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03/13/2021
Margaret Geddes Oral History, 2021/03/03
Interviwee Name: Margaret Geddes Interviewer name: Padraic Cohen Date of Interview: 3/13/2021 Location: Cochrane, Alberta Canada. Transcriber: Otter.ai + edits from Padraic Cohen Abstract: In this oral history, I interviewed my grandmother, Margaret Geddes on her pandemic experience as a senior. In particular, Margaret spoke about her youth growing up in rural southern Alberta, Calgary. Margaret grew up from a Roman Catholic family and she reflects on how religion changed for her throughout the course of the pandemic, as she was unable to goto in person masses; ultimately she believes her faith had been strengthened due to the pandemic. She also spoke about her experience with a prominent polio outbreak in Calgary in the 1950s and draws some interesting comparisons to the current pandemic. Margaret also goes onto speak about her experience with the COVID-19 vaccination, and shares her thoughts on the what it was like to sign up, receive and prepare for her next vaccination . She also spoke about how long she believes the pandemic will go on for, and how she will remain masking in public as a result of the pandemic skeptics out there. -
2021-03-19
My dreams
My dreams for post-covid world To shop at my favorite stores To eat at the delicious mouth watering restaurants To explore the new books in the library To dance to the twisty, twirly music To laugh with my friends To hike through mother nature To learn at my school To exercise at boxing class To pray and sing at Church To have no mask To show the world who I am But for now I shop online I order pickup and eat at home I pick out books online I dance in my room I laugh at a distance I hike in my neighborhood I learn on zoom I don’t do boxing in a gym I don’t go to Church I have to wear a mask I can’t show the world who I am the way I did before For now I have to show myself a different way -
2021-01-14
Religious Leader Claims Covid-19 Vaccine "Turns You Gay"
A popular rabbi is claiming that the vaccine for COVID-19 “could make you gay.” And it's all part of Bill Gates's plot to "cull global population." Swipe up in our stories to read more. -
2020-12-25
Jesus will understand if you stay home during a pandemic
One of the first things my parents did when they retired and moved to Arizona was find a church. I was very vocal about wanting them to wait to return to large group gatherings but for some strange reason, they seemed to think that they couldn't get covid in church. My mom thought that after all the hardships brought on by the pandemic she needed to be back in church. A month later my dad got sick. We all naively thought it was the flu until I saw the shortness of breath. I told him to get sick and sure enough, he tested positive. Two weeks later my mom contracted Covid. I was hoping it wouldn't hit them too bad but my mom is a diabetic and they are older (late 50's and mid 60's) so I was a bit worried. As the days went by neither of them was getting better. My parents were sick through the holidays, I made Christmas dinner and we ate "together". I dropped off food at their front door then went to their back window where my kids and I ate picnic style. After three visits to the ER for my dad and four for my mom we finally started seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. I have lost many people to Covid, but it never hit me as hard as when I thought I was going to lose my parents. Thankfully, it was a massive lesson learned for my parents that covid spreads even in the church. -
2021-03-09
Oral History with a Rural Church Pastor
Abstract: Josh Colson grew up in Southern Illinois. He attended Welch College, earning a BS in Christian Ministry and an MA in Theology. Additionally, he is currently a student at Vanderbilt Divinity School, pursuing an MTS. Mr. Colson is currently the pastor of Brandon’s Chapel Free Will Baptist Church in Bumpus Mills, TN. The church is part of a small rural community, being in one of the smallest counties in middle Tennessee. In addition, Mr. Colson is the Faith Representative for the community health board. In this interview, Mr. Colson recounts the effects COVID-19 has had on his duty as a member of the clergy, his congregation, and his community. -
2021-03-14
Ostara on a Budget
for Ostara this year, many of us will need to adjust our celebrations due to Covid-19. Many are feeling the loss of jobs, incomes, or stability this year. Lidia Pradas shares some inexpensive ideas to celebrate Ostara and welcome the new season. -
2021-03-04
Teachers spell out racial slur with giant Scrabble letters. Parents are pissed.
