Here's how people are looking back after 1 year of life with COVID-19

It has been one year sincethe first presumptive positive case of COVID-19 reachedNewfoundland and Labrador, plunging the provinceinto lockdown shortly thereafter.

In the last year, six people have died due to the virus, leaving families grieving alone or in very small groups, as funerals, wakes, visitations and other gatherings have been limited or banned entirely.

Others have spent time in hospital fighting the virus, while just over a thousand have tested positive forCOVID-19to date.

As for the rest of us,masks, hand sanitizer and vigorous handwashing are now a part of our daily routines, while new phrases, such as "physical distancing" and "self-isolation," have been added to our lexicon, as COVID-19 has upended everything from getting groceries to going to work.

As we enter Year 2 of the pandemic, many people agree on one thing:the last year has been hard.

Pandemic affectseveryone differently

Elizabeth Moore,walking her son's dog around Quidi Vidi Lake in St. John's on Saturday, said it's been stressful and lonely, as she's an empty-nester.

"[There's] no one around, only by phone," she lamented, but said she takes comfort in the little black and white dog, named Kami, who was by her side.

"She actually gets me through it all,"she said. "She gets me out for walks."

High school student Amelia Shallow, who is now learning online, says she finds it hard to know how much school work to do. In-person classes were suspended last month, after approximately 185 cases were linked to 22 schools in the metro region during the B117 variant outbreak.

"It was nice to be back in school for a little bit, some sort of normalcy," she said. "I mean, we just got the news that we're going to be online till Easter, so that's meh."

As for seeing her friends an important part of being a high school student Shallow said they've been doing a lot of Zoom calls to keep in touch.

"But it's hard not to be able to just go out and see them. It's really difficult just to make yourself stay home, but we really all have to," she said.

Retiree Jim Cavanagh says the pandemic has affectedhis travel plans over the last year, forcing him home from Florida last March, and then home from Halifax this past fall when the Atlantic bubble burst.

"But other than that, and the inability to get my haircut now in the last month, we've managed quite well," he said.

But the pandemicbrought some members of Cavanagh'sfamily closer. His daughter moved home from California in August, something he said has "really been nice."

"She's been here ever since and has been working from here. So I meet her every day and we walk to the top of Signal Hill and back," he said.

"I think the government's done a really great job," Cavanaugh added."Public health has been really good and everybody's listening to what's being said and following the orders pretty well, I think."

Ed Matthews, who was vaccinated Friday, agrees with Cavanagh's assessment.

"The health-care system is really doing a good job," said Matthews, who is happy to be living in Newfoundland and Labrador.

"I have a daughter in Toronto and she's been locked down for a year now," he said.

Matthews said he didn't mind the first lockdown a year ago, but the most recent one is different.

"I lived in my own home at that time, so I had things to do. But then I moved into an apartment," he said. "This is long,this lockdown."

He said he reads a lot and walks around Quidi Vidi Lake every day to pass the time.

Real estate agent Sherry Morrissey says she's been lucky enough to have family in her bubble and she's been getting outside with her friends.

"Overall, it's been pretty good," she said during a walk on Saturday.

"It's been hard when you can't go to social events. That's the tough part. It's been a long year, no doubt about it."

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