Items

• 
  2021-08-10

  Lockdown Library - HIST30060

  During the 6th Victorian lockdown in August 2021, my family decided to do some cleaning of our old children’s books to pass the time. My mum decided to set up this little ‘lockdown library’ to give the books out for free to good homes, in hopes of helping kids who are stuck at home stay busy during the lockdown and online schooling. As they cleaned, they also found some adult books to give away as well, in hopes that it would help provide not only entertainment, but a reminder of human kindness and the fact that we are all in this together.
• 
  2021-10-11

  HIST30060: A Secondary Teacher's Chronicle

  This is an image of a week from my mother's chronicle. She is a secondary teacher in regional Victoria who primarily teaches Theatre Studies, Drama and English. During the time that the photograph was taken (October 2021), the school she is working at decided to stagger teaching different year levels to reduce the threat of a Covid-19 outbreak in the lead up to VCE exams. As highlighted in the chronicle in different colours, some classes would be taught in-person and others online in one day. As my family does not live in the same town that my mother teaches in, she would often have to stay at school the entire day regardless. Due to the nature of rapid changes in health information and additional directions from the school itself, every week in the chronicle looks very different to the next. The image shows an element of the chaos that is present in the everyday lives of individuals during covid and the ability for plans to rapidly change from day to day.
• 
  2021-10-15

  A muffled voice

  My six-year-old son often forgets he’s wearing a mask. We’ll leave his school, the grocery store, anywhere really, and he’ll spend the entire car ride home with his mask still on. He’s even tried to eat with it on a few times! I can always hear when he’s forgotten to take it off because it muffles his voice. He talks constantly, I like to say that he actually voices his internal monologue, so I can tell exactly when he takes his mask off even if I can’t see him. When I hear that he’s still wearing his mask, I often think about the instability of being a child (and raising a child) during a global pandemic. His life and his routines have changed so frequently in the past year and a half, but he has been incredibly adaptive and understanding the entire time. Hearing his muffled little voice always makes me appreciate this awesome kid of mine while also making me really consider these chaotic times we’re living in.
• 
  2020-04-16

  Covid Consolation Puppy

  A week after the first shutdown began in March of 2020, schools were shut down and I was no longer able to complete my student teaching. I was furloughed from my job and locked inside for what we originally thought would be two weeks. With no end to the lockdown in sight and nothing to do, it became stressful and quite boring. Living with my parents at the time, the entire family was locked inside and tensions were high. One day, my mom got a call from a former coworker whose dog had just had puppies a month prior. She offered us a puppy and my mom, knowing how sad I was at not having a job or an internship, accepted and I was able to pick any puppy I wanted. Freyja, my dog, was my Covid-consolation-puppy. She was very young and I was up all night and all day with her, potty training and playing with her. My time was entirely consumed by this puppy and I was never bored or alone again. We joke that she was a consolation puppy because I never got to complete the typical training any teacher before received. A few months after the first shut down ASU canceled graduation and went virtual, it was another blow, and knowing I would not be able to walk the stage to get my degree was tough to handle. However, Freyja made things easier and took my mind off things. She grew with me and she became my best friend and protector. When I moved out, she kept me safe. When I separated from a long-term partner, she was what I found joy in. I love my dog very much because she came into my life when I needed her most.
• 
  2020-12-25

  Covid Family Holidays

  This picture was taken on Christmas Day of 2020. Due to my cancer diagnosis, a weak immune system, and the need or me to socially isolate Christmas gifts were delivered by the matriarch of my family, my mother. Adjusting family holiday traditions has been another consequence of Covid.
• 
  2021-10-08

  My covied-19 experience: Ella McMullen

  My name is Ella McMullen, I live in Nampa Idaho. I go to Lone Star middle school. When Covied-19 started I was 11 years old, Covied has affected millions of people. My family is one of them. When my mom and dad got covied my brother, sister, and I all went to live with my grandparents. We lived with my grandparents for about 3 weeks. While we were living with my grandparents, my mom got the bad side of Covied. She ended up having to go to the hospital, she had to go because of her breathing. She had to have around 14 litters of air while she was in the hospital. Thankfully, she was only there for about a week. When she got out, she had to still be on air. So, it was difficult when we had to go out because we had to make sure we had the air tank full, and we had an extra one with us just in case. My mother was on air for about 6 months. After my mom got better, she was really stressed. My dad was still sick, but he thankfully did not go to the hospital. My dad was only sick for about 2 weeks. He got the safer side of covied. That is how covied affected my life.
• 
  2020-03

