Items

• 
  2020-03-15

  COVID-19 Impact

  COVID-19 took so much from me. It took people, friendships, experiences, and so much more. I have pictured a high school diploma. This represents the years I lost in high school but still pushed through and finished. I’ve lacked education from being online. I lost opportunities and experiences. I lost friends. And had scares of losing my father. Covid took so much from me and many others.
• 
  2022-03-13

  The Virus That Slowed Us Down

  I was worried before the virus as to what would happen to the world if we just kept moving forward like we were. It seemed that the world was in the motion of forward, keep going going going going. Do not stop, do not stop, keep moving forward. In a way the virus showed us more than we could have ever asked for. Once we were all stripped of the things we all enjoyed and loved, things changed. We were introduced to new things that we did not feel or experience again because we left them behind in our continuously moving forward lifestyle. The people that needed to do some internal viewing was able to stand back, and work on themselves. The people that did not know where they were going in life had a chance to breathe and catch up with the state of the world. Do not get me wrong, the virus was the worst thing to happen to our society...but it also showed us that we are all not different. Sadly some aspects of it were politicized and given a merit for your views, but in the end, the people that took it for what they could .. learned. We become better fathers, better mothers...better friends, better siblings,, a better us. We seen the things we were missing that were in-front of us all along and that was each other. The virus forced empathy upon us and everyone around us. The world will forever be changed by the one thing we could never fight against and that was ourselves.
• 
  2021-03-04

  Women and the Pandemic

  "These mothers wanted to care for their kids and keep their jobs. Now they're suing after being fired. This story is part of TIME's Women and the Pandemic issue. COVID-19 has made it impossible to deny the ways broken systems hurt women. TIME spoke with women who have found the strength to work toward a better future. Read the full cover story at the link in bio. Photograph by Mary Beth Koeth (@mbkoeth) for TIME.
• 
  2021-02-22

  How Coronavirus Affected Me

  **story in file
• 
  2020-06-14

  Message of Hope Left on Control Box Near a Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient Memorial

  On June 16th I took a picture of a message that is on a control box for the traffic light on Main Street in Blanchard, Oklahoma. The message is located near a memorial statue that was dedicated to Congressional Medal of Honor recipient Tony K. Burris for his valor during the Korean War. The message of hope was first spotted in early April when the lock downs of COVID-19 were well underway. The message of hope reminds the local residents that hard times have been witnessed before and like those times, "We Will Get By." The message is located on the North East corner of the intersection between State Highway 76 and U.S. Highway 62; many people drive past this prominent intersection daily. The message itself appears to be spray painted with a stencil. Since the message's arrival, no one has attempted to remove it - despite a strict city stance towards graffiti. This message seems to resonate with locals for the sheer fact that it has remained in its location past several public events in the general area that normally would've caused a reaction to have any other graffiti removed. The framing of the sign, the flag, and the statue in the same photograph really resonates with me. This is the way rural people see and feel the sense memory of past sacrifices, the resiliency that resides in hope.
• 
  2020-04-10

  Street Art

  Amazing street art is popping up addressing Covid-19. Some of the work is spectacular and moving. This painting is now on t-shirts and face-masks. It highlights the contribution of Nurses around the world who continue to care for the sick in-spite of tremendous hardships and danger.
• 
  04/01/2020

  Anonymous Oral History, 2020/04/01

  An anonymous interview about religions intersection within their community and Hispanic culture.
• 
  04/01/2020

  Anonymous Oral History, 2020/04/01

  Jessica Interviews an anonymous interviewee about how their church service has changed.
• 
  2020-04-30

  Like a Gladiator

  My poetic prose captures the human spirit. Human conditioning is fickle but one thing that no one can take away from us is the indomitable courage we are able to show in the face of adversity. This is important to be because I am very appealed to the resilience, valiance and kindness that people around the world.
• 
  2020-04-30T23:30

  Like a gladiator

  This is a poetic prose I wrote about staying valiant and resilient during isolation. Humanity is fickle but one thing no one can take away from us is the indomitable spirit that we possess, especially in the face of adversity.
• 
  2020-04-03

  Stay Strong, Kansas

  Taken near the intersection of Central and Tyler Rd. in west Wichita, Kansas, this sign encourages Kansans to hold fast during the lockdown. At the time, only drive-thru service was available, reflecting the reduced-contact, socially-distanced measures implemented by restaurants to limit the virus's spread. Photo taken by Aaron Peterka on 04/03/2020, four days after Kansas's government-ordered "shelter-in-place" order went into effect.
• 2020-05-10