From the article: One parent said that her son is “tired” of the racism because it is a common occurrence at the school. “He absolutely told me, ‘Mom, I’m tired of it, do what you need to do because this is not fair and I’m tired of feeling like this,'” she said. But one of the school’s basketball coaches, John Smith, is standing up for the teachers. “This isn’t our school, this was a mistake,” he said. “Everybody in the world makes mistakes, everybody in the world has faults and this is just a little fault that we’ve had. This is not our school. I truly believe that they did not know what they were posting.” The school, though, openly supports discrimination. Their website says that the school teaches that marriage is “the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture” and denounces the “immorality and sinfulness of sexual relationships outside of biblical marriage and of sexual relationships between persons of the same sex.” -
2021-01-19
A Covid Litany
I am studying to become an ordained Deacon in the Episcopal Church. I wrote this litany and shared it with friends and the congregation of my church. We prayed this prayer together as a church weekly for many months. -
2021-03-05
Virtual Funeral
This is my fourth virtual funeral in less than a year. Although covid has been around for about a year, it didn't really hit home until a few short months ago. Los Angeles has been hit hard, and being from a large minority group I have lost a few people close to me. The first was my best friend's dad, then his brother, then another friend's brother. The photo is of a funeral that I am currently watching. I grew up in a large church in Los Angeles, this beautiful lady very well knew in the Hispanic Pentecostal community. She watched me grow up, attended my sweet fifteen and my wedding. She had the biggest heart and loved God fiercely. She was my mom's good friend and in January she contracted covid, by the end of the month she was gone. I've quickly realized that the only thing harder than losing so many people in such a short time span is not being able to say goodbye. -
2021-03-01
Jjewish Melbourne
It's easy just to say last year was a long boring time and to move on but I think it's a good idea to jot down some thoughts and reflections, which provide some relevant perspective. This should show us that many aspects of our normal lives should not be taken for granted. -
2021-02-14
My Story: I Got COVID-19 Because of ICE
I am sending a diary style writing where I share my experience during the pandemic. I focus on the issue of ICE during the pandemic. Before the lockdowns, my uncle was detained by ICE and was deported during the pandemic. My uncle has been living in the US for 25+ years and Mexico, my uncle's home country, has changed a lot since he last lived there. For that reason, I went to Mexico to take him home. This made me get COVID. -
2020-06-11
Challah Time
During the summer of 2020, the day before Shabbat, I decided to make challah during the quarantine. A friend of mine in Canada taught me the steps of making bread through FaceTime. It took all day to make, but once the challah was finally baked, I felt like a proud Jewish baker. This was a day that didn't feel boring like every other day in quarantine. -
02/21/2021
Eva Ruth Oral History, 2021/02/17
This is a mini oral history of Eva Ruth by Monica Ruth, about the silver lining of the pandemic experience. -
2021-01-07
How the Pandemic Has Affected Refugees
In this episode, we at the Podcast of the Plague Year were granted the opportunity to record interviews with two organizations assisting refugees that have been relocated to Arizona- RICE and Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest. Refugees are those who have been forced to flee their country because of a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion. Almost 3 quarters of a million refugees have been resettled in the United States since 2008; they often come with very little resources to begin life anew once resettled. Life for refugees during resettlement comes with hope, but also with struggles to learn a new language, navigate new employment and educational systems and integrate into a new society. It is easy to imagine how a pandemic could intensify already existing struggles. -
2020-09
Socially Separated Sandwiches
During the fall of 2020, a local homeless shelter was unable to offer beds to people in need during the COVID pandemic due to space and resource restrictions. It was hard to witness these organizations meant to help people also need extra love and help during the pandemic whether it be for medical, physical, or financial reasons. In response to the need, my church was able to step up to make sandwiches that the shelter could hand out to the people living on the streets that they were unable to serve at the time. We wore masks, took extra safety precautions, and socially distanced in an assembly style line outside in the church parking lot where we made packages of chips and sandwiches. While working together to make the sandwiches for the homeless shelter, I was reminded that we are still a community even when we cannot be together in the same ways we were before the pandemic. Finding pockets of community in the turbulent pandemic has been a blessing and chance for me to truly appreciate those around me and think of different ways that I can reach out to the community and be a part of it despite the circumstances. Distance did not have to mean silence and stillness. People were able to help in any way possible. If they were unable to help make the sandwiches, they prayed for the mission or donated money for the supplies. People shared what they could and came together when it mattered the most. This story highlights how even in times where we stayed apart to remain safe, we were still able to come together in another way to support each other. Communities didn't have to disappear during the pandemic, and this is just one example of their power to persevere in dark times. -
