The last time I saw my Mother was the 2nd week of March. She was in a stroke unit in Ystrad Fawr having suffered a severe stroke in January that left her incapacitated and been transferred there from the Royal Gwent. I live in Berkshire but visited her most weeks staying in the vacated family home until the lockdown announcement. Since then she has moved to a hospital in Ebbw Vale and then a care home in the Rhymney Valley. I phone and get regular updates.

I accepted the pain of not being with her through the late stages of her life because of the risks I could bring to her, others and my family. Today I understand that the most important thing all along was not that but your closest family as long as you could isolate yourself which over-rode any guidance the government was giving to the masses. I would guess there are loads of people like me who think that rules are for the little people!