Pandemic Entry #1

I've been very sporadic with posting on this blog for the past several years, but the state of the world right now and the feeling that this is only the beginning, has prompted me to get on here to start documenting. I feel that if I don't, I won't be able to remember the sequence or the speed of events about to unfold. No one knows how long it will be before things are back to normal.

The Covid-19 virus is spreading around the world. It started in Wuhan, China in December 2019. We had our first confirmed case in Idaho two days ago, March 13, 2020. We stand at five today. Our city is grappling with the decision about whether or not to close schools. They are worried about people who still have to work but have no childcare. Also, there are students who are food insecure and can only count on regular meals at school. It's a lot of responsibility and I'm glad I don't have to make those decisions.

Zoe came home from college for spring break a week early. Idaho State University sent students home on Friday urging them not to return. Classes for the remainder of the year are online. The extra week of spring break is to give professors time to get their classes online and up and running. My heart goes out to teachers in classrooms. An already difficult job has become even more difficult.

After we picked Zoe up from ISU Friday evening, we stopped by the grocery store so I could pick up a roast for Sunday evening. I was thinking that since my whole family would be together we could have a nice dinner on Sunday. How naive I was.

We arrived at the store at 10:40 p.m. and an employee greeted us at the door and warned us that we had 20 minutes to get what we needed and be in a checkout line. The produce section was decimated. I was hoping for a bunch of bananas. Nope. No roasts either. No canned chicken noodle soup (in case one of us gets sick). I didn't need much, but most of what I wanted they did not have. Somehow we still ended up spending $85. It was surreal. I felt like I was in a movie, watching crazy people shopping, overflowing carts deserted at the checkout stands. People are losing their minds.

Annika is worried about her summer plans with Civil Air Patrol. She has been accepted into a Flight Academy and has been offered a scholarship. We don't know if that will still be happening. She is also waiting to hear if she has been accepted into the Summer Seminar at the Naval Academy in Annapolis. Will that even still happen? Then there is Encampment. She has an important role in putting that on and has been planning and preparing for it all school year.

I have plans to visit a friend in Knoxville, Tennessee over spring break. I'm sure that is going to have to be postponed.

We are not alone. Everyone is affected by this. My hope is that we come through it unscathed and that we can all still look ourselves in the mirror without looking away. I want to remember to be kind. We are about to be tested.