02/16/2021
Lila Jue Oral History, 2021/02/16
I recorded a mini oral history with my mother in law about silver linings during the pandemic. The photograph is a family Zoom, as this is a positive of the pandemic year to her. -
2020-10
How Tribal Communities Have Dealt with the Pandemic
A cursory look into A Journal of the Plague Year reveals that the pandemic is nondiscriminatory, all of are affected. Yet, the reality is that Covid-19 is having more impact on certain populations in American communities. Arizona State University's Center for the Study of Religion and Conflict partnered with the Henry Luce Foundation to provide rapid relief funding to marginalized communities in the southwest. As part of the rapid relief program, the Center for the Study of Religion and Conflict is collaborating with A Journal of the Plague Year and the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication to raise awareness about the marginalized communities that were assisted via this grant. By joining this "Southwest Stories" project, we at the Podcast of the Plague Year were granted the opportunity to spotlight one Native American community in Arizona- the White Mountain Apache Tribe. -
02/16/2021
Susan Hill Oral History, 2021/02/16
I recorded a mini oral history with my mom's old friend about the positive aspects she experienced during the pandemic -
2021-02-16
My Covid-19 Experience
The emergence of Covid-19 definitely took me by surprise. I remember discussing in one of my classes on the Brooklyn College campus of how potentially serious the virus was in early March of 2020. The majority of the class agreed that the virus was probably not going to get out of hand and it was just being over-covered in the media. Then a couple weeks later, we were stunned of how quick the situation surrounding the virus in the U.S. became which lead to Brooklyn College shutting down the campus and going virtual online. It was an overwhelming and challenging experience adjusting to having five classes from in person to online. What made it more challenging was contracting the virus myself in April where I experienced extreme fatigue, chills and a fever a couple nights, and lost of taste and smell. Through it all, I kept my faith in Jesus and trusted Him to heal me from the sickness and get through the semester. Thankfully, I passed all of my classes at the end of the semester and recovered fully within a couple weeks. My entire family was infected with the virus including my parents but they overcame it as well. Lastly, seeing all of the death totals on the news and staggering scenes such as freezer trucks taking bodies from hospitals to be buried or cremated were both alarming and saddening. What gave me hope was the general high survival rate despite the high number of reported infections and my faith in Christ who warned us in through the Bible (Mathew 24:3-8) that perilous times would come in the last days, including pestilences. As the pandemic continues to evolve, I continue to pray for those who lost loved ones, our country and the world that we would all become stronger, wiser, and closer to Jesus after this unfortunate experience. -
2021-02-15
COVID-19 REFLECTION
THE ITEM I WILL BE SUBMITTING TALKS ABOUT THE COVID 19 IMPACT ON ME AND MY COMMUNITY(MY CHURCH) -
2021-02-10
A year of Zoom church
We are approaching a year of dealing with COVID-19. Our little Presbyterian congregation has been worshipping by Zoom during this time. Zoom Palm Sunday; Zoom Easter; Zoom Advent and Christmas. We are preparing for Zoom Ash Wednesday as we live through our second COVID Lent. How do you do Ash Wednesday over Zoom? We will impose ashes on our households or by ourselves, as we hear “From dust you came, and to dust you shall return.” The PCUSA sent advice about what kinds of ashes are appropriate. Burned candle wicks, outdoor dirt, or even house dust were all deemed OK. This letter, with ashes from last year’s Palm Sunday palms, came from one of the church elders. It speaks to the longevity of the pandemic and its disruption. It also speaks of all the little things that individuals have done to keep our traditions in some form and keep our community connected to each other and to our communal rituals. -
-2021-02-13
Covid-19 Experience
poem The world was fine, Because we were all able to physically intertwined. We were able to roam the streets freely, Walk the park carelessly, Praise in church effortlessly, And enter our homes easily. For the past year, Livelihood has been invaded by a monster called covid-19. The WHO has declared a world pandemic. New protocols in place in order to win drastically. We are told to stay indoors, Wash our hands frequently and wear a mask when outdoors. No more social gathering, visiting friends or family. Life has become a solitary If we disobey, The monster virus will lend our life journey. Thousands have been killed and millions affected. It attacks the human lungs, That makes breathing feel like misery. Compared to the flu, It makes one sneeze and cough, With unbearable body pain. We just got to keep praying that God keeps and protects us during this time. Despite the introduction of a weapon vaccine to take control. The frustration, anxiety and fear kicks in daily. Still wondering when will life return to normalcy. -