  How Covid-19 Crafted My Entrepreneurship

  It shows how I turned my negative into a positive.
• 
  2021-10-06

  COVID-19 and the Family Divide

  My submission details the drastic shift in the lives of the family unit after the emergence of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19. It is important for me to discuss the pandemic's effects within the household as they pertain to internal religio-political affairs.
• 
  2021-05-30

  Remembering Society's Humanity

  This is a story about being a pregnant person during the pandemic
• 2020-03

  Recollections from an Oncology Nurse

  My mom is an oncology nurse and has worked in the field of nursing for the past 30 years. I recently asked her to talk to me about her experience this past year as a healthcare worker. She recalled the first week in March when things were becoming intense. People were asked to wear face shields and gowns as they were working in an immune-compromised area where the patients had cancer. At the time there was no vaccine. “It was incredibly intense and scary” my mother said. “People were worried about getting Covid from other staff at the hospital and also worried about contracting Covid from the patients.” “I walked into the hospital and there was an incredible underlying anxiety, the feeling of unease was palpable. People did not talk to each other like they normally did - everyone was consumed with the thought of not using each other’s pens, putting gloves on when receiving things from the pharmacy. Things we would never have even thought of before.” 
 She continued, “It was a feeling of both being unsettled and a blind trust you put in your coworkers to be as clean, as responsible and in isolation outside of work as you. The intensity of that feeling was there the moment you walked in. The environment had changed. People were not as happy, communicative, relaxed.” 
 She explained how working in Covid - there was an incredible newness to it - a fear and apprehension.
• 
  2020-04-02

  False Rumors

  In Alexis Akwagyiram’s Reuters article named “African governments team up with tech giants to fights coronavirus lies”, she details how African countries are partnering with tech companies like Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp to ensure citizens are up to date with news on the coronavirus and prevent false rumors from spreading through these channels and eventually causing a spike in cases. In the article, Akwagyiram mentions how “false claims that garlic, beetroot, and lemons are an effective alternative to antiretroviral drugs' ' continued to spread in most African countries. However, those claims reached the African community here in the United States. My mom, a Ghanaian woman, trying to find ways to prevent herself from catching the virus, especially since she had to work during the height of the pandemic, found herself believing these said rumors. I remember entering the kitchen every morning to see her making a mixture of garlic, hibiscus herb, and ginger boiling on the stove and pouring them in cups for the family to drink. This daily routine took a toll on her health as she began to experience symptoms such as trouble swallowing, difficulty sleeping, and irritability after eating which her doctor later diagnosed as acid reflux. With my mom already having an underlying disease and being immuno-compromised, she had to start taking new medications to prevent the reflux from affecting her blood pressure. What was supposed to alleviate stress and prevent us from catching the virus, just brought more trouble to my family with us now having to worry about the effect of this new diagnosis on my mom’s well-being.
• 
  2020-04-10

  A prayer for my mom

  My mom had been sick for more than 2 weeks at my house at the end of March-early April. One morning she woke up and could barely catch her breath or breathe. My dad took both her and my brother who has similar symptoms to the emergency room. They transferred my mom to St. Joseph's for low oxygen levels and an elevated heart rate. My brother was sent home as his symptoms and current levels weren't enough to get him admitted due to the over crowding in the hospitals at this time.
• 
  2021-08-28

  Visiting Grandma

  This photograph is from when my mom, dad, brother, brother's fiancé, and I flew to Georgia to visit my declining grandmother. For my entire life, my grandma, my mom's mom, lived in the next town over, only about seven miles away. However, as she aged and as the isolation from the pandemic set in, my family decided that it would be best for her to move to Georgia to live with my aunt, my mom's sister. Although we tried to take care of my grandma from the start of the pandemic through when she left in October of 2020, we lived in perpetual uncertainty and fear of exposing her to the virus. Every time we had her come over for dinner, we were afraid that we were taking a gamble, especially when the pandemic was just starting. My grandma moved to a care facility in Georgia in April. Since my grandma, my family, and I were all vaccinated, we planned a short trip to make sure we got to see her one more time. Although we were masked and only had a limited amount of time, getting to see us again meant a tremendous amount to my grandma.
• 
  2021-08-03

  Quarantine Hair

  Christmas 2019 we gifted my kids (and mom) a Disney cruise for August 2020. Our plan was for my daughter and I to chop our hair right before the cruise. The cruise never happened, and neither did our haircuts. Fast forward to a year later. My hair dresser now works from out of her home, having lost her shop. Knowing that she is vaccinated and only sees one household at a time, I decided to finally get our hair cut. My baby’s first haircut only took (almost) 11 years! It was refreshing to say good bye to our quarantine hair, if only we could say goodbye to COVID, too.
• 
  2021-08-11

