Life in the time of Covid 19
I’ve never been called limp-wristed, weak-kneed or spineless before. One more thing to chalk up to Covid-19.
So, I started the month on a bit of a chocolate high, having just done a library presentation: Chocolate in Jane Austen’s Day. I mean seriously, despite the rather … ah… memorable… start we’ve had to 2020, who wouldn’t be cheered, and even a touch giddy at having gotten to research all things chocolate and call it work? I certainly was, so much so that I decided that the month of March would be dedicated to chocolate and dragons. Two of my very favorite things, that would certainly improve everything, right?
The newest dragon book finally made it out, but not after fighting me fang and claw all the way. The lead dragon is after all a very stubborn creature and managed to create problems in the process that I’ve never seen before. Thankfully, those all got sorted out and that dragon has been released into the world.
You have been warned.
The chocolate series though, well that’s another story. I managed to get the first article out and got my research lined up for something on the order of ten more posts. Being an organizer at heart, I was nearly high on the adrenaline of having a new inspiration all in order and ready to go, research included. I kind of live for that rush. (Please no comments about how dull my life must be if that’s a rush—really, I already know…)
And the universe once again said “Here, hold my beer.”
Not only have we had a rush of more things breaking down after the water heaters, other crises swooped in, all having very high ratings on the kerfuffle-o-meter to put it politely. Still pushing through, still going to get the chocolate series and more dragons done.
And then … pandemic.
Seriously folks, if I put all this in a book, ya’ll (I’m Texan, remember) would throw the book at me and tell me I stretched your suspension of disbelief too far—which is something when one writes dragon fantasy!
Inch by inch, our city has been shutting down as virus cases increase and the public health systems are stepping up. Most of the cancelations and shut downs have been distant and impersonal, even if rather rattling. I mean, the Live Stock Show and Rodeo is arguably our city’s defining event and hearing it was shutting down—well let’s just say I’ve never heard of that happening before. But it still was far outside my circles of influence.
Our ECD (English country dance) regional spring ball, however, was not.
The event rotates through five cities in our region, and this was our year to host. Dancers from all over the country come to the event. In short, it’s a big deal—at least within our circles, and I was on the planning committee.
At the end of last week, we started talking in general terms about the virus situation, making sure we had hand sanitizer and sufficient hand washing facilities, maybe adding in extra breaks to wash hands. Nothing earth shattering. But by the beginning of this week, things had changed. The first case of the virus not associated with overseas travel had surfaced. Now, it was a new game entirely.
So, the email went out: Do we cancel the ball?
With so many people traveling to attend what were the risks to the travelers? What might they bring from the areas they were traveling from? We actually looked at the origin cities and the state of the virus there.
The nature of ECD is that our population is heavily retired folks, giving us a larger proportion of higher risk people than the general population. How does one handle the responsibility for their health and safety in such a situation?
The ball was still two weeks away and things were changing on a moment by moment basis. Even if we decided to hold the ball, it still might have to be canceled as we got closer to the event. People had limited windows to get refunds on canceled reservations. What responsibility did we have to them?
Lots and lots of good questions, but very few good solid answers. We started out essentially in favor of continuing as planned, but in the span of two days, with all of us reading and researching, the pendulum swung to a clear consensus that the most moral and ethical things to do was to cancel the event, despite the financial blow it would be to our non-profit organization. (Just an aside, we also chose to pay the musicians we had booked for the event despite the cancelation—their livelihoods are at serious risk right now.) In short, it was a hard, painful decision that none of us wanted to make, but wisdom demanded we make.
Most people were either relieved that they didn’t have to make the decision to come or not, or understanding and supportive of the cancelation. But, you know, there’s one in every crowd.
A memorable email came in, saying in part: “Limp wrists, weak knees, no backbones, and doomsday believers must be running this event. What a wimpy decision that has no basis in fact. I’m reminded of an adage my old buddy used to say and I’ve never forgotten. If I was driving a stage coach across the West and the savages attacked I would not want any of you folks riding shotgun with me. You would all bolt and run with your tail between your legs.”