2020-04-06
Evangelical missionaries, COVID-19, and the rationalizing of infection
Excerpt from the article: "One talking point that commonly arises in evangelical subculture is that “there is no safer place to be than in the center of God’s will.” If God needs you not to have coronavirus, in other words, you won’t get it; and why would God want people to get coronavirus in church after all? Following the same principle, if God wants you to preach to uncontacted peoples, God will make a way. You don’t need to worry about diseases; if the people you’re trying to convert die, that will turn out to have been God’s will." -
2020-12-07
Coptic Church suspends services for one month over surge in COVID-19 infections
The Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt issued new guidelines in early December to protect congregants and members of the clergy. As Egypt’s second wave, the Orthodox Church in Egypt acted, working to slow the spread. While limits on certain gatherings took place to adequately social distance, most events were canceled altogether. The Church limited the number of people who could attend Mass and funerals, as well as limited seminaries and institutions to 25% capacity for classrooms. -
2020-12-07
Bishop Stika re-emphasizes COVID precautions
As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, Catholics continue to practice pandemic protocols. From late November through December, East Tennessee was the epicenter of the United States for Coronavirus transmissions. As a result, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Knoxville issued renewed guidelines for parishes within the diocese. The declaration makes it clear the practicing Catholics must continue to participate in the Mass. However, the Bishop was also transparent that the Church and its parishioners must practice participation in the Mass safely. This article outlines the precautions the Diocese of Knoxville has taken to continue practicing their faith while protecting one another. -
2020-10-09
How COVID-19 Is Changing American Judaism
Judaism in America is rapidly changing due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Historically, the Jewish community, while having various splits (i.e. Orthodox, Reformed, etc.), has continued to view itself as one, unified community. However, the pandemic has highlighted the various ways in which the community is perhaps more fractured than previously thought. For example, while the Reformed community has quickly adopted having services over Zoom, the Orthodox community, though allowing certain services to be performed over Zoom, will not allow specific holy days to be Zoomed. The pandemic is not only creating new rifts within the American Jewish community, it is bringing previously extant rifts to the fore. -
2020-05
Fighting Pandemics: Inspiration from Islam
In this article, various Muslims outline how their faith has guided them through the pandemic. For many, faith and religion have been their guidance through the COVID-19 crises. Unfortunately, the pandemic has restricted how Muslims have been able to practice their faith. While this article is specifically written with practicing Muslims as the target audience, one need not be of the Islamic faith to learn and appreciate how the faith can aid in our understanding of the world during the pandemic. -
2020-03-24
Worldwide pandemic street art
USA Today, like many other media outlets, uses their platform to share images of street art that conveys community messages about COVID-19. Photographs range from March 2020 to January 2021 and include graffiti tagging, murals, paste-ups, and stencils. Many styles of art are represented and can be telling of how artists represent emotions of fear, solidarity, hope, thanks, and humor during the pandemic. Several of the contributions are put on boards covering windows of businesses that shut down during the pandemic, others are on hospital buildings, streets, and businesses. -
2021-01-31
Suffering and Loss
I work as an investigations contractor assigned to assist my county health department with interviewing positive covid-19 patients. I recently spoke with an 85-year-old C19 patient who was hospitalized and awaiting surgery for a brain bleed at the time of our conversation. She explained that she had fallen in her backyard trying to retrieve her feral cat's bed from a rainstorm, tripped, and laid in the rain for almost two hours before anyone found her. Both she and her late husband contracted covid-19 around Christmas, and he died soon thereafter. The hospital where he received his final treatments allowed her to visit him just before he passed, which is an unusual and gracious blessing at this time. The medical interview that normally takes 30 minutes required almost two hours and tears from both of us. When we finished, I wished her well, offered that I looked forward to speaking with her soon, and asked God to bless her. I called her hospital gift shop and ordered a carved wooden angel to be delivered to her room, as she’s a woman of faith. I had the card signed from me and the Health Dept, so I suppose I’ll find out this week if anyone complained about it. More than anything else, I’m hoping her file shows a successful discharge and recovery by now. She told me she looked forward to trading in the cafeteria food for her son's gourmet cooking, and I pray she's already done that. -
2020-06-07
Faith and Values: A Buddhist Response to the Coronavirus Pandemic