  First day of school

  While many on my social media feed are in arms about tighter vaccine regulations, some realize that the pandemic is not over. As the new school year starts there are many mothers who share in my fear. Covid is still alive and well, new strains continue to form breeding in the bodies of the unvaccinated. The worse part is that this time the elderly seem much safer than our children. Our children are being sent back to school, life has returned to "normal" as the number of hospitalized children continues to rise. I share my fears with this friend who popped up on my feed this morning. Will our kids be safe? Will my daughter get infected? Will there be another lockdown? I too feel like it's become too much to ask for my kids to simply be happy and healthy because both now depend on the actions (or misactions) of others.
• 
  2020-05-05

  New app gives moms-to-be flexibility in receiving care

  A press release from Banner Health announcing a new digital tool used by Banner Health physicians allows pregnant women to monitor their prenatal health at home and make fewer trips to the doctor’s office.
• 
  2021-07-27

  The years of struggle!

  In 2018 I suffered from many personal traumas that led me to be a single mother of three littles ones. I found it very challenging to now be the only one who provided for my children and the only person they could rely on. With this new huge adjustment I made the decision to finally go back to school. I have never been very good at school or interested in furthering my education. With a little help from my family I was able to overcome my fear of college. I felt like I was finally thriving in school and I was coming to term with being the only role model in my children's lives. Then suddenly my classes shifted to online courses due to covid-19. I now had a whole new set of fears and distractions to go along with my new life as a single parent of 3. These terrible times have taught me that I can accomplish anything and I will keep pushing forward no matter what the universe throws at me.
• 
  2021-07-07

  Hosts break down after quarantined man’s mother passes away | Today Show Australia

  This is a heartbreaking story from Australia about a man who flew around the world to try to get to his dying mother, only to have the Queensland government block his way. So many people across the globe had to die alone without their loved ones because of this pandemic. Hospitals and governments need to come up with a safe system to allow for visitation of dying relatives during pandemics because, sadly, this will likely happen again in the future.
• 
  2021-07-15

  Dr. Marissa Rhodes, Oral History, July 15, 2021

  Curator for the JOPTY program, Angelica S Ramos interviews mother of three, Dr. Marissa Rhodes. In this interview she discusses her role as a professor and how COVID-19 halted all the plans she had for her classes. She also discusses her pregnancy with her third baby and the struggles that came with prenatal care and birth during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Rhodes also relates her birthing experience and how different the pandemic made it from her first two pregnancies; she discusses the complications that she faced and the stresses she dealt with. Dr. Rhodes also discusses how her social life was impacted and the struggle to find a balance between work, children, virtual-learning and a new baby. Lastly, she reflects on her personal silver lining and the lessons that she hopes will be learned from this experience.
• 
  2021-07-09

  Interview with Charlotte Tibollo

  Mother interviewing 5 year old daughter about the pandemic.
• 
  2021-07-08

  Interview with Collett Hall

  Collett Hall talks about her fears about her daughter getting the virus, her system for obtaining groceries, and her experiences working as a special education teacher.
• 
  2021-05-27

  Teachers Rock

  Right before COVID-19 hit my husband made the transition from active duty military to reservist. After eight years we were finally given the gift to settle down and live a "normal" life. January of 202 we moved into our home and three months later we were facing a quarantine. That same in the midst of that my daughter started kindergarten. It was a moment I had thought of for quite some time. In my mind, I would take lots of pictures, walk her to her class and tearfully walk back to my car and having a pity party about my growing girl. Instead, my daughter spent her first day at home in front of a computer while I fought to get into her virtual classroom. For months we dealt with virtual than in class then back to virtual learning as COVID cases peaked. My daughters Kindergarten teacher was the only constant bright light throughout the school year. Through it all she worked tirelessly to make sure the kids had a positive school experience. She went out of her way to make sure the school brought them joy in the midst of the chaotic year, having her in my daughter's life became personal to my family. At the end of the school year she sent out her last newsletter thanking parents but the reality of it is- she was a complete rockstar and we will forever be grateful. I wanted to share her last newsletter in hopes that it reflects an ounce of how difficult this school year was for teachers and how resilient children were.
• 
  2021-05-21

