbed, there is bound to be a lingering hesitation about the life ahead, particularly among older people.