COVID-19 Negatives and Positives
By Yvonne Flynn
At the beginning of 2020 a new virus appeared in China that was to change the world’s way of life, not for just a short while, but as I write this for nearly a year with the end somewhere in the future. It has caused deaths, loss of jobs, and the distancing of people from each other. It has brought out the worst and the best in people around the world.
I have decided to make a list of negative things followed by a positive aspect of the same things, which I hope will help me and possibly others to better cope with this disruption of our lives.
First, and foremost, people are dying. All of us will know someone who died of the virus, either a family member, close friend, or acquaintance. Three people I knew died. They were not a family member or close friends but people I knew through my work. I know how the news of their passing affected me and can only imagine how much harder it would have been if they had been family members or close friends.
The positive side of this is that many more people have survived. This includes my youngest daughter, her three housemates, and the staff that provides care for them. The four girls all have underlying conditions that could have complicated things but thankfully did not. We have at least three vaccines that seem to be doing a good job of preventing this virus.
How lucky we are! Just 100 years ago the world was dealing with World War I when the 1918 flu pandemic hit. There was no vaccine to control it, and a shortage of doctors because they were dealing with casualties on the battlefields in Europe. They also lacked all the technology we now have. None of the ventilators or monitoring equipment existed that maintained life support for today’s COVID-19 patients.
Traveling is limited and many of the vacation destinations were closed. Visiting out of town family and friends had to be canceled. A friend of mine and I had planned a trip to the Galapagos Islands and Machu Picchu. This has been put on hold. I consider this as just a blip in my life, and I am dealing with it.
On the positive side my son has come down twice and with social distancing helped with some maintenance around my home. I have a vacant rental unit that he stayed at during his visits, which also helped with the social distancing.
My oldest daughter and her husband moved here from Las Vegas, so with proper precautions we can visit. Phone calls and letters have kept me in touch with other family members and friends. We have had to give up in person meetings and activities with large groups. I had three activities that were affected, my book club, Lifescapes, and band.
Band was every Monday, Lifescapes the second and fourth Tuesday of the month, and book club the fourth Tuesday of the month. Band also included performances at various assisted living facilities, the Veteran’s home, the Veteran’s Cemetery in Fernley on Memorial Day, and any other venues that asked us to play.
Our Lifescapes group continues to meet using ZOOM as does the book club. It is definitely a plus and keeps us in touch. I certainly consider this a positive way of maintaining some semblance of normalcy.
Shopping became a challenge as people went into panic mode and began hoarding certain things such as toilet paper and cleaning supplies. The good thing was fresh fruit and vegetables were in good supply, and the farmers market by the Methodist church was open. People were obviously challenged to try canning because canning supplies disappeared off grocery shelves like magic.
Around April 2020 the gyms closed, and I was afraid that I would get out of the habit of working out twice a week with my trainer. I needn’t have worried because we came up with an alternative. I had my own dumbbells, kettlebells, and resistance bands that we used for exercises. We worked out on the baseball field on Shadow Lane behind Reed High School, which allowed lots of room and the ability to maintain distancing. I hugged lots of trees while doing side kicks and lunges. Fence tops provided support for standing push ups. Laps were done by running around the baseball diamond.
During these sessions we would find painted stones with words of hope on them and sometimes little makeshift rooms with miniature dolls and toy animals in them. There were also people walking their dogs. Across the street from the ballpark was a corral with a beautiful roan horse and his faithful companion, a burro. It always made me feel happy just to watch them together.
Visiting friends and neighbors is not safe for either party, but talking to each other from our separate yards with distance between us kept us in touch with each other. During the winter when it snowed, the younger people in the neighborhood would shovel the walks of the older neighbors, usually disappearing before we could thank them. I would also find my garbage cans taken to the curb and returned to their place without knowing who to thank. At Easter there will be baskets delivered to several houses in the neighborhood with a note saying, “Thank you for being my neighbor.”
The last subject is, the much-hated mask. Yes, they are uncomfortable and annoying to wear, doubly so if you wear glasses, which fog up so not only can you not breath, but you can’t see.
I went online and found pictures from the 1918 flu pandemic of people in New York watching a group of soldiers marching down the street with the onlooking public watching them and waving flags. All were wearing masks for protection, and there was not a protester in sight. The only thing that bothered me was that they were not practicing social distancing.
I wear a mask when I have to be around others and appreciate it when others do the same. It is a very small sacrifice to help protect each other. It must be a good way to protect others, or doctors and nurses wouldn’t wear them even if there isn’t a pandemic.
Now for the positive side of this, which is something that will make you smile. Did you ever think you would walk into a bank or business wearing a mask and not be stopped by security and given a ride in a black and white car to the nearest police station?
Let’s all work together to get through this trying time.
Photo/Yvonne Flynn.
Born 1937 in Taos, New Mexico, Yvonne Flynn has lived in several states, attending multiple schools. She moved to Sparks, Nevada, in 1954, where she continues to call home. Yvonne graduated from the University of Nevada in 1960 with a degree in Civil Engineering. Having married in 1959, she and her late husband have four children. Yvonne continues to find the world an interesting and exciting place to be.
Thank you for visiting Humanities Heart to Heart, a program of Nevada Humanities. Any views or opinions represented in posts or content on the Humanities Heart to Heart webpage are personal and belong solely to the author or contributor and do not represent those of Nevada Humanities, its staff, or any donor, partner, or affiliated organization, unless explicitly stated. At no time are these posts understood to promote particular political, religious, or ideological points of view; advocate for a particular program or social or political action; or support specific public policies or legislation on behalf of Nevada Humanities, its staff, any donor, partner, or affiliated organization. Omissions, errors, or mistakes are entirely unintentional. Nevada Humanities makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on these posts or found by following any link embedded in these posts. Nevada Humanities reserves the right to alter, update, or remove content on the Humanities Heart to Heart webpage at any time.