  Personal Pandemic History Project Of Jaisey Rindlisbacher

  This is about the COVID-19 pandemic. It shares my moms personal experience, and it is important to me because I spent a ton of time on it. Also because this was one of our final projects in school.
• 
  2020-12-31

  I could not hug my mother

  For my primary source, I selected a screenshot of me and my mom while we talked through Facetime. In this facetime we were in the same house but unable to see each other in person since she was infected with the covid-19 virus. Apparently, my mother became ill with covid-19 while celebrating the end of 2020 with close relatives, they were around 6 members of my family and they decided to go celebrate that day since they had not seen each other for a long time. That day I was working at night and cannot go to the party. Well, on the first of January I couldn't go to my house either since my co-workers called out and I had to do a double shift. I left the first of January around 3:00 pm from my work, before arriving at my house my mother called me and told me that she was not feeling well and that she believed that she was infected with covid because she had all the symptoms related to this virus. She went to do the test so I went to my girlfriend's house to wait for my mother to call me to confirm what we already suspected, around 5:00 pm she called me to tell me that she, my aunt and my cousin were positive . We could not leave our house for 16 days and only seeing each other through Facetime. I remember we took turns using the kitchen or leaving our rooms. To use the bathroom, we each entered with a Lysol to disinfect before and after using it. We used gloves and a mask when we left our rooms, so that I would not get infected. Today, 5 months later, my mother is still suffering the consequences of being infected, she gets tired when she walks for a long time and is in training since she has bacteria in the lungs as a result of covid-19. I decided to select this screenshot as my source because it represents what many people went through during the pandemic. Family that lasted months without seeing each other when before the pandemic they saw each other every day and grandparents without knowing their newborn grandchildren were some of the scenes that we could see during the pandemic. I am the only son of my mother and we have a remarkably close relationship. Never in our lives would we have lasted so long without seeing each other in person and without having hugged each other, it was very painful.
• 
  2021-04-21T18

  Dinner and Hearts

  As of yesterday, my two weeks was up and I am now "fully vaccinated" per the CDC guidelines. My wife got there Friday, and my mother has been fully vaccinated since February. Per the CDC, since we are all fully vaccinated, we can visit each other and not have to wear masks. We had Mom over for dinner for the first time since before the pandemic. After dinner we played a few rounds of hearts. I had to reacquaint myself with something that used to be "normal" before COVID-19. I was a bit rusty at playing cards, but I soon got back into it. It does not seem like that big a deal, but it was good for Mom to get out of her house for a while. It was good for all of us, and I am looking forward to more such evenings.
• 
  2021-04-15

  Daunte Wright's mom says she 'wants 100% accountability' in wake of officer's arrest

  The mother of Daunte Wright, the 20-year-old Black man shot dead by a Minnesota police officer at a traffic stop, said she "wants 100% accountability" in the wake of the officer's arrest. "If that even happens, we're still going to bury our son," Wright's mother, Katie Wright, said at a Thursday news conference. "We're still never going to be able to see our baby boy."
• 
  2021-04-18

  COVID 19

  what impact covid 19 has had on my son
• 
  2021-03-09

  #JOTPYSilver from Christine

  christinejwong #jotpysilver I’m grateful I got to spend more time with my kids that wouldn’t haven been possible if I was going into the office 5 days a week.
• 
  2021-04-09

  Rights were violated

  Rights were violated I wanted to share this video for several reasons. The focus is on how the police responds to the deaf mother and 1) asks the twins so many questions in front of the mom who does not know what is being said here. 2) You never handcuff a deaf person behind their back. 3) The Americans with Disabilities Act was violated. 4) The cop got mad at Mom for not “listening to directions.” Really. 5) The deaf person is the one who is left in the dark literally. She is the focus here yet she does not know what is happening. Unfortunately, this is too common in deaf and hard of hearing people’s experience with the police. This should not be the common experience in dealing with the police. There are more reasons, but the point is… this is one reason why the deaf people are so hesitant about getting help/support from the police. I hope this video as traumatizing, becomes a lesson. Police reform is much needed in so many areas, including learning how to communicate & how to work with deaf and hard of hearing people, the DO’s and the DON’Ts as seen here. I hope to see more training with the police departments in understanding how to work with deaf and hard of hearing people. I pray for healing for Mom- @burgundre Drizzy, and her twins. You can go and support her as she fights this. Trigger warning here. Posted @withregram • @kelly4access 11 year old twin girls are forced by police (Michael Rose of the North Las Vegas PD) to interpret for their deaf mom and are interrogated while she is handcuffed. @burgundre recorded recorded her encounter on FB Live. Thanks so much @dpantv for working late in the night to make this accessible!! #asl #captions #signlanguage #police #discrimination #injustice #ada #policebrutality #whyisign #askmewhyisign
• 
  2021-03-30

