Writing the history of Covid ............ remembering the loss

It is of course far too soon to write the history of the Pandemic.

We are still in the midst of the thing, and the full story with all its twists and turns, along with much that still sits in the shadows await historians of the future.

They may have the distance and the perspective to pass a judgement on how it came about, the degree to which national governments and international agencies responded in an effective way and the long term impact of this terrible year.

So I won't attempt any such account, instead I will fall back on another of those occasional series which looks to chronicle the pandemic moments.

These have included the pictures taken by people on their lockdown  “essential walks” and examples of how we have started to commemorate those who have died.

A few week ago it was the Covid Wall on the south bank of the River Thames, which was recorded by Paula Griffin.*

And today there are two pictures from David Harrop.

The first is of the memorial tree in Southern Cemetery, and the second is David’s own contribution which can be seen in the Remembrance Lodge of the cemetery, and which includes not only a reference to the present pandemic but to the work of nurses during the last two World Wars.

And there is more which includes medals, photographs, and other memorabilia from both of those conflicts, some of which relate directly to people who are buried in the cemetery.

Location; Southern Cemetery

Pictures; Pictures from the Pandemic, 2021, from the collection of David Harrop.

* The Covid Memorial Wall …………. London ….. today, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/2021/04/the-covid-memorial-wall-london-today.html