Society's Reactions | The VIRAL Journal, Part 2
By Steve Coonan
Yesterday, after learning of my mom’s fairy garden game, I went for an evening dog walk more recharged and positively-orientated. As soon as I got to our walking trail, however, my mind and thoughts began to wonder. The trail, packed with many, many newcomers as a result of the state-wide self-quarantine, had a different feel to it than it did any of the days before it. It wasn’t because of the number of new faces, but instead the faces of the newbies. They were filled with shock, wide-eyed panic and an apparent fear-thy-neighbor, instead of the love-thy-neighbor Minnesotans are known for passing on to one another. How do I describe them visually? Watch a zombie apocalypse movie. Yeah, those faces.
But they had good reason. Schools closed down today - and not just for a couple days. Our neighboring state of Wisconsin is closed the rest of the year! Most all teachers are trying to setup online classes for their students; many are implementing them already.
After the school closure it felt like more and more business shut down or kept “essential” and “non-essential” employees away from each other. I moved my work to my home so I could work there. So, too, did my mother, making it hard to successfully work through our days’ agendas and deadlines. From talking around, this seems to be everyone else’s circumstance.
Unfortunately, Linda supplemented her move today with a new cold. This was a scary development. By today’s terms, it seems like every couch or sneeze could mean you have the virus! The hard part is there’s a shortage of testing kits to diagnose. I believe this is why the virus continues to spread the way it has over the last few weeks. All it seems you can do is call the doctor as medical professions don’t want overcrowding for non-life-threatening cases. So Linda called her doctor. She was told since she didn’t have a fever that she should stay completely away from their office - anyone for that matter - for 10 -14 days. She was happy to do it and be proactive. We’ve had so much good intel on the progression and ways to contain the pandemic.
Frustratingly enough, we can’t say that about the rest of the world. We’re discovering new details on how the virus started and spread in China. The Chinese government didn’t tell the world. What’s more, they let their people travel all over the globe. Now it is in so many countries. Italy is really in trouble. Their population is mostly elderly people and that is where they say the diseases kills patients…the elderly. Nursing homes are closing down. We have to be very concerned for our elderly.
All in all, I understand why my friends, family and neighbors are inheriting frowned faces. It’s a hard time that continues to be uncharted. There’s little short-term solution though our governing body promises they have our long-term “survive then thrive” plan figure out. Our president created a task force comprised of scientists, doctors and experts who head our agencies. Each day they have press meetings to inform our country of the number of people that are exposed to this disease. Each day, as Americans, we are determined to beat this disease.
For me, though, we need a band-aid fix. This idiom has been traditionally used as a negative one. Yet, in this new era of things being turn on end, I think its is more than ok to give our community little things that can help us thrive while we survive in the short-term. These momentary fixes are assurances of the good, the balance and the happiness that we’ve come to know as Americans while we wait.
In peace,
Steve
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Our e-journal documents the COVID-19 pandemic from our viewpoint within our community. In the short-term, we hope it promotes connectivity and contrast within our shirtBOARD network. In the long-term, we hope it gives timely interpretations of the event to provide insight and understanding for future generations.