  Pandemic Lifestyle & Childhood Education, Oral History with Anonymous, 03/30/2021

  Living in military housing with their spouse and two children in California, the narrator chooses to remain anonymous. Throughout the interview, the narrator speaks at length about their COVID-19 pandemic experience. They go on about how they go tackle socialization, especially for their children, as they are not able to travel very far from home. They talk about what precautions they take whenever they leave the house, and how they would not let the pandemic restrictions completely dictate their new norm. Although their children are none the wiser considering their young ages, they continue to create a sense of normalcy that would simulate a pre-pandemic lifestyle. Delving deeper into safety measures, the narrator expresses their thoughts and hopes about how people in their community are taking precautions. This includes how they would hope that everyone is being honest and doing their part in assuring everyone’s mutual safety, such as informing them if they or their children are sick.
• 
  2021-01-21

  While holding hands husband, wife die from COVID-19 days after 70th wedding anniversary

  The increasing death toll from COVID-19 has devastated many families on a personal level. One instance illustrates that like no other. An Ohio couple that had recently celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary both passed away minutes apart, leaving behind seven decades of memories, five children, 13 grandchildren and 28 great-grandchildren. Dick and Shirley Meek celebrated their anniversary on Dec. 22. It was then when they innocuously told their children they were feeling a little under the weather. "They said to all us kids, 'we think we're getting colds,'" said Kelly Meek. But suddenly, things got bad and it was evident this was no mere cold. On Jan. 8, they both tested positive for COVID-19. When things started to worsen for both of them, the family asked for them to be together for their final moments. Hospital staff found a room for two beds and the necessary equipment. Dick and Shirley died in each other's arms on Jan. 16. They were due to get the COVID-19 vaccine on Jan. 19.
• 
  2021-03-21

  How does the pandemic affect children?

  This is an article that provides an inside on taking care of a newborn during the pandemic.
• 
  2020-07-19

  This is What My Community Looks Like

  “This is what my community looks like. We are a community and we support all the families that are here.” - Valerie Castile, mother of Philando Castile, at Mother's March (6/12/20)
• 
  2020-10-09

  Happy Birthday Mom, Goodbye Grandma

  It was just the turn of midnight and I called my mother to wish her happy birthday, but to my surprise the phone was picked up to deafening cries and the hurt can be sensed through the phone, something has happened. What could it be? Well it turned out to be the worst thing anyone wants on their birthday which is the death of their parents. My mom and I were supposed to go to Poland to see my grandma but now she has passed on my mothers birthday, there is no reason to go anymore as we must quarantine for two weeks. Just like that no goodbye, no funeral, no nothing we didn't even get to say a last I love you. Goodbye Grandma.
• 
  2020-03-11

  Meet Generation C, the Covid generation

  "Natalie Sanchez heard it in her children's voice when their birthday parties were canceled and saw it on their faces when they couldn't play with friends. It was more than just simple disappointment. It was fear that the world they once knew might have changed forever. "I think that it's something that's going to kind of scar them. I don't think that they'll forget," says the mom of three. Now, a year into a worldwide disaster it's no longer a question of if this pandemic will shape an entire generation, But how."
• 
  2020-03-10

  Disneyland March 2020

  One year ago today my daughter and I went to Disneyland for spring break and little did we realize we would be lucky enough to be there right before it closed down due to the pandemic. We had four awesome days for our "girl getaway" and three days after we came home Disneyland was closed. We are waiting with anticipation to return to Disneyland when it reopens.
• 
  2021-02-24

  Zero Options

  Through my journey of motherhood, I have often felt like my "superpower" derived from simply having no other option. As a military spouse, a grad student, and a mother of two I often go the "I could never do it" talk from kidless friends and family. I wouldn't say that Covid has created more of these conversations, but I do feel like mothers have been more vocal about this aspect of motherhood. I feel so connected to my role as a mother through this global pandemic. Mothers are coming together and sharing the ups AND downs. It's hard, it's exhausting and draining, mothering during a pandemic seems impossible, but mothers get it done, just as we did a year ago before Covid. This Instagram post says mothers have not been given a superpower to get through this pandemic, I think Covid has shown me my superpower though. My tribe of mom friends encourages me, uplifts me, and grounds me at the same time. We laugh together, we cry together, and on tough days, we drink together.
• 2021-02-25