This article speaks to a specifically Buddhist response to the pandemic. The monk in this article offers ways to deal with the pandemic from a Buddhist perspective. While Buddhism is a specific worldview, the advice given in this article can be used by all people. Thinking about questions concerning life and death should be confronted and asked rather than cowering away. From the response given, the pandemic should teach people to love and care for all, even in the midst of a deadly virus. -
2021-01-12
COVID-19 Advice on the Administration of Holy Communion
From the start of the pandemic, Christian churches have been debating about how to best handle the practice of the Eucharist (Communion). The Church of England, which spans all of the world, issued guidance on how to best celebrate/participate in the Eucharist. At the moment, the use of the common cup has been suspended. Parishioners during the pandemic are advised to only partake of the bread to avoid potential spread of the virus. These are general guidelines rather than strict rules, however, all Anglican churches are encouraged to follow. -
2020-12-23
Malaysia Islamic Authorities Say Covid Shots are Permissible
This article speaks of the way the Islamic world in Malaysia has reacted to the COVID-19 vaccine. The citizens of Malaysia are overwhelmingly Islamic as over 61% of those who live there identify as Muslim. The concern for many Muslims in Malaysia is not based in a religious belief against medicine; rather, many were concerned that some of the ingredients in the vaccine may violate their faith. However, the Islamic religious authorities in Malaysia are encouraging Muslims to receive the vaccine. -
2019-04-05
Pesach mutual aid, care packages for solitary seders!
When we went into lockdown in Naarm (Melbourne), many Jewish people realised this meant doing their seders solo or over zoom. Restrictions on number of guests meant that a seder with the family wasn't possible. Whilst at most seders you would usually have multiple people who had divided the seder night responsibilities (someone on charoset, matzah ball soup, gefilte fish, kosher wine, boiled eggs and each item for the seder plate), this night was different from all other nights. Our seders suddenly felt bare with the looming responsibility to create an entire seder's worth of food, for one. For those of us who lived away from our families and the bagel belt, there were additional challenges. For the queer jews who left their south-eastern homes for the cramped share houses of the inner north, finding Kosher and seder specific ingredients was near impossible at our local Piedemontes. I called my closest Woolworths and asked if they had ingredients for passover, "You could try the international food aisle?" they suggested, I knew that wouldn't suffice. I was grieving the loss of my most important cultural holiday of the year and the foods that came with it, when I decided I would drive to Southside, and collect ingredients from there. Knowing it would be useless to cook for one (and that I still haven't learnt the skills to do so) I decided to buy enough that I could make up care packages for other Jewish people doing their seders alone. The buba of the northside, giving just enough of everything for a table of one. 3 matzah balls, a jar of broth, enough matzah to break, hide and dip in charoset, etc. Other Jewish people contributed ingredients or made gefilte fish to distribute too. I managed to distribute over 25 packages to people joining their seders via zoom. For me, it was such an important way for me to feel connected to community despite distance, and honour pesach at a challenging time. -
2021-01-25
statistics
There have been 97.7 total Covid 19 cases in the world. One of those cases was my uncle. Near thanksgiving he wasn't feeling well so he instinctively got a Covid test. About 2 days later he got a call that said he had the virus. This effected our family greatly. We were all worried sick and were praying that he healed. The funny part was, he said it only felt like a regular cold. He did eventually get better and we were thankful to God. -
2020-03-18
A Message of Hope
Villa Park, Illinois. U.S.A. A message of hope from our community to yours. Villa Park residents came together to create an inspirational and hopeful message for everyone during the COVID-19 pandemic. -HOPE- -
2020-12-21
Sophia's Pandemic Journey
I was at School and people were taking about the how the school was going to close and we are going to be able to stay home for two weeks longer after ski week. I went home and we saw on the news that there was a virus spreading all around the world and the first thing we did was go to the grocery store now so that we wouldn't have to go later if things get worse. We stayed home for awhile and my family is high risk so we were very careful and wore our masks everywhere and couldn't see our friends. But I didn't have that bad of a time during the pandemic because I felt lonely sometimes but I trusted in God in everything I did and do. And is since I trusted God me and my family got through the pandemic safely. -
2021-01-22
Tested Positive
In my close circle I haven't had anyone that has been tested positive for Covid-19. In the big circle, there have been a few though. All of them were school related. Some student in school were sent home for a week because one of their students got sick, and one of the teachers in my grade also got sick, but since I was indirectly related I didn't get affected. Most of the times where someone remotely close to me got Covid, I wasn't effected in any way. -
2021-01-22
My grandma and grandpa having Covid-19.
