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2023-10-11
2023: Reflections on travel post-Covid19
We could not travel during the pandemic, but even going to see family near us was a challenge. For the length of the pandemic, I didn't visit my grandparents who lived only an hour away. Being from the family I am, travel is not something we do often due to the expense. If I could travel anywhere in the world, I would pick Australia so I could go to its infamous coastlines. I would like to see the Great Barrier Reef and maybe go on tours about the conservation of our oceans. I would like to take a surfing class and look like a complete tourist as I do so. I'd go to Australia for the water. I used to be someone who needed to take many pictures to "remember" my exploits. However, I learned I spent more time on my phone than in the place I visited. I don't take pictures on vacation anymore; I leave that to my sister and mother. Instead, I try to remember the five senses as I experience the world around me. I have nothing against documenting your trips, but aside from keeping ticket stubs and sunburns, I don't make lasting documentation except in my memory. -
2022-10-20
HIST30068 China’s Zero Covid Policy Story 5
Me and my sister have been wanting to go back to China for quite some times now – we haven’t seen our grandparents for years due to the pandemic, and they are not getting any younger. But the crazy flight ticket price and the concern that China’s strict covid policies will make it hard for us to come back for school made us postpone our plans. It is also difficult for them to come here, also due to China’s covid policies. This June, my cousin gave birth to a girl, whom her grandmother and great-grandparents deeply wanted to meet. The pandemic born baby is growing very fast: she used to be too small for the hat that I knitted for her birthday, but now she’s already too big for it. -
2020-07-04
The North Melbourne Public Housing Lockdown
HIST30060: Just before the second lockdown in Melbourne I was told by my mum that my grandfather and step grandmother had been suddenly without warning placed into a sharp lockdown within the public housing they resided in. The confusion and anger was quickly shared by my family and extended family members, where was the consideration for some of the most vulnerable members of the community, who in some cases cannot speak english? Why were they subject to such harsh conditions whilst those in the wealthy inner east free to enjoy themselves despite their equally high rates of covid? This was noticed by me as well in the harsher treatment of those in the poorer, diverse suburbs of Sydney and Melbourne during some of the worst times of the pandemic. -
2020-03-18
All We Have Is Each Other
From the start of Covid-19 schools begin to get cancelled and change their way of teaching the students. Children, teens, adults, and seniors had to change everything involving their lifestyle. What we knew as a normal life could no longer be the same. Everyone had to be cautious of their surroundings and use protection gear. Before everything changed our lives my family and I would always get together every sunday. After the CDC recommended that there should be an approximate of 8 people per house in gatherings we decided to not get together as often since a family member worked in a senior home and we had learned that at that time seniors were more likely to get the virus. As the number of cases grew in Arizona and the border closed we didn't get time to see some family. It has been over a year since I haven't seen my grandparents. We call each other to see how we are doing. In my household it is only my mom and I along with my 3 dogs. What we took out of this was better bonding time, school ended early and jobs started to lay off employees because there weren't enough jobs. I had time to train my dogs and learn more commands, which was fun. I learned to do new things. My mom is a cosmetologist so she taught me how to cut hair, and how to apply gel polish. As things started to calm down families around my neighborhood would come out their front yard together and play with their kids and pets more. Families would eat outside and have a good time. But now everything is going back to normal. Sporting events are getting open to the public, and schools are going back to in person. I had learned that many families around my neighborhood shared the same experience. -
2021-03-26
I want...
