First the news: As of the latest official update from the Haines Borough EOC there are 25 Covid cases. ( Doubling Haines’ total Covid count since the pandemic began.) I can count more than that in my circles of friends. It’s hard to keep up, the cases are climbing, the alert level is high — many tests are being given. Many more of us are waiting for ours. Right now only people with symptoms are eligible. It’s a little stressful. At best everyone in town it seems is a close contact of someone… and at worst, they have it. So far, it seems to be a bad cold for the vaccinated and unvaccinated. That’s the rainbow. I pray that trend continues.
But for my youngest daughter it has been worse than a cold, and worrisome especially now that one of her children is a little ill and they both tested positive yesterday.
This is where I open the door and run outside and scream into the wind. My entire extra cautious pandemic response has been to keep these kids safe. I couldn’t bear it if anything happens to them.
Okay. Breathe. I’m back. I feel better now. Thank you. It’s just hard.
Yes, she is vaccinated. No, the children aren’t, as they are too young.
But you know, Stoli is so wise, brave and calm. She’s much better with this setback than I am. She repeated the mantra that we all said during the December landslides and floods to make me feel better. “It’s okay to not be okay.” She texted her dad a grocery list. (He is in the lumberyard masked, and cautious, so far he and his crew, all vaccinated, are well.) The worst part, Stoli said, was that our darling little grandaughter was “pretty scared” when she heard her runny nose was Covid. No wonder, since we have all been putting the fear of God in them for a year and a half. You know that sign, “Drive Like Your Kids Live Here” ? We need a new one, “Talk About Covid Like Your Kids Have It. Please.”
This is where Stoli is actually so very okay. She said, ” I asked her how she feels, and she said ‘not bad'”. And then they had a mother daughter heart to heart, about how some things seem worse than they are, and some things that could be bad, aren’t always, and how, “As long we are okay and taking action, the outside world can’t tell us how to feel.” Then she said they watched a funny movie. We all need to treat each other this kindly.
On a practical note, Stoli said that if you do get it, find help with groceries and reach out to someone to talk to over the phone. She also said when you quarantine keep to a normal routine if you can. Eat well, maybe sleep later (she has been doing that since she was a kid.) “Breathe, take a walk.” She lost taste and smell, and said she has to remind herself to eat. I reminded her to keep the windows open, even if it’s raining. (There’s a gale blowing through our house. Just in case.) Last night when we checked in with her over the phone, she was painting. Chill should be her middle name. Right now that is such a gift.
And so, today again we are staying home. I pedaled my bike extra hard inside (it’s stormy, but the big rains are still days away, the forecasters say), walked with my friend the way we did before we were vaccinated, wide apart in the wild windy wet, made Papa Bob scrambled eggs, lit a fire, called another friend who is worried she has it, called the clinic to see when I can get a test (tomorrow afternoon at 2:00 there will be drive through event behind the clinic in the parking lot by the ANB Hall for those of us without symptoms), did a load of laundry, made a cup of tea, and opened this little book a neighbor dropped off yesterday on my wood pile. She said she bought it for the illustrations and kept it for the joy it brought her. It was just what I needed.
Trixie likes it, too.
Don’t worry, everything will be okay. Be well, friends.
