Something scary was lurking without my knowing it: the Corona virus

We had heard of a virus that was stationed in China. It seemed that the Chinese had controlled it, but he was not one hundred percent sure. My imaginative, sci-fi mind was always throwing up various possibilities. I think my logical side said that the arrival of the virus in Italy would have been unlikely, but I was not willing to accept that it was unreal. Maybe four or five scenarios were thrown into my head, and then there were plans A, B, and C, in case the much-talked-about pandemic happened. Possibly I was turning into OCD, a potentially useful acronym during 2020!

Unsurprisingly, many of my students and coworkers rejected the idea. We believed that doctors and scientists had all the answers. Well, I didn’t trust they had “all” the answers; however, it seemed that smart people in China would control everything. So this topic became popular in English classes. All examined each possibility, while most only considered the inconsequential arrival of the virus, which was expected to look more like a minor flu. I wondered if I should have been talking about it during my lessons. Perhaps, I thought, this topic would not be so relevant to the lives of the students. Maybe they needed to study business English, vacations, cooking, art, and lighter items.

Around me, it seemed that people were sick. One of my students came to class for three weeks with a dry cough, body aches, and a general poor appearance. She said that she also had to go to work and take exams because she had to take care of her husband and a small child. When a student coughed on me multiple times from across the table, I tried to get out of the way for fear it might be Corona – just a natural reaction I guess! Even one of my co-workers was sick. In such small cubicles filled with students and people who worked while ill, it was likely that respiratory illnesses could spread. I’d be armed, no doubt, with a bottle of liquid soap and hand sanitizer!

I couldn’t believe how many sick people were all over the place and hoped I wasn’t in their shoes. It just seemed irresponsible to come in for a lesson or take a test when you were sick. Thank goodness I had at least gotten the flu shot a few months earlier! Could it be that the vaccine had protected me from whatever infection was circulating in Italy? Surely it wasn’t the dreaded Corona Virus, it must have been the cold mixed with the flu. That did not stop me from suggesting that we take protective measures.

I asked everyone why we didn’t encourage the sick to stay home. However, he knew that management didn’t care what he thought because he was a foreigner visiting a nation that had an ongoing wave of xenophobia. He had previously written emails providing recommendations on how educators should have met with management to come up with collaborative teaching strategies. Of course, people who weren’t interested in teamwork rejected my ideas. I was serious about getting sick, so I couldn’t let it go. I wrote to management: ‘Why don’t we ask people to stay home or let them cancel a lesson if they have the flu or a similar illness?’ To this email, I did not receive a response.

Not long after, around February 21, 2020, I heard about rampant disease in the Lombardy region. Milan was only a thirty minute train ride. Many people traveled to and from Milan every day. He suspected that many people were carrying the Corona virus and, from what he knew, he might have been exposed to it. For about three days, my muscles felt fatigued. Although I usually went to sleep after midnight, I was tired for three days, giving in to sleepiness at 10 PM. At this point, I am not so sure I have been attacked by the virus; it is more than likely that he has not had it.

The number of cases is increasing. According to the news, conditions in the Lombardy region were moving in our direction. He would have to stop taking the train. Although officials had put emergency plans in place to eradicate swine flu in 2009, this time, officials did not appear to act quickly enough. Some Italian virologists downplayed the Corona virus. The Chinese seemed to have controlled it. Some Europeans and Russians claimed it was not a danger to young people, and President Trump claimed it was some kind of hoax. Hospitals reported that people older than 65 died. At that time, there were not enough supplies; I heard that doctors were going to have to make life and death decisions, giving preference to those who had fewer pre-existing conditions.

It seemed as if a wave was rapidly sweeping the world. Several politicians, but not all, continued to downplay the threat. I understood that they were trying to save their economies. I questioned what was happening in Russia because it gave the impression that the Russian people, in particular, were not preparing for the Corona Wave that would eventually hit. The same goes for the Americans who joked about his arrival. In Germany, some people had Corona parties to celebrate. It wouldn’t be long before I found out that it was hitting New York City. How would such a metropolitan cope on such a colossal scale, with the imminent loss of jobs and the need to go into quarantine? With so many workers at home, the economy could sink into chaos!

Half of the people around the world are now hiding from the horrible Corona Virus, which has affected people of all ages and backgrounds, without distinguishing between rich and poor (April 2, 2020). I’m sorry to see my imagination come true and I hope this monstrous virus will dissipate soon. If lessons are learned, they may learn from literature (both fiction and non-fiction), be well prepared, and help each other. Collaboration will undoubtedly be needed to defeat this pandemic.