I want... To be able to see my friends and without masks. To be able to see my cousin who's one of my best friends. To be able to go to school To be able to play volleyball inside To be able to have fun without worried about my health To be able to see my grandparents and my newborn cousin I haven't been able to meet To be able to have fun and live my life as a kid, the world every kid deserves -
2020-12-24
Breaking Tradition while the clock continues to Tick
Every year since I was a child I always looked to the holidays for multiple great reasons. When I was young of course the idea of getting presents always trumped the other great qualities that comes with Christmas. As I grew older, I started to appreciate what these holidays really meant to me. That is family, seeing everyone all together happy for a moment in time like nothing else mattered. When Covid hit now over a year ago it seemed like a bad dream that would pass in a few weeks, but a few weeks turned into a few months which turned it over a year now. When Christmas came around this year, we knew it was going to be different and that was okay with me. What really upset me was that I wouldn’t be able to see those I’m closest to and those I cherish my time with. I am mostly referring to my grandparents, on both sides of my family I have loving grandparents who are always a joy to see. In the last few years, I have come to appreciate every time I get to see them one because I love them but also because there could be only a handful of times left that I will get to see them. It is a morbid way to look at family, but one has to come to reality that family isn’t here forever, and this fact helps me appreciate family while they are here. Covid comes into play in this story because this year the virus separated us at a time when family should be together. It deeply upset me to not be able to make another unforgettable memory with my grandparents. What really hurt me was how I could imagine they were feeling about all this. At their age family is everything and they just want to be around everyone as they are getting older. So, we tried our best to all zoom in on Christmas eve and Christmas morning to try and make it as normal as every other year. Of course, it was not the same but with the technology we have today we were still able to share some great moments through the video cameras around the room. After we had the family zoom call I could tell my grandfather really just wanted to be here with all of us and that is a hard pill to swallow on a day like Christmas. I proceeded to call him and reassure him that with time this will all go away, and we will make up for this lost time that we have all suffered through. He told me through it all through world war 2, Vietnam war and the cold war that this pandemic was the hardest to overcome in his lifetime. Which puts into perspective that this is my first true struggle to go through and has seen to be one of the worst events in recorded history. If I look at the right way, it can only get better from here and I’m ready to make up for that lost time with my close family and friends. -
2021-01-21
A personal story of how I have been affected by someone testing positive.
During the COVID-19 Pandemic, I had both sides of my family get it. My dads parents and my cousins, and my cousins on my moms side. This was really hard because I usually visit them every holiday or try to at least. Since they had COVID I wasn't aloud to see them or visit them. This was really hard because since wasn't aloud to see them I didn't know if it would be there last day, my grandparents are all 80+. This was a personal story of how I have been affected by someone in my life getting COVID-19. -
2020-12-25
Christmas 2020
This year for Christmas I went to my Grandpa and Grandma's house in Illinois. My cousins who live in Michigan also came to her house so we were all together. My Christmas was a little different because we drove to her house this year. Normally, if we go to her house we fly. However, this year we had our tickets booked but ended up cancelling them last minute due to all the rules and uncertaincy. On Christmas day, nothing was really different except that we had more people and presents to open. After that, we ate a Christmas lunch and just hung out the rest of the day. -
2020-12-25
Christmas During the Pandemic
This year's Christmas was different. For example, we didn't visit with my Grandpa as much as we normally do, though we did stop by and say hello. Also, My Grandma didn't come by our house on Christmas and do the gift exchange with us. This year, it was just me, my brother, and our parents at home together. -
2021-01-06
Christmas 2020
This year, my Christmas was much different from any other that I have experienced. instead of having a big party at our house or our grandparents, our grandparents came over to our garage with masks on and they didn't come inside at all. We ate smoked chicken that my dad made on the barbecue. With my other set of grandparents, it was a little bit different. They allowed us to come over to their house and we ate dinner together. We had a Brent's Deli sandwich platter. All of my family was very generous with gifts, as usual. In short, I had a different Christmas from any other year. -
2020-12-15
Thanksgiving in the year 2020
This years thanksgiving was very different than the norm. Due to COVID-19 we where not able to celebrate Thanksgiving the same. We prepared the dinner alone instead of preparing the food with my grandpa on my moms side. Also, instead of having many family members we only had both pairs of grandparents over. We were not afraid of dying from COVID-19 but we where afraid for our grandparents. I was allowed to go to school at the time with eight or so other eight graders, but I was worried to get COVID-19 from somewhere that wasn't school because I wouldn't be able to go to school in person for 14 days. Our Thanksgiving was the same in someways though like that our grandparents came over and that we ate dinner. Due to COVID-19 though, my mom and dad prepared dinner themselves. I ate some good food, even in a pandemic, I don't like turkey that much so I had a small slice but a lot of ice cream and pie, which I discovered I liked. The pie was brought over by my grandpa who was given the pie by my uncle who made the pie. -
2020-12-14
Thanksgiving in 2020 during a PANDEMIC
