Covid Article Stirs Many Memories
JANUARY’S FRONT PAGE ARTICLE STIRS MANY MEMORIES
January’s front page article about the smallpox epidemic in South Wales brought back memories for me. I had just started grammar school and after school, the whole of our family trooped to the doctor’s surgery, joining the queue to get our smallpox vaccinations. When we finished, we went to Ely to look at caravans for our summer holiday. I did not feel very well (probably needed food) and felt the whole thing was a bit of a drag.
My mother was a nurse, working 3 nights a week at Lansdowne Hospital, which was an isolation hospital. As she worked with infectious diseases, she was selected to be sent to the smallpox hospital in the Valleys if the disease took off. My parents must have been worried as I was the eldest of 4 children. How would Dad cope without her? But there was no hesitation; nursing was a vocation, and she was willing to play her part. Just like the hundreds of medics in today’s NHS who are working so hard to help people suffering from Covid-19.
I remember her explaining to us children that she may have to go away for a while and would not be able to come home. As we all know, the vaccination programme worked, halting the progress of smallpox in South Wales and our family escaped the ordeal of separation. Until I read the What’s On article this was all a dim and distant memory to me. Hopefully that will also happen with Covid-19 in due course
Annie Bennett