HAVING not been at home for Christmas in the past nine years I ve never had lights or a tree or any of the decorative trappings that signal the coming of the Christ child and Santa. This year, though, like everyone, I was in my own flat with carte blanche on the festive arrangements. Never particularly crafty, I made a wreath for my front door with bits and pieces of greenery foraged from the floor of Queen s Park. I bought a tiny real tree, festooned with white lights and a poinsettia blooming prettily among the cards and wrapped parcels. For the first time I felt a need for bright things in darkness, found a new appreciation for the winter festival and all of its lights.
Nation rallied around the thousands of NHS staff and healthcare workers helping in the fight against Covid
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and wife Victoria Starmer took part in tributes outside home in north London
Landmarks illuminated in blue in an effort to pay homage to NHS workers helping fight the spread pandemic
Comes as Boris Johnson announced that he would bring in Army to bolster UK s coronavirus vaccination
January: Fireworks and Chinese New Year
Like all new year celebrations, the year started with the usual fireworks, hope for the new year, and excitement for the upcoming Chinese New Year as well. While news on Covid-19 was still developing and cases arising in the community, little did we know that this would be the last of normalcy as we know it. Photograph: Delfina Utomo February: DORSCON, what?
The Disease Outbreak Response System Condition (DORSCON) level is raised from Yellow to Orange after more cases with unclear origins surfaced and almost immediately, panic began setting in – especially in supermarkets. Despite this, February was a great month for events (before everything came to a halt). The announcement of a Singapore edition of the famous Chatuchak Night Market from Bangkok was popular news. The light show, #futuretogether (by the same Japanese art collective teamLab responsible for the Future World
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