  Conditions of Release

  My 80-year old mother got her second vaccine dose on January 25. She is now anxious to get out in the world. She wants to resume doing her own grocery shopping, and she really wants to get her hair done. I half-jokingly told her that the family would have to confer about her "conditions of release" (the kind of term used when people are released from jail or prison). After having just such a conference, we decided that after the second shot had two weeks to become effective, we thought it would be all right for her to start shopping in stores again, under the condition that she of course wore a mask and went out when stores would not be crowded. We advised her not to get her hair done, as that would put her in close proximity to one person indoors for an extended period. Mom was disappointed about that, but accepted the conclusion.
• 
  2021-02-14

  Essential vs. Expendable Workers

  When the pandemic broke out, I was caught in the whirlwind of being an essential worker. I was a manager at my local McDonalds, so I've seen just how cruel people can be, and how corporations have continued to neglected their workers. Many people are minimum wage workers, and its frightening to know that such a large population is suffering so much, only to receive little appreciation and change. Through my personal story, I hope to have readers step in the shoes of a minimum wage worker than a pandemic, so when they step out, they'll raise awareness on the issue of lack of support and care for minimum wage workers.
• 
  2020-03-13

  The Silver Lining

  On March 13th, the day after my birthday, I had treated myself to finally getting my septum pierced after wanting that piercing for months beforehand. Little did I know then that I would be almost the only one that has seen it in person since then. Two days after that, we had received an email from our university’s administration informing us that we would be allowed to leave school and continue classes online at home if we felt unsafe at school as concerns of the virus got bigger and louder with each passing day. The writing was on the wall; Duquesne University was going to be closing down. That email would come on the car ride back home an hour after me and my sister had already left campus. Once the semester was over and summer began, even with our own specific set of challenges, I actually feel my family was surprisingly equipped to handle the new world we were thrust into. Both of my parents are severely disabled; my mother has not been physically able to work for years and my father recently had to give up his floor cleaning services once his health gave out. As a family, we’ve found that we are much stronger together, and we “make it work” as they say. My mom did have a little fun in responding to our physically healthy friends and family talking about being trapped in their house for months on end with “Welcome to the club, you get used to it.” She was always (mostly) joking, of course, but I do think there is some truth to this joke. I grew up with a mom who rapidly succumbed to multiple debilitating chronic disorders, and that kind of circumstance opens your eyes to different experiences than many of your peers who did not experience the same. Listening to the words of more people than I can count who thought being disabled was all about staying home and collecting a check have now maybe had their opinions changed based on this new perspective, I hope so at least. This all being said, I also have to acknowledge the privilege I have in having a socially stable homelife. I personally know more than a few friends from school who had genuine, serious concerns for their mental or physical wellbeing when we were told everyone had to return home. I try to remember every day not to take what I have for granted. If the plague year has taught me anything, it is that I have a lot to be grateful for.
• 2021-02-11

  Vaccinated!

  Relief was what I felt when I received my covid vaccine. I felt even more relief when my 21-year-old daughter was able to receive her vaccine since she would not have been able to have gotten vaccinated until early summer. My first vaccine appointment was at 12:30 in the morning, and my daughter rode along with me to keep me company since I had to drive to State Farm Stadium. As we exited the freeway to go to the stadium, the parking lot where the vaccines were being administered could be seen, and I was surprised that it looked relatively vacant of vehicles. When we reached the parking lot, we were directed to follow the signs and pull up to the first checkpoint, where a person verified I had an appointment. At the second checkpoint, a person scanned in my appointment and asked if my passenger had an appointment as well. I told the person “no,” and they said, “we have had a lot of people not show up tonight for their vaccination, so if your passenger would like to get vaccinated, they are welcome to do so.” I immediately accepted the offer for my daughter to get her vaccination, and we were directed to another spot where she could fill out her paperwork for getting a shot. Once my daughter completed her paperwork, we were sent to wait in a line where the vaccines were administered, and after a five-minute wait, we had our first vaccine. After we had our shots, we were directed to wait in a line of cars for fifteen minutes to ensure we did not have any adverse reactions to the vaccination. While waiting for the fifteen minutes, an individual came to our vehicle and scheduled our second vaccination appointment, which was a huge relief since going through the computer system the state had established was cumbersome. What was surprising to my daughter and me was that while we waited during that fifteen-minute time frame, a nurse came by to ask us how we were feeling. We both said we were okay and stated we were surprised that we could get through the vaccine process so quickly and how there were so few cars. The nurse told us that many people were skipping out of their appointsments out of fear of rumored side effects from the vaccine, which was why there was extra serum for individuals like my daughter, who had ridden along. So I had the right schedule for the right night for my daughter to ride along. And now my whole household has been inoculated, which is a relief after three times of being in quarantine. Whew!
• 
  2020-12-01

