Thank you to all of you who have read my blog and stayed with me over this unprecedented year as we’ve all tried to make sense of the situation unfolding around us. (I felt I had to get the word “unprecedented” in this blog somewhere!)
As 2020 draws to a close, it will without doubt go down in history. For those living through it life will probably never feel quite the same again and the school children of the future will study the pandemic alongside other world changing events already in the history books.
There has not been much good news this year but amongst all the fear and sadness there have been some heart-warming stories, some uplifting stories and more than a few truly bizarre stories. For Christmas week here is a piece with a difference, featuring my particular favourites of the lighter stories from this year.
(All links are to reputable sites)
Surviving Two Pandemics
There have been several cases of the very elderly surviving COVID-19 but perhaps one of the most heart-warming stories has to be Anna Del Priore who is a survivor, in every sense of the word.
Aged 108, Anna survived Spanish Flu at the age of six in 1918 and COVID-19 in 2020. Not only is she back to dancing and enjoying life, her sister Helen, at a mere 105 years old, also survived COVID-19 earlier this year. Anna attributes her longevity to God and hot peppers!
Click here to see this amazing lady.
The Animals Take Over
As towns and cities around the world went into lockdown the animals started reclaiming human spaces as their own.
Pink dolphins returned to Hong Kong, in Llandudno in Wales the goats went shopping, pink flamingos invaded Mumbai and pelicans started strolling down the aptly named Bird Cage Walk in London. Not to be outdone a flock of sheep turned up at McDonald’s (sadly for them it was closed!), wild boar went for a wander around Barcelona and lions started sleeping on the roads in South Africa.
Click here to see some amazing photographs of the animals in action.
The Sky is Bluer
The sky became a deeper shade of blue as the drop in air pollution levels from both road and air travel revealed a clearer, cleaner sky.
Professor James Lee, an expert in atmospheric chemistry at the University of York, estimated a drop of between 30% and 40% in pollution levels across cities worldwide.
Click here for more and to see a meteor shower made visible thanks to the clearer skies.
Funniest home made face masks
With many countries insisting the public wear face masks most people bought themselves a supply of standard surgical or cloth masks. Not everyone though, some people have gone to quite extraordinary lengths not just with their masks but their entire outfits as the photos here prove!
Sir Captain Tom Moore
Last, but most definitely not least, no blog piece on the brighter side of 2020 would be complete without the UK’s Captain Tom. In the lead up to his 100th birthday this amazing gentleman decided to walk 100 laps of his garden to raise money for charity. He hoped to raise £1,000 but did a bit better than that. After capturing the heart of the nation (and a knighthood from the Queen) this World War 2 veteran raised £33 million.
He has inspired the nation with his stoical attitude and, ever the gentleman, when asked what he and the Queen talked about during his knighting ceremony said “That’s between the Queen and I.”
Watch him receiving his knighthood here.
