11 things the pandemic has taught Gazette readers - one year on from Lockdown 1

These are just some of the valuable lessons Northumberland Gazette readers say they have learnt during the coronavirus pandemic to date.

As we mark one year since the first national lockdown was announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson – on March 23, 2020 – we have been reflecting on an unpredictable and difficult 12 months.

Hundreds of Gazette readers answered our call to share the life-changing and important things they have taken on board during this time.

The past year has really made all of us think.

This is what you had to say on our Facebook page:

Kayley Best: “Spend more time with those you love and doing things you love to do. Money can always be earned and a job can always be replaced.”

Josephine Greenley: “Be grateful for what and who we have in our lives and don't take things for granted.”

Kathleen Garrett: “How proud I am of the majority of young ones who have kept us oldies safe by following the rules yet still taking time to drop shopping off for us.”

Susan Booth: “That teachers need a massive raise! I find doing the homes chool lessons with my six-year-old difficult. I can't imagine the patience they have to deal with a room full of them!”

Richard Varcoe: “Appreciate all that you have and never miss a chance to spend time with family ... you never know when it might be the last time.”

Kirsty Athey: “The majority of the people keeping the country going (key workers) are some of the lowest paid! Let’s not take them for granted anymore.”

Tina Palmer: “That as long as you have good friends and family nothing else matters, it’s definitely the little things that matter.”

Benji Banjo: “That life is too short to settle for anything that doesn't make you happy, so grab every adventure with both hands.”

Alasdair Roxburgh: “That I don’t need to pay for the gym to stay or to get fit.”

Mark Frater: “That we are very lucky to have the nhs and it’s worth every penny.”

Anne Elphinstone: “That good health is more important than wealth and possessions.”

The dramatic events of the pandemic are having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers and consequently the advertising that we receive.

We are now more reliant than ever on your support through buying our newspaper.

If you can, please pick up a copy of the Northumberland Gazette when you are at the shops.

Thank you.