I’ve been called a lot of unpleasant things in my life, but never spineless. That was a new one for me. I really don’t offend easily, but I have to confess, I was offended. I get disagreeing with the decision. I get being disappointed—heck I just spent too much money on gorgeous trims for a new dress and had just started cutting it! I was really disappointed, and I still am. But the name calling, that crossed the line.
Not just because it was name calling, but because of the assumptions made. There are no doomsday believers among the group, not a one. We started out wanting to have the event and looking for ways to make that happen. But the more we researched and learned FROM REPUTABLE SOURCES, the clearer it became as to what our decision should be. The easy choice would have been allowing the event to go on. Truly that would have been taking the easy way. The choice to cancel it was the tough choice, the agonizing one, the expensive and painful one. To be accused of being spineless for that, that hurt.
While this disappointed dancer is certainly entitled to their opinion, now is certainly not the time to be name-calling and finger-pointing. We are all stressed, anxious, frustrated and uncertain. That makes it hard to play nice with each other, but it crucial that we do so. Caution is good, panic and hostility are not.
Please, be patient with those whose decisions you do not agree with. Have compassion on those who are anxious—or not anxious enough. Seek out good information, from reputable sources and take the time to read all sides of the issue. Make the best decisions you can, not just for you, but for those around you who might be more at risk than you are. It’s not all about us individually, we’re all in this together. We need to work together for the common good even when it might be inconvenient to us individually. Remember, if we look back on this and say we all overreacted, there is a very good chance that it seems that was because all we did worked and staved off what could have been much worse.
I’m so proud of you and your group for making a principled decision based on all available facts. If anyone could research the facts, it’s you. You certainly have been given good principles and are abiding by them. Well done.
You made the right call… period. Let the nay-sayers say what they will… you may have saved lives… even theirs.
Look at the list of hard decisions to cancel or reschedule: March Madness [basketball]. Many of our players were hoping to play in or even win a championship during their senior year. Even the NBA is concerned. Golf, football is worried, live TV shows played to no audience and then canceled completely and went on hiatus. We will see reruns for an undetermined future.
Graduations scheduled in a few months are in question/limbo. Many colleges have sent kids home. I’m even wondering if we will have church on Sunday. A friend of mine [in Ireland] said her Priest was going to say Mass over the radio and encouraged people to stay home. Holy Week and Easter are approaching and that is up in the air.
Our Governor has asked the Kentucky school districts to close schools for at least two weeks. Heck, even Churchhill Downs is considering rescheduling the Kentucky Derby. That is a BIG deal for our state.
You do NOT have to explain to anyone the decisions you made. It was a decision for the whole… not the one. They will get over it and hopefully apologize [if you’re lucky] once the gravity of the situation hits them. This pandemic/crisis is not something to sneeze at. We have to enact precautions even if we lean toward overcaution. You can sleep in comfort knowing you did the right thing. Don’t even give that person your time by being angry with them. Reason and sense will hit them eventually… or perhaps a 2×4 across the face. There is that. Laugh at their stupidity and go on. Enjoy reworking your outfit. Make sure that you have added sufficient lace in case you run into Mrs. Bennet. You will need your dress eventually and who knows, when the dust settles, you may get to reschedule this event or host another. Blessings and I admire your strength and courage during this difficult time.
Brava!!!!! You tell ’em, J. W.!!
Warmly,
Susanne…who can’t make the usual weekly visits to my parents in their senior facility until the “all clear” is given; there are simply too many fragile, precious lives hanging in the balance, including my mum’s and dad’s. 🙁
Fortunately, our community church is fairly small (about 100 people) and has mostly families and very few elderly, so as of right now, we’re going ahead with activities. But my other church, which I attend for Friday Healing Mass because of distance (unless there is a Sunday Vestry Meeting), is not gathering on Sunday despite their small numbers (15 parishioners on a good day) because almost everyone is over 60. They are holding a Sunday Morning Prayer meeting at a nearby park (outside in the fresh Southern California breezes), but no interior Holy Eucharist services for now.
