Psalms 118:8 New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
than to put confidence in mortals.
We can all come to the agreement that 2020 should be canceled. The lesson in 2020 is uncertainty and to trust no one. We have all been taken off guard. Any expert can come up with the right explanation, then another expert will refute the findings. For this reason I place my trust in God alone.
Psychological COVID-19
Any normal human being can catch this mind disorder. This is just an example: let’s say you were around someone who tested positive for COVID-19. They act responsibly and call to inform you, but it’s how you react that will make all the difference. You are either going to believe that you have COVID-19, crawl into bed, make an appointment to get tested, and wait for the illness to take over your every thought. Or you can simply make an appointment for testing.
This is what happened to me last week. I went to lunch with someone who unknowingly had COVID-19. As soon as they found out I received the dreaded call. In a matter of minutes, I quickly started developing symptoms. I shared this with Mike and he, too, immediately became ill. The problem with our psychological COVID-19 is that it spreads. Both Mike and I had to inform our children that Thanksgiving was cancelled due to both of us suffering from psychological COVID. Whether we brought on these symptoms or not, we were not feeling well.
Thanksgiving
Mike pressed through his illness and lethargically put the turkey in the oven. I got up early and sneaked into the pharmacy to pick up some miracle drugs that consisted of: Budesondine, cough drops with zinc, aspirin and we already had Listerine.
All during the pandemic I have been receiving messages from Messenger via my phone: what to do and what not to do if you get the “RONA”. I paid attention to one in particular. Dr. Richard Bartlett, from Texas had been experiencing great recoveries with his COVID-19 patients. He said God spoke to him and gave him a simple way to fight COVID-19. On Thanksgiving Day I went to the local CVS pharmacy. I felt a little guilty because what if I really had it? I wore plastic gloves and was delighted to find that I was the only customer in the store. I could not find the Budesonide, but right before I gave up, I said a quick prayer: “Dear St. Jude and St. Rita of impossible causes, please help me find this medicine.” It was a small miracle; when I looked again there on the shelf were two small boxes containing the nasal spray. The unusual thing about this was the empty spaces on both sides of the boxes. Then I looked for the Zinc lozenges; they, too, were in a box. I went home and medicated myself and instructed Mike to follow suit. For most of the day we would look at each other and chuckle in disbelief at the thought of not having our family over. It was a quiet Thanksgiving Day. We did manage to film a segment of “The Reluctant Chef” to lift up our spirits.
Our family was not going to be denied the most fabulous meal of the year. Under normal circumstances I’m never allowed in the kitchen, but this year everything is out of whack. Mike had me cut up a bunch of vegetables for the stuffing, and I also prepared the potatoes. Nothing too fancy this year; normally we have potatoes au gratin, but this year plain mashed potatoes. We took our time and rested in between the cooking.
I texted the girls to bring their own plastic containers when they came to pick up the food. Jenny brought over her famous salad, and Sonja brought her homemade mini-cheesecakes and pumpkin pies. We were all forlorn and words could not express my emotions. I saw the sadness in my son’s eyes as they left.
As we have been doing these last nine months, Mike and I sat down to eat our lovely dinner. I never took off my sweatsuit. I never brought out the crystal or fancy silverware; the gold chargers, too, stayed in the cabinet. This meant that the clean up was going to be a breeze. Well, it was, until I asked Mike to throw out the turkey carcass. We have a sturdy roasting pan but Mike insisted on using the disposable aluminum type. This time he placed a large cookie sheet underneath in case of any messy, greasy spillage. I knew we were in trouble when Mike came in with a thin trash can liner. “Can you help me? Open up the bag while I put the turkey into the bag,” he asked. I replied, “The bag is too thin, and it’s already tearing!” Then it happened: the bag broke and the grease went all over the kitchen floor! The 24- pound turkey produced so much grease, and it splattered on the kitchen cabinets as well. Black Friday was clean the cabinets day. I used 409 and for about three hours I sprayed and removed any excess grease stains. I was so proud of my efforts, but when the natural sun light hit the cabinets I could clearly see where I sprayed the 409; it stained my beautiful cabinets! I yelled, “Mickey! Something happened and I need your help!” This was a Lucie Ricardo moment. Mike was in the middle of a football game and was greatly irritated with the sound of my screeching voice. He stopped watching the game and went to Home Depot to purchase some heavy duty oil to fix the problem. He spent most of Sunday oiling the cabinets.
Black Friday Test
We both welcomed the morning with what we felt was a healing, but to be on the safe side Mike decided to go for a rapid test. I made another appointment to be tested on Sunday. Mike’s test came back negative and it was over…for now anyway. How is it that we are all taking these tests? Who do we trust? How do we know that the test results are not being messed with, to keep us in fear that we need to continually get tested? Who is profiting from all the money from the testing?
I decided to get tested, and this time it was with a real doctor. I asked the doctor what the survival rate was? She replied that it was 99% recovery, with the exception of the elderly and those who suffer from underlying health issues. We are all stuck in this rut of testing and before this pandemic is lifted, don’t be surprised if we’ve gone through at least ten tests per person.
Be Gracious
When someone who you have had contact with has COVID-19, be gracious. Don’t become judgmental. implying that the person was reckless and making them feel like the illness originated from them. The feeling of remorse is already being displayed when they inform you. Be responsible and get tested. Don’t catch psychological COVID-19 because until you’re tested, you don’t know.
My Prayer: Dear Lord, please give us a better understanding as to when this will all be over. Protect us from being overtaken by fear. Teach us to draw closer to You and, when we feel anxious, remind us how much You love us and want to make us whole. Amen.
