Then, Thursday March 12th, our world turned upside-down. We were about to be on our one week March break from school. We had local travel plans to see my Nana in Bobcaygeon, sleepovers with cousins, and play dates with friends. Instead, the province announced that schools would be closed for an additional two weeks after March Break, until April 5th. Anyone showing signs of illness needed to self-isolate, along with those in their families. Self-isolation meant staying home and not going out unless necessary: which basically meant groceries and pharmacy.
I was showing signs of illness.
We are trying to understand this illness. We are tuned into the radio all the time, desperate for information. And for me, being sick with signs of COVID-19, I'm scrolling through endless internet sites, desperate to understand what is going on in my body.
It's scary. I am rarely sick. I haven't taken a sick day in more than 4 years. I don't get the flu, I don't get colds. Once a year I usually get strep throat, but only characterized by a very sore throat, with none of the common fever symptoms. My body is generally healthy and fights off possible infections before I even know I've caught them.
I have a cough and shortness of breath, classic signs of the new coronavirus. I may have had a low grade fever, but this illness started with five days of the most intense headache I've ever had, so I was only a steady stream of ibuprofen, which often hides a low-grade fever. I lie in bed and scroll through online feeds, searching for some sign that I don't have the virus. I cannot get a test. Currently they will only administer the scant tests they have to those who have travelled to one of the coronavirus hot spots (China, Italy, Iran) or if you have had direct contact with a patient with a positive test. Right now, my doctor is saying to simply self-isolate. The truth is, it doesn't really matter if it is coronavirus or not - the treatment is the same. Self-isolate and monitor. Go to the ER if you struggle to breathe.
On March 17 the province declared a state of emergency. Things around us are slowly closing down. No public event of more than 50 people. Libraries, theatres, movie cinemas and daycares are closed. Restaurants can only provide takeout or delivery. Those who are able to do their work from home are asked to do so.
We are still officially in the period of March break, but we as teachers are waiting to hear what will happen. We assume at this point a two week closure after March Break to give us a chance to smother the virus, give it nowhere to go. I wonder if they are waiting to see how powerful it is, how fast it spreads, how deadly it is.
The real thing is that we don't know much about it. From what I've heard, it's a virus that is new to humans, so we don't have any immunity. Plus we can be symptom free for two weeks when we are infected, spreading the virus silently around us.
There is a lot of debate, and I assume it will rage on. There are lots of conspiracy theories. There are people who say it's no worse than the seasonal flu. There are people who despise the government flexing it's muscle to control the people. I try to come to these sorts of events with an open mind. I usually err on the side of medicine and against Big Brother conspiracies. I've never been one who can operate under fear. Yes, some might call it oblivion, but I would rather say that I want to keep my focus and energies on what is real, tangible and important to me.
I remember some years ago my grandfather, Dave Martin (my dad's father) calling all his children and grandchildren. There was a new virus in town: H1N1. He was a doctor for many decades, and then travelled the world as a medical consultant and expert. He called to ask us to consider getting the flu shot this year. It's a bad flu, and the vaccine is a good match, he said. He had never called with medical advice before. In fact, he lives in British Columbia, hallway across the country, and the great distance had meant that we only interact a few times a year. I heard the seriousness in his voice. My grandfather is a very even-tempered and intelligent person - probably the one person I know and trust on issues of the world. I never feel like there is enough to time understand a fraction of the knowledge in this world. Sometimes you just have to trust someone that they know more about a topic than you do. My grandfather is that someone. From this, I developed a trust of the medical industry, of local doctors who see and understand the human body in a way I don't yet. If he was alive today, I feel he too would be communicating the seriousness of the coronavirus.
And so we are here, in our home. My mother-in-law, who has an apartment in our home and who usually eats dinner with us, is isolating away from us completely. This virus is especially dangerous for the elderly, and given her weakened lungs from smoking we need to be vigilant. We are blessed with a large home, an empty basement, a big backyard and conversation land behind us. We have movies and board games and each other. We even got to scraping the wallpaper and painting Juliette and Colin's bedrooms this week.
At this point, we have been told we have an additional two weeks off school. Interestingly, I am part of many online communities for foreign language teachers. I am watching schools all over the world being closed and teachers moving to online learning platforms. So far, we just have an extra two weeks vacation. There are no plans yet to move school online. The Ontario government has released a few online learning resources (mostly links to educational videos and games) and our school board put out a few links as well to encourage students to continue learning in the two week furlough.
I have a sense the history is being made. Just last week I spent the day with Neil Orfford, an educator who created a fantastic high school experiential program around the Spanish flu of 1918. During that pandemic, an estimated 50 million people died worldwide. Quarantines were strict and life completely altered. This is a record of the history we are living today.
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