My grandma and grandpa had Covid in November, before thanksgiving. My grandma got it from a nurse that had it from her work and then she got it and passed it on to my grandpa. My grandma had it for 3-4 weeks. She had a fever, cough, lost of taste, shortness of breath, body aches. My grandpa had it for about 2 weeks. He had body aches, headaches and a slight cough. My grandma has to go to the Los Robles Hospital because she had shortness of breath. The doctors helped her by giving her some oxygen, some antibiotics, steroids, plasma with with antibodies, Vitamin D and C, and Zinc. My grandpa did not have to go to the hospital. They are all fine now but that was a little scary when my grandma had to go to the hospital. -
2021-01-22
My Covid Experience
In December of 2019, I believe I had COVID-19. For a few weeks I was coughing uncontrollably, like hyperventilating but coughing. It was terrible, once I started coughing it felt like it never stopped. I had to take Sudafed's, cough drops, and NyQuil even just to fall asleep. It was terrible. I got my whole entire family sick, even my mom! Which was odd because she never, I mean never gets sick. My parents decided to take me to urgent care, where they swabbed my throat. Tested the swab and nothing came back positive. So they decided to do a chest x-ray, and I did not have pneumonia. After all of these tests and x-rays, they just said, we have no idea what she has but she has something. It was kind of scary to hear that. After the next week or so I finally recovered. It was a really rough few weeks and probably the worst cold I had ever had. To wrap up, I believe I had COVID-19 in December 2019. -
2021-01-22
My friend tested positive
When I heard my friend and her parents tested positive, I was freaking out. I was planning to hang out with her soon and if another friend hadn't told me, that would've been very bad. She was actually going to come to school and I was thinking if she would, I wouldn't be near her. But thankfully, she "changed her mind." I don't want to get exposed to covid even though it doesn't have a big affect on me. I have parents working in the medical field and it would make me feel so guilty. Since June, I've been hanging around with one specific girl and only sometimes we add this other one. I just always have an eerie feeling in public places now. And a guilty one when I think about it too much. I always try and be responsible and take others in account. -
2020-12-25
A Pandemic Christmas
Christmas was different for me this year. I grew up with a big catholic family so we have many traditions around the holidays. Christmas eve we all dress up, have a nice dinner, and go to mass. Then on christmas day we dress more casual, open gifts, and have a buffet style dinner. With COVID being a factor, I didn't get to see much of my family for the holidays. I spent the actual day with just my siblings and dad. Christmas Eve I didn’t get to see anyone or do anything, I just stayed home and took pictures with my dog in our matching Christmas pajamas (target has everything). I had to trade gifts with all my cousins and other relatives individually in an outdoor setting. Some of the gifts I dropped off and rang the doorbell. Other family members I would meet with in their front yard from a distance. This year was a bit lonely and we all agreed that when COVID is over (hopefully by next year) we will have a huge celebration. -
2021-01-13
The Covid-19 Holiday Season
The holiday season during the Covid-19 pandemic brought many changes to the family routine. In total, my wife and I usually have four different houses to go to because we have both have divorced parents. This does, of course, make the season incredibly hectic. This year, however, every house seemed much more amenable to change. About half of our typical gatherings were cancelled to protect the elderly in the family, as well as those with pre-existing conditions. Of the family events that did occur, we had only ten people or less at each event (in a typical year, each house usually brings at least twenty guests and some bring several more). Even at the gatherings that did occur, things were still atypical, with most wearing masks and everyone following social distancing. In addition, many in my family have had COVID and were quarantined during the holidays. Nonetheless, we spent a lot of time on the phone and wishing each other a Happy Thanksgiving and a Merry Christmas. Another thing I enjoy doing with my wife each year is attending a Nine Lessons and Carols service at various churches in the area. Because of the pandemic, however, we chose to forgo this Christmas tradition and watch a service online. While the pandemic has brought many changes and challenges to our lives, we are fortunate to be able to connect with our family from a distance. Technology has certainly mitigated many issues that the pandemic has brought, and without that, social distancing and cancelling holiday plans would have been much more difficult for people to concede doing. However, hopefully, the cancelled family plans this year will provide us with the opportunity to celebrate with our families next year. The pandemic has hopefully reminded everyone that while the holiday season can be stressful (like visiting four different houses on one day), it truly is a wonderful time of year. -