The thanksgiving of 2020 is far different from every year. Due to the COVID 19 outbreak, I was not able to see my family over seas or my cousins. Spending Thanksgiving with my cousins and grandparents is one of my favorite things but I could not do that this year. So this year I stayed home and had thanksgiving with just my family. My mom, dad, brother, my other brother, and sister were all their. All the food was the same. We had turkey, ham, masked potatoes, gravey, green beans, mac n cheese, stuffing, corn, rolls, pumpkin pie, apple pie, and vanilla ice cream. After we ate food, we played board games and then went in my pool and lastly played basketball on the court in my backyard. Which was really fun. Overall, I think that I had a great COVID thanksgiving at home even though it was not the same as past years. -
2020-12-14
Thanksgiving during Covid
My thanksgiving was very different because we didn't have a lot of people over. The thing that was the same was we went to my grandparent's house. The preparation was fine we ate mac and cheese, mash potatoes and turkey and a lot of pie. I had thanksgiving with my family. We don't travel for Thanksgiving. -
2020-12-14
Thanksgiving During Covid
This year 2020 is the year of the pandemic. Many people are traveling to other states to be with their family, which I feel is foolish of them, because not only are they endangering themselves, but their relatives. However, I do understand they want to be with their family for the holiday. I can't relate with those people because I never celebrate Thanksgiving with my entire family. I have relatives whom I never even met on the other side of the world. My Thanksgiving did not feel different from any typical year because my family did not follow common traditions, since we are Chinese. My mom just bought a plain turkey from Sprouts, which my grandparents turned into a spicy dish. But the main course wasn't the turkey, it was the delicious fish and tomato soup I helped prepare with my grandparents. The day felt normal because we never had an extravagant dinner. We only had three dishes. None of my parents cooked, instead, my grandparents did. Although my Thanksgiving was still the same, I believe some other people's thanksgiving changed. At the dinner table, we could have three or six people present, so the Covid-19 indoor capacity limitations didn't affect us at all. I didn't care much about Thanksgiving, since it wasn't my number one favorite holiday. It just felt like a regular dinner with dessert. However, I'm glad the pandemic hasn't changed everything. -
2020-12-14
Thanksgiving 2020
The Thanksgiving that I had in 2020 was in some ways different, and some ways the same. I would normally go to my Grandparents house, and they would invite family and friends over too. But this year, only my family was invited. My grandfather had also passed away in October, so only my grandmother was there. The food was the same, but the company was very different. It felt more lonely this year, because of the lockdown. My Thanksgiving was different in some ways, but familiar in other ways. Overall, it was a fine experience, but obviously not as good as previous years. -
0020-06-03
Cancer during COVID
During the covid 19 pandemic I had a rather unique and tragic experience with one of the world’s best and most prestigious health care facilities. My grandmother who was seventy four was diagnosed with acute cancer on Christmas Eve last year. As she was told there was a high chance of survival because she caught it very early we all were obviously devastated and heart broken. But we continued on and supported her as a family, the whole way through her treatment. However I can remember going back to school after that christmas break and we followed COVID from the very beginning in my world events class. But what was so ironic is that me and everyone in the class had seen what this did to China and not one of us could have ever imagined it turning into having to wear a face mask everywhere you go and no sports for months. Yet it invaded the U.S. like a wood trojan horse once did with the city of Troy, as COVID put the world into an instant frenzy shutting everything down left and right. I recall me and many of my friends begging our parents to go to the grocery store everytime something ran out even if it was as simple as a stick of butter just so we could get out of the house for a few minutes. However as COVID spread my grandmother’s cancer actually was able to be neutralized and went into remission around may of this year. As I look back upon the last time I saw her in person it was definitely an odd goodbye as I stood about ten feet from her and had a normal conversation with her and my grandfather, each word was half understood as it mumbled through our face masks. Then just like that they were on their way back to Johns Hopkins in very high spirits as the doctors had told us that she needed a final surgery and she would hopefully beat it completely. However due to COVID this surgery had to wait until a time when non emergency surgeries could be done, so it was scheduled for late june. But when someone who has cancer gets a simple illness like pneumonia, their immune system cannot fight it. She was in the hospital for about a week and fluid buildup around her heart caused her to lose her life on june 3. However my final memory of her is me and my family standing on the street outside the hospital, me in my cap and gown and each of us holding encouraging signs. We each spoke to her through the phone as she looked down upon us from the tenth floor and waved to us. Luckily my grandfather was admitted to stay with her that night and the next morning she took her last breath. Yet COVID continued to strike as the funeral could only have 25 people in the room at a time. -
2020-08-22
COVID 19 and its impact on a small town in Hawaii
The COVID 19 pandemic is devastating to even to a small community like my own. People continue to live in fear of the virus and it is only worsening for my own small community. This picture helps to show one of the positives of this devastating disease which is being able to get closer to my family members. During isolation I ended up spending a lot of time with my grandparents and we were actually able to get closer. I feel this says a lot about the pandemic. It shows that times are tough to people and this disease has got everyone concerned. During these harsh times it is now more important than ever before to have a good support system. The support from families and friends I feel is what kept me going and a lot of my other colleagues felt the same way. Through COVID 19 then I was able to get closer to my own family and I think this one positive despite these difficult times helps to make my time during this pandemic a little more manageable. I think both this picture and story helps to document both the effects of COVID 19 on a small town and one way that people have adjusted to the new environment. -
2020-08-09
I'm sorry my love.