All of our public schools in San Diego County are closed as of today. My university (2000 students, 1300 living on-campus) is moving to all online classes but is keeping the dorms and dining halls open for now because so many students live out-of-state and outside the US. At least my job is teaching online classes to homeschooling families, so I certainly have job security right now. In fact, our company (Brave Writer) is giving away online writing curricula to ALL families, homeschoolers and those in school systems that are closing, until the end of April; it’s posted on Facebook and IG. And our founder donated all of her bound Arrow (junior high) and Boomerang (high school) 4-week literature curricula to local schools in Cincinnati so that the kids can take the books home and work on literature & writing.
Let’s hope and pray that this time of stress can provide an opportunity to show love and support to one another, helping one another as we are able.
With much love to all,
Susanne 🙂
Ugh!! I apologize for the double-signature. I meant to add just a line and added a novella!!
Blushing,
Susanne 😉
No need to blush, Susanne. Thank you for those kind words. You guys [at your school] rock. That was so generous to share curricula. Hang in there.
Bravo Susanne. And Bravo all the educators. My sister is a teacher’s assistant, something she loves and fell into at just the exact right time for her when other jobs bombed out on her. I mention her because she is working at planning with the teachers at her school through tomorrow because the k-12 schools are closed now for at least the next two weeks, and this planning is for the students at home. Our little city has two state Univ. campuses, two private colleges, one multi-campus community college and several branch-campuses from other private small colleges from around the state. All Closed. That’s huge and it’s just the tip of the iceberg. I agree with J.W., you guys at your school rock!
Right call. In epidemic situations, stopping transmission early is the largest predictor of final number of cases, and final number of deaths. Problem is with a rapid escalation, health services get overwhelmed. Even “just” slowing the spread means those health services do not get overwhelmed, so far fewer end up dying.
Yes, being called spineless – from someone not in the middle of the hard decisions needing to be faced – hurts. You have to decide to let it go, so it stops hurting. It can be done.
You made the right call. I’m hearing similar things through work as I have been postponing/canceling things, although admittedly, they have been nicer and more professional. As the boss, no one is calling me spineless to my face. 🙂 We are doing this to help the vulnerable in our society, not to mention all of the care givers and health professionals.
I figure it will give us more time to read all of our JAFF!
Brava. You made the right decision
As I mentioned above… you may be saving lives. Brava… indeed.
You 100% did the right thing, this is one terrible virus and strong measures have to be taken by everyone. Please do NOT feel hurt by that comment. I sort of thought it was hilarious. So wrong headed you can’t do anything but throw up your hands. I’m hearing people saying things like “it’s only the flu,” “only old people get it,” “it’s a hoax,” “it’s the media blowing it up.” Well, this person obviously believes that sort of thing. Moron.
Well done!
The right thing to do is not always the easiest thing to do and it is always easy to be a “Monday morning quarterback” when one is not responsible for the outcome. It sounds as if your critic may be related to Lady Catherine, hmmmm?
You absolutely made the right call. Far better to stay home and not spread germs especially since you would have the perfect storm of a high risk audience and a scattered mix of travelers. Just think how awesome your dress for next year will be with all the extra time to work on it! Plus we need pictures of said dress in progress ? Looking forward to the new book! Ignore the armchair quarterback because you’re already the better person thinking of others first. Best Wishes,
Oh good grief. Name calling is so below the belt and grade school playground if you ask me. Ridiculous. I’m not going to wish anything bad on that person, because I’m not going to bend to her level. I hope they wake up though. Let me tell you, you won’t catch me in a flying petri-dish in the sky for some time.
All these closings and cancellations in something unprecedented in my living memory and I’m a Senior Citizen. I’m so very sorry for people who have worked for so long for these events that they will now lose out on, the last (you name it…) event of their senior year. And things like your regional English Country Dance, multiplied by I don’t know how many. Our regional JASNA chapter event is cancelled, etc., etc. I love seeing the pictures of you in your Regency dress. And when this one is done I hope you’ll post it too.
I hope the ‘time of veterinary woes and appliance break-downs’ is over for a long long time now, Maria. Stay safe and healthy, you and all your loved ones. I’ll say hello to Texas through you. We miss a lot about TX.
Ditto to what others said. Right decision.