  A Walk through Covid-19 Brooklyn: We're all in this Together

  As college seniors approaching our last few months, we have all been talking about how we wanted to spend our final days together. We were aware of the reality of having more responsibility after graduation. And just like that - the time we had left vanished. It isn’t fair that our college experience didn’t have the closure it deserved. It wasn’t supposed to end like this. But among the things that seem unfair right now, who am I to complain about something so selfish and short sighted? My college is in the Bronx, and while most people returned home to their families for quarantine, I simply switched boroughs. New York City is a warzone, over 200 people are dying everyday. One day, the death toll exceeded 800. And while I have never seen my city mourn like this, I have never seen it come together like this either. Every night at 7 pm, Maryann, two houses down from mine, stands in her driveway and plays “God Bless America” on a speaker for all the neighbors to hear. Amanda that lives down the block became a licensed nurse a few months ago. Her mother, Fran, has made a hobby of making masks out of old fabric. My sister spends hours on the phone talking to her special education students and their families about the adjustments being made. As a result of this pandemic, Dalia across the street has had an increase in patients wanting appointments because of the increase in mental health problems. When I go for my daily walk, everyday I see a new sign thanking healthcare and essential workers, signs saying things like, “Brooklyn Strong!” Nothing brings people together like tragedy. There are differences among all these people I have mentioned and they are all being affected in different ways. However, at the end of the day, any one of us can get sick. We are all human. We have different ethnic origins, identify as different genders, practice different religions, have different mental and physical disabilities, but viruses don’t care about that. Although certain health or economic factors may make specific groups more at risk for serious illness from the virus, a virus is non-discriminatory when it comes to the presence of cognitive or physical disabilities. It will survive and debilitate any human body. We all share a common enemy. During this pandemic, so many different kinds of people are fighting for something bigger. This fight against a force imperceptible to the human eye has in fact diminished differences, brought people together to fight for change in new and influential ways, and shown the strength of the fabric of our society.
• 
  2020-05-06

  Post from Facebook group about COVID experiences and history

  I think it captures the elements of human strength and tragedy experienced by people during this pandemic. I think that the hardship in NYC is felt especially strong in Easton, PA, as many people commute/have family in NYC/have lived in NYC.
• 
  2020-04-18

  A mother’s portrait of her prep student deep in concentration during homeschool art class.

  This portrait of my son was the first time I have painted since my child was born. Although our household is busier than ever, I was inspired by my son’s love of art. We will look back on our time together at home as a special time.
• 
  2020-04-01

  Keeping Healthy During the Pandemic

  The gyms are still closed across China, but that doesn't mean we can't work out! I have worked out every day to strengthen my resistance. Working out can not only strengthen our bodies and our immunity, but also release all of the pressure after class every day and make us relaxed and happy.
• 
  2020-03-28

  Grace Papagno

  I have spent the first half of my life being angry at my mother, and the second half forgiving her. She was insensitive, narcissistic, and at times, downright cruel. There were, of course, reasons, explanations, and perhaps understandings of my mom’s behavior and I have made a lifetime study of her so that I would not be like her as a mother. And I was not. I even published a memoir about life with her and after her. Now, in the time of Corona Virus, I find myself attributing many of my strengths to my mother. I have not been frightened by this pandemic. Rather, I think I’m coming into my finest hour. I am strong, positive, and yes, even happy. When I was a child, my mother would not “allow” me to be sick. There was no sympathy for illness. If I “chose” to be ill, I would have to stay in bed, eat nothing but tea and toast, and there was absolutely no TV nor friends. I was, after all, “sick.” With that scenario, I did not miss a day of school from third grade throughout high school. Now it is as if my body refuses to harbor a virus. I do take the prescribed precautions, but I do not even entertain the thought or fear of this virus. I do sense that if I did contract it, I would not be stopped by it. My mother would not allow me to watch TV if the sun were shining, and so I learned the joy of the outdoors. “Go outside and play,” was her mantra on the non-school days. As an adult, I quickly learned that gardening is “playing in the dirt for adults,” and so now, isolated, I spend the sunny days – even the cold ones, out in my yard, either cleaning it up, laying down compost, or planting seeds. I do not turn on the television until after I’ve practiced my piano lesson and cleaned up the dinner dishes. Even then, I am so tired from the day, I only watch TV for an hour or so before I am off to bed. Busying herself with her job and caring for her home, my mother had little or no time to share with me. “Get busy. Do something. Read a book or something,” was her order of the day. At age seven I taught myself to use the sewing machine; at eight I learned to knit. I embroidered and did crewel work. Later in life I took watercolor painting classes and resumed piano lessons with a magnificent teacher. I got busy. I seem not to have enough time in each day here, isolated at home, to catch up on my pastimes. Now in the day of COVID-19, I finally have time to do all the things I love to do without being interrupted for social events or volunteer promises. And whom do you think I attribute all the myriad interest, health, and self-sufficiency I find myself graced with – my mother, who unwittingly gave me the tools to find joy in isolation and meaning in the mundane. I am doing fine in this time of the pandemic. Thank you, Mom.
• 
  2020-03-26

  Darkest Before Dawn

  Darkest Before Dawn Our world is being ripped apart by a virus, Covid-19, which is causing illness and death. Many are fearful for their own safety, that of their families, their loved ones and for the world’s people. At times we feel helpless in the struggle to return to our old lives but we are not helpless! Inside all of us is an army that can help in the fight. This floral creation symbolises our struggle and hope for a return to health on our planet. In the centre you see Covid-19, spreading its tentacles of disease throughout the world. Standing physically apart but socially joined in a common struggle are the armies inside us. Love (Red Rose) Faith, Hope and Wisdom (Blue Iris) Strength (Gladiolus) Peace and Calm (Lavender) When we all unite our armies we will see the rebirth of a healthy world symbolised by Easter Daisies and a butterfly in flight. Jackie Annable Stage two lockdown. Floral art classes cancelled.
• 
  2020-03-17

  Poem

  Poem about the moment, with citations from William Wordsworth, "Ode on Intimations of Immortality," and Luke, 112:48