2020-12-30
Mom who gave birth while intubated due to COVID-19 made her ICU nurse the godmother
From Article: A woman has finally brought her child home after giving birth while fighting COVID-19. On Sept. 23, Monique Jones of Ferguson, Missouri, welcomed Zamyrah Prewitt who arrived at 29 weeks gestation weighing 2 pounds, 5 ounces. -
2020-01-11
What Christmas was like with Covid-19
My Christmas was pretty normal, to be honest. The main difference was I was not able the see my grandparents. That was very sad because I spend Christmas with them almost every year. I was able to talk to my whole family everywhere over zoom witch is something we have never done. That was fun to talk to some of my family that I don't talk to very often. But other than that my Christmas was pretty normal. -
0007-01-21
A Christmas durning COVID 19
Unlike other Christmases, this year was different. I'm Avi Sobel, and I am an 8th-grade student sharing my Christmas expire during the COVID 19 pandemic. What greatly made this different was the amount of family and friends. For example, it was only the people I lived with. But, even though it was different it didn't lack meaning. We still celebrated our father Jesus birth and gave thanks for one another. We also did a tradition of giving presents. by, Avi sobel -
2021-01-07
Christmas in a Pandemic
My Christmas this year was different than the years before. What is usually a day full of family, was a day of no people, distancing, and zoom calls. My family usually has a giant Christmas eve party, but this year some of my family wasn’t even able to gather together. We were still able to have my cousins over, but it wasn’t the big party experience I was hoping for. My cousins also usually spend the night and open presents with us, but this year they had to go home. We ended up having a nice dinner and we even held a zoom meeting to try to connect with other family members who weren’t there...but it just wasn’t the same. It was the first year where it truly didn’t feel like Christmas. -
2020-12-25
How Christmas Was different for me in the year of 2020
This year, with the pandemic going around Christmas was a little different. There were several new situations that occurred one of them being the fact that my grandparents couldn't stay long. Due to the fact that COVID-19 mainly only affects people with preexisting conditions or old age, my grandparents had to go before we opened presents. Another new thing this year caused by COVID is that with the free time, my sister who would've been in college spent her free time training a puppy that got to be with us at Christmas time. Besides for situations such as those we had a normal Christmas with family, presents, and church. With church however, to keep things outside and moving with groups separated they die a tour where you met volunteers who told stories dressed as people who were present for the birth of Jesus. -
2021-01-07
What was Christmas like for you this year, and how was it different?
My Christmas this year during covid, has some differences from a typical year but not many. We usually have a Christmas party at my grandparents home in Newport with extended family that is pretty old, but this year it was just my cousins and family that I normally see. On Christmas morning nothing changed from a normal year and it was nice. -
2020-12-25
Christmas in a pandemic.
This year many families were forced into changing traditions due to California lockdowns. My family did not agree with these lockdown orders and instead went on to host a normal Christmas like any other year. We had more decorations than ever, and we gave out presents to everyone. We went to church on Christmas eve, where it started raining while we were outside, and we visited our cousins and grandparents for a Christmas day dinner. Though we were putting ourselves at risk, everyone there agreed to be there and no one got the virus. My prayer goes out to those who had to scrap traditions for Covid, or just through overall fear. -
0001-01-07
Christmas in Covid
My Christmas this year was essentially the same with some differenced, on Christmas Eve we watched Church online instead of in person, and wewent to our Grandparents house that are on my dads side and we saw our cousins and ate food. The only thing different about this is that we would have usually gone to "Farfalles" to eat dinner with our grandparents and then would have gone to our grandparents house later to open gifts. On Christmas our other grandparents came over after we had opened gifts and spent time with them and we mad this resepee that has been in the family for generation. On the Monday after Christmas we went to our Grandpa's condo in mammoth like usual.