Dear son, I am so sorry you are having to live through these crazy times. You are only three and don't understand why we can't go see your grandparents and your friends. I know that it sucks that we can't play outside and living in an apartment makes it even worse. It will be over some day soon. I am so proud of you wearing your mask anytime we have to go somewhere. I am so glad you're in such good spirts at all times. When all of this is all over we will go and visit family and friends. We might have lost a year but my love we will go on vacation and see our family and friends. Just a little longer and we won't have to wear our masks. Until then my son keep strong and we will get through this. -
04/13/2020
Laura Spindler Lempke Oral History, 2020/04/13
Oral history interview with Laura Spindler who lives and works in Indianapolis, Indiana. She shares she just got married, bought a house, and a puppy. She works as a biologist at Eli Lilly and while she hasn't worked on the virus, she has assembled test kits. As an extrovert she is really missing time with family and friends but between walks with her new puppy and time spent playing games via Zoom she is managing. She also credits virtual therapy appointments with maintaining her mental health. She also discusses her mother who is alone and her grandparents who were wintering in Texas but drove back to Indiana anyway. -
2020-04-07
Coronacles of Sophia Michela Di Giacomo age 12
The journal speaks about different challenges that many people, including myself, have been experiencing over the duration the the COVID-19 pandemic. This journal may become beneficial for historical research in the future, hence why it has been submitted. -
2020-03-10
A Letter from Wuhan (from a child)
The video tells the story of how a Wuhan child thinks about what's going on with the Coronavirus pandemic. His father is a policeman and his mother is a doctor. His grandparents told him there is a monster called Coronavirus and his parents are fighting it. There is so much news about COVID-19, but this video is important because it shows a child's perspective of what his parents are doing and how they are saving other people. -
04/06/2020
Pasuaha Yang Oral History, 2020/04/06
I did a podcast based on my journey through the Coronavirus of the struggle I was dealing with my schoolwork. The whole process was complicated, I had some time where I was struggling with being motivated with my schoolwork. But I pushed through it. The podcast was beneficial because I was able to reflect on my day and talk freely about how I feel. Overall, it was a great experience. -
2020-05-16
Grandchildren paper hugs to Grandparents
Our two grandchildren 2yr Callie Kay and 4yr Addi left these for us in our mailbox after 8 weeks of self quarantine as I am a nurse -
2020-04-08
How will this moment be seen in the Future?
This is a tweet reflecting on what it may be like explaining to people in the future what it was like living through Covid-19. The tweet also wonders what impacts this event will have on us. #HUM402 -
05/07/2020
Keeping the Elderly Safe
Some people still have to live there lives and go out and help other's. My Grandfather needs a care giver everyday from when he wakes up to when he goes to sleep. We have to do everything we can do to keep him safe and healthy. He is a lovely man and all he wants now is for this to be over so he could go visit his wife in the nursing home, because they are all shut down. *taken on May 7th -
2020-05-01
Personal Entry 2
I don’t get to see my grandparents anymore, it’s sad and it hurts because they were hugely important in raising me, but they are safe and that’s what matters. My grandparents are in their 70’s and my grandfather has underlying medical issues so it is vital he not be infected. In order to see them we zoom or Skype, and sometimes they come over and stay in their car with the window rolled down as we talk 10 feet apart. I don’t know when I can hug them or even go within a six foot distance of them again. I don’t know when I can go to the house I was raised in again. That’s okay because we make do with what we have, we’re keeping everyone safe. Last night we Skyped for Easter Dinner, and even though that was a first, we do what we must during these times. Here’s a photo of their visit a few weeks ago.