Timeline:
Back at the end of December we started to see news coming out of China about some kind of unknown pneumonia-like virus. In the beginning of January we learned that it was a novel coronavirus that they were naming COVID-19, it was spreading like wildfire, and the first person died from it on January 9th. Even though China locked down the region where it had started by Jan. 16th, and declared an outbreak level 1, the virus had already spread to Thailand and Japan. Public transportation started to shut down in China, and they started construction on make-shift hospitals, because there wasn't enough room for all the patients. Cases were being reported in other countries too - airline travel was carrying the virus to the world. By the last day of January, the death toll in China had reached 213, and Russia closed it's entire border to China. All of that happened in about ONE month. Fast forward to today. The virus is everywhere.
There have been 335,364 cases worldwide, and 14, 611 deaths. The newest catchphrase is "social distancing", and it seems like the whole world is on lockdown. Schools are closed. Churches and temples are closed. A lot of businesses are closed. In Nebraska there is a state mandate that not more than 10 people can congregate in one area. Different states have done different things. They recommend staying in your houses, all the time. If you have to go out, keep your distance from people. WASH YOUR HANDS!!! Why all the precautions? To flatten the curve of what is otherwise exponential growth. Here's a good video that explains that.
So, how did we get here? Why does it seem so bad?
What is COVID-19?:
There are actually many kinds of coronaviruses, including ones that cause the common cold, but COVID-19 is a "novel" strain because it has never been seen in humans before. Because it's new to humans, we don't have any antibodies for it, no vaccines, and we don't really know what works to fight it...yet. It's also dangerous because the gestation period for COVID-19 is a lot longer than for something like the flue or pneumonia. That means that you could have the virus for 2 weeks without showing any symptoms, but the whole time you're extremely contagious and you're spreading it around. And the most dangerous thing about this virus is that it goes straight for your lungs. At first it just looks like a cold - runny nose, cough, maybe a sore throat. But then as it gets worse, you get a fever and can start having respiratory problems. About 20% of people infected are hospitalized, and it is 10 times deadlier than the flu.
How this has affected the World, and our Community:
Yes, the world it getting more serious about "flattening the curve" now, but for some countries, like Italy, it was too late. There are only so many hospital beds. There are only so many ventilators. There are only so many doctors and nurses. When there's not enough, more people die. And as more people died, people started to panic - everywhere. And that's when the runs on the stores started. People were buying out cleaning supplies, soap, hand sanitizer, and for some inexplicable reason, water and toilet paper. Then dried goods, and then it seemed like everything else too. Shelves were emptied, even after stores started rationing things.
How is this affecting us Personally?:
It's kind of surreal, and it's kind of hard to know how to write about it, because it's this weird, emotionally ambiguous existence. On the one hand I'm thinking, we're fine. We're going to be fine. Joe has a secure job for now. We have toilet paper. We'll do our part, and not go out as much as possible. I enjoy my family, and we'll have a lot of time together, and we'll make the most of it. Homeschool starts tomorrow. I've already been doing it with 1 kid, so why not 2 more? Cora isn't going in to work, but she knows she'll still get paid for at least 2 more week. And we've got plenty of memes to keep us entertained (more on that later).
On the other hand, it's a little scary - just the unknown of it all. We have no idea how long this will last. I worry that not enough people will take the social distancing seriously, and we'll end up like Italy. I worry that somebody I love will get the virus and maybe even die. I especially worry about Marie, because she's a nurse. I worry about the lasting ramifications of this whole thing. I don't feel panicked. I'm not losing sleep at night. The worry is just kind of tucked away in the back of my mind. But it's there.
A few months ago Cora had purchased a plane ticket to South Korea. Joe's brother Bert and his family are stationed there right now, and she was going to go visit them for Spring Break, which was this past week. That was really disappointing, but at least she got her money refunded. All of the Liddells were planning on celebrating Joe's parent's 50th anniversary in June, but that's all up in the air now. Who knows how else it will affect us as time goes on.
But let's focus on some more positive things. One thing I've enjoyed is our worship services at home. That's been a special experience. And we've also gotten busy with a couple of home renovation projects.
Now one really interesting thing to come out of all of this is a real sign of the times - MEMES! Oh my word. Thanks to Cora, we are on top of all the memes around here. She sends them to me constantly. I admit, there have been quite a few that had me laughing out loud. Again, for posterity, I will share some below. Gotta do my part, right? It will be interesting to see how this time in our history is remembered and recorded 20 years from now. For now, we're just getting through it one day at a time.
