My mother, my child, my duty

The writer's mum fitting shapes in a child's wood puzzle to help improve her concentration and fine motor skills.

EVER since the coronavirus became world public health enemy No.1, I have been very diligent about keeping my family, especially Mum, safe. At 86, and with all her illnesses – obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes – she runs the highest risk of dying from the disease if she catches it.

So for the last seven months, she has been housebound with practically no contact with outsiders. Her world, which had already been very small, shrank even further.

My parents moved into my house in 2005 when it became apparent that it was no longer safe for them to live on their own. Mum’s most worrisome health issue is that she is very prone to dizzy spells leading to falls.