  Tea Time Together

  I am very close with my mom, and used to regularly visit my grandmother, but I moved across the country right before Covid-19 and was unable to visit this year. I was feeling extremely homesick during the fall, as my grandmother and I have birthdays near each other and usually celebrate together but we were unable to do so this year. While my grandmother and I did send letters and cards to each other and I facetime with my mom fairly often, I was still experiencing a feeling of loss and a lack of connection. To bring us together, my mom proposed that the three of us all use the same tea advent calendar to celebrate the holidays. We all got the same mug, the same tea set, and spent the month of December enjoying tea from three different places, which allowed us to feel a sense of togetherness, even when we are apart.
• 
  2021-02-02

  Holding her Baby for the First Time

  As a mother of two, two thoughts have plagued the darkest corners of my mind for the past ten months: “I can’t let anything happen to the kids” and “what would happen if something happened to me?” The thoughts terrify me so much I can’t even say them aloud. So, to read about pregnant women trying to safely bring life into the world amidst the pandemic is an unbearable thought. The thought of being pregnant right now is truly terrifying, so this article struck a deep chord when I read it. A woman at the very end of her pregnancy contracted Covid-19, gave birth while unconscious, and then spent 75 days on oxygen and a ventilator. Her baby was born November 4, and just this past week, on January 27, she was able to hold her for the first time. Seeing the pictures of this mom, who I don’t know and will never meet, with her baby is a wonderful moment of hope. Clearly this family has a long road ahead, as the mom is still weak and on oxygen. However, when you see the pictures of them together, the oxygen mask seems to disappear and all I see is a mother’s love and true joy. A story of survival, and a glimmer of hope in a year that has been bleak.
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  2021-02-04

  My Mother Will Be 80 Years Old This Week

  My mother will have her eightieth birthday this Sunday. She is not likely to share her story here. She has a computer and uses the Internet. However, she usually only looks at other people’s posts on Facebook and does not use Twitter at all. I will therefore tell some of her story myself. My mother has been stuck in her house for nearly a year now. She lives only a mile or two from each of us, so my sister and I get her groceries for her so she does not risk exposure to the virus. My mother was resistant to this for a while, from a combination of independence, a disinclination to impose on others, and a plain desire to get out of the house. My mother probably has not gotten a hug from anyone in nearly a year. We call her nearly every day, and we do visit with her on patio, but we always keep our distance. As much as she would like to see people more, she does not want to break social distancing. In her view, she has stuck with it this long and does not want to waste that effort. When I talk to my mother, she often expresses boredom. She reads, works on puzzles, watches television, and calls family (although she does not want to bother people). The other day I half-jokingly suggested that she spend some time writing her memoirs. It would be a gift for her children and grandchildren to record her life experiences. My mother has started writing several pages a day. She writes long-hand in a notepad, then types up what she wrote on her computer. I was amused when she told me this, because I have not written that way in more than thirty years, and younger generations likely could not imagine doing it this way. My mother made one of her rare trips outside the house last week. She was able to navigate the website and get herself an appointment for a COVID vaccination. I was rather proud of her for persistently navigating a website that I found confusing and difficult to use. Her persistence in seeking a vaccination speaks to her eagerness to get life back to normal.
• 2021-02-02

  First Round Vaccines!

  I stayed up late Monday night and headed over to my parents house around midnight. Their appointments were at 2:48 AM (and I had a time getting them appointments together), but we were planning to arrive early and expected to spend hours in line. I made myself a thermos of coffee and loaded an extra air tank into the car for my dad, in case the wait was longer than one tank’s capacity, and reminded both parents to bring their phones and tablets. It felt a little bit like loading up my niece and nephew for a road trip. We drove out to the stadium, the suburb’s quiet and empty, then followed the signs to the appropriate parking lot. It was surprisingly empty and I wove the car through the cones set up to guide a much longer line. We arrived at the first of three drive-thru tents, where my parents answered a set of questions about their health and medications. The car acquired a bit of caution tape on the side mirror and some notes on the window about blood thinners. At the third tent, they got their shots. We parked and waited thirty minutes rather than the standard fifteen since Mom has a penicillin allergy. They got their shots at 1:36 AM and we were released to leave at 2:06. We were back at their house before the original appointment time. I unloaded the air tanks and said my good nights then drove through the silent streets back to my apartment.
• 2020-01-25

