On Saturday I got my first vaccine for coronavirus, at St Thomas’. Less ordeal than outing. Something akin to the first day of a school you’ll attend for 20 minutes.
When it was my turn, I sat in the green chair and answered the questions. From nowhere a scratch on the skin, and I prepared myself to get the jab. I was informed though, that the scratching sensation had been the jab, and I was ready to leave. We were observed for 15 minutes in a waiting room, again reminding me of my school hall. Friends in my home town were vaccinated in our school hall. How jealous I was.
I sat there and thought about the personal insignificance of that skin prick, and its disproportionate impact on the world. All that we had forgone and suffered and lost in the past 15 months and counting. The promise of all that resolved, with this minor, imperceptible abrasion.
Cause is not always linear to effect. Hope and dedication are exponential.
Thank you, all of the staff at St Thomas’ this weekend. Thank you to the people with the clipboards checking us in, the pair that showed my cohort where to sit, the doctor that made me laugh and made me safer, and to the lady that watched over us afterwards.
Thank you to all NHS staff, everywhere, and to the all of the volunteers making this herculean vaccination effort a reality. For giving us back our lives, thank you to researches and healthcare workers around the world. We owe you the promise of Christmas with our families and time with our friends. The importance of both has come into sharp focus, hasn’t it?