Covid-19 has hurt so many people but we will continue to champion farmers and country people

Even before lockdown was 
announced in late March, 2020 was already firmly fixed as a year of change for our family – for all the wrong reasons.
Farming Life editor Ruth RodgersFarming Life editor Ruth Rodgers
Farming Life editor Ruth Rodgers

My wonderful mother-in-law was admitted to hospital in the middle of January for a major operation to remove a brain tumour.

She had been due to go into hospital in November but 
the procedure had been delayed.

Hindsight is often a wonderful thing and what seemed then to be a disappointment, turned out to be a blessing in that we were able to have one last Christmas with her.

Operation day finally
arrived in the middle of January but sadly she never recovered.

Six weeks were spent on the daily commute to the 
Royal Victoria Hospital with the news of one setback after another before she finally passed away on February 22 at the age of 68 surrounded by her family – husband, sons, daughters, grandchildren, brothers, sisters and daughters-in-law.

Again, hindsight is a wonderful thing.

Fast forward just a month and we would not have been able to be there – packed into that small hospital room.

We would not have been able to have a full church as hundreds turned out to say farewell to a truly kind and lovely lady.

And surely that is the biggest change and tragedy of the Covid-19 pandemic currently wreaking havoc in homes across the country – being separated from those we love when they are at their most vulnerable.

It didn’t take Covid-19 to show me how fortunate we are to have a health service made up with staff who go beyond the call of duty in the care and dignity they give to patients at the very end of their lives.

I am sure, like me, you have found your daily lives severely curtailed and your circle of relationships has shrunk.

Gone are the opportunities for some good old fashioned ‘craic’, a laugh over a cup of tea or coffee or a quick catch up. Zoom is all very well, but it just doesn’t lend itself to heartfelt conversation or meaningful relationships.

How I miss the coffee and biscuit and fellowship after the Sunday morning church service!

Who could have imagined as we entered 2020 what lay ahead! Social distancing, masks, hand washing, furlough, redundancies, virus, nursing staff on the front line, truly a year of changed lives!

Over the past few weeks the News Letter’s ‘Changed Lives’ series has endeavoured to reflect this crisis in the life of our community.

And it has been an opportunity for us to shine a light on all that you have done, and continue to do, to make life that little bit more tolerable in whatever corner of Northern Ireland you call home.

When lockdown kicked in, it was heart warming to see how people within our rural communities rallied round to demonstrate those little acts of kindnesses and care that make Northern Ireland such a wonderful place to live.

Just as our medical professionals have gained the appreciation – quite rightly – of our nation, so too have our farmers who toil for long hours with little reward.

It has been a privilege during this special series to tell all your stories to a much wider audience.

As a newspaper with a solid rural background, the News Letter and Farming Life has always held a deep regard for those who live and work within that industry.

We know that what you 
do isn’t just a job, it’s a way of life.

We know that you work long hours in all weather for often poor financial return.

We know you are under pressure from lobby groups who would seek to criticise the work you do.

We know that you work to strict standards to ensure that the food on our shelves is of the highest quality and that you are worried about the implications of Brexit.

All our lives have changed and we all are struggling with that on a daily basis in one form or another.

While the ‘Changed Lives’ series may be drawing to an end, we assure you that we are on your side and will endeavour to champion all that our farmers, their families and our rural communities contribute to life in Northern Ireland.