  Statistics and final thoughts

  Covid 19 originates in China at the beginning of 2020. The first cases in the U.S. were in March when they have an average of 19 people died. December was the most severe part of the time when there was an average of 44,602 people died. Due to the number of covid victims and deaths, my mother and I decided not to visit our family in China until the pandemic settles down. Covid 19 made me more careful with my health; I took steps to prevent myself from getting sick. It changed my daily routine, but I soon get used to it.
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  2021-01-24

  Wearing Me Out

  I am a contrarian. When the culture seems to be telling me to go outside and enjoy the sunshine and beaches (I'm on the coast of Florida) I always did the opposite. I was a shut-in for my entire life and had always disliked being adventurous, open, courageous. Probably, I was just anxious and scared. I was just beginning to open up at the beginning of the year and when COVID became the prime news and media and the culture seemed to flip and become about isolation and shutting-in... I snapped. I said no, I won't. I won't stay inside any longer. I won't isolate myself from others. I started taking better care of myself, doing yoga on the beach, watching my diet, working out daily, threw out half my wardrobe, and bought these boots. I put myself out there and met many people that changed my life for the better. I am now adventurous, courageous, forthcoming, and open to new people and experiences and, in my opinion, it is all thanks to the quarantine and shut-down. I did contract COVID and did isolate with my family who all also caught it (my mother brought it home from work, where they all wear masks). These boots carried me through this year and have made me feel confident in myself and what I can do for the first time in a long time.
• 2021-01-24

  Food, COVID-19, and my Mother

  My mom raised her children around food. She made sure everything revolved around it just like the Earth revolves around the Sun. We ate whether we wanted to or not, as food was her way of showing love. Mom is now in her late 70's and still works miracles in the kitchen. When we visited my parents' house (pre-pandemic), she fed us until we could not eat anymore, then declared we were still hungry and loaded our plates with more. That is what Mexican moms do, she always says. Even though we protest, my husband, kids, and I love it. All of this changed once COVID-19 hit. Worried about my parents catching the virus, we did not see much of them in 2020. When we did, it was from a distance in their backyard and not for very long. It took an enormous toll on my mom. My parents cannot visit with their children and grandchildren, but almost just as worse, my mom has no one to cook for but my dad. Although she still enjoys cooking for him, it is not the same. Although we all know what food means to her, none of us realized just how much until this pandemic hit. Normally, she is rarely sick, loves to hike, and enjoys going to aerobics with her friends. However, lately, she has felt melancholy, is getting headaches, and is sleeping more. This is extremely unusual for her, which has us all very concerned. This pandemic is wearing on her both physically and emotionally. This feisty woman is slowing down, which is scary to us all. Over the past year, we continue to tell her we want to come over but would never forgive ourselves if we unknowingly pass the virus to her or my dad. Mom did not and still does not understand. She just wants what she wants, which is her family surrounding her. My dad is much more pragmatic about this situation, but mom will not have any of it. She is incredibly frustrated and is not afraid to tell us about it. Luckily, both of my parents just got their first dose of the vaccine last week. My dad said this gives them renewed hope that their family will be together again soon. I hear this hope when I speak on the phone with my mom. She is ready to get busy again in the kitchen. I cannot wait to eat her homemade tortillas straight off the stove, her spicy chili, and all of her other tasty dishes. People are now talking about the 'new normal.' I do not want a new normal. I want to get back all that this pandemic has taken from us, including my family crowding around a table full of my mom’s food.
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  2020-12-10

  Baby born to Sacramento mother in ICU, on ventilator with COVID-19

  A pregnant mother, and nurse, living in Sacramento, California contracts COVID-19 in her seventh month of pregnancy and delivers her third child. This news article captures some of the emotional struggles she went through from being diagnosed while pregnant and delivering her child. Through this woman’s story, we gain some insight into a mother’s experience of both being sick with COVID-19 and delivering a child during the pandemic.
• 2020-12-25

  Holidays in COVID

  Holidays have never been particularly important in my family. Most holidays would end in a fight between me and my mother so the lack of family interaction wasn't really a big deal for me. My mom ended up driving down from California to spend time with my grandmother and me. These holidays ended up being good as my mom and I got along better. It seems as though without the pressure for the holidays to be fully good my mom and I were able to let go